New York Fire Pit Laws: Codes, Permits and Clearances

Statewide Rules

New York has a statewide fire code, the 2025 Fire Code of New York State (FCNYS), which is part of the Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code. Its recreational fire distances are the model code's: 25 ft for a wood fire, 15 ft for a portable solid-fuel outdoor fireplace. New York City is the exception. State law keeps the city's own fire code in force, and the city's rules for a backyard fire pit are different and much narrower (see City and County Examples). The state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) sets a separate open fire rule, and that rule, not the fire code, is where the spring burn ban comes from.

The Adopted Code

The 2025 FCNYS is the publication "2025 Fire Code of New York State" (publication date July 2025), incorporated by reference in Part 1225. All buildings, structures and premises "shall comply with the provisions and requirements of the 2025 FCNYS," with exceptions for agricultural buildings, construction trailers, certain towers and arrays, and children's camp sleeping quarters.

The Code Council adopted the rule on July 25, 2025, with an amended rule on December 5, 2025. "The effective date of the 2025 NYS Uniform Code is December 31, 2025."

The code's publisher, the International Code Council, describes the 2025 FCNYS as "a fully integrated custom code based on the 2024 International Fire Code" on its digital codes page. Between the notice of adoption and the effective date, the Department of State's notice let a person follow either the 2025 or the 2020 Uniform Code. Beginning December 31, 2025, building permit applications must comply with the 2025 edition. The notice page listed no later Uniform Code edition on the day this page was checked.

The Uniform Code sets a floor that local governments cannot lower.

Under Executive Law Section 379(3), "no city, town, village, county or other municipality shall have the power to supersede, void, repeal, or make less restrictive any provision of the Uniform Code." A city, town, village or Nassau County may adopt higher or more restrictive construction standards only as Executive Law Section 379 provides.

In cities with a population of over one million, "the existing building and fire prevention codes shall continue in full force and effect" unless the Code Council determines that those local provisions are less stringent than the Uniform Code.

That city is New York City, which enforces the New York City Fire Code. Everything else in this section is the state code that applies outside it.

Section 307 as Adopted

Recreational fires shall not be conducted within 25 feet (7620 mm) of a structure or combustible material. Conditions that could cause a fire to spread within 25 feet (7620 mm) of a structure shall be eliminated prior to ignition.

Portable outdoor fireplaces must be used per the manufacturer's instructions and not operated within 15 ft of a structure or combustible material, with an exception for those "used at one- and two-family dwellings." Fires must be constantly attended until extinguished, with a 4-A extinguisher or other approved equipment, such as a garden hose, available.

The code defines a recreational fire as an outdoor fire of no more than 3 ft in diameter and 2 ft in height, burning materials other than rubbish, and a portable outdoor fireplace as solid-fuel-burning. Neither definition mentions gas, and no section read for this page sets a fixed distance for a gas fire feature, so its clearance comes from its listing and your unit's installation manual. All of these distances run to a structure or combustible material, not to a property line. Open burning, as the code defines it, does not include recreational fires.

The code's general open-flame section has one line that a portable gas unit may run into: portable open-flame devices fueled by flammable gases "shall be enclosed or installed in such a manner as to prevent the flame from contacting combustible material" (308.1.6). It does not say whether a portable propane fire pit is one of those devices, so ask your fire code official.

Permits

New York rewrites the model code's permit section, and its open-burning permit keeps the exception for recreational fires.

An operating permit is required "for the kindling or maintaining of an open fire or a fire on any public street, alley, road, or other public or private ground," with this exception: "Recreational fires." Section 105.5.61 adds that an operating permit is required for other activities "at the discretion of the authority having jurisdiction."

The authority having jurisdiction is usually your city, town or village, and sometimes your county (FCNYS 103.1). New York's list of operating permits, 105.5.1 through 105.5.61, has no separate entry for LP-gas, but 105.5.61 lets the local program add one.

The Open Fire Rule and the Spring Burn Ban

DEC's rule starts from a ban and then lists what is allowed.

"Except as allowed by section 215.3 of this Part, no person shall burn, cause, suffer, allow or permit the burning of any materials in an open fire." A camp fire is one "less than three feet in height, and less than four feet in length and width or diameter."

Allowed: on-site burning of downed limbs and branches in towns with a total population under 20,000 "between May 15th and the following March 15th," but not within any village; barbecue grills and similar outdoor cooking devices "when actually used for cooking"; and "Small fires used for cooking and camp fires provided that only charcoal or untreated wood is used as fuel and the fire is not left unattended until extinguished."

So the spring ban is the season left out of the brush exception, March 16 through May 14. It does not reach campfires or backyard fire pits that meet the rule, and DEC says so in its 2026 notice.

The annual statewide ban on residential brush burning "begins March 16 and runs through May 14." Backyard fire pits and campfires "less than 3 feet in height and 4 feet in length, width, or diameter" are allowed, and "Only charcoal or dry, clean, untreated, or unpainted wood can be burned."

DEC's open burning page adds that designated fire towns in the Adirondack and Catskill park areas need a DEC permit for brush burning under the exception, and that "Towns, villages, cities, and counties can pass ordinances that are stricter than Part 215." The section text read for this page is marked current through December 15, 2022. DEC's January 2026 regulatory agenda lists Part 215 among rules that may be proposed for amendment, including the brush exception at 215.3(a); no proposed text was found.

The rule neither names nor exempts gas, and DEC's open burning page says every allowed fire must burn only charcoal or dry, clean, untreated and unpainted wood. The rule defines an open fire as any outdoor fire from which air contaminants go directly into the outdoor atmosphere, and its campfire exception is limited to charcoal and untreated wood. Its cooking exception covers grills only when they are used for cooking. DEC's pages do not say whether a gas fire pit counts as an open fire under Part 215, and no DEC statement on it was found. Ask your DEC regional office or your fire department before you rely on either reading.

Gas Piping and LP-Gas

For a one- or two-family home, the appliance falls under the Residential Code of New York State.

Permanently fixed-in-place outdoor decorative appliances shall be listed in accordance with ANSI Z21.97 and shall be installed in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions.

The state's residential rule, 19 NYCRR Part 1220, does not amend that section. Other buildings use the 2025 Fuel Gas Code of New York State, which the International Code Council lists as the 2024 International Fuel Gas Code amended.

The storage, handling and transportation of LP-gas and the installation of LP-gas equipment "shall comply with this chapter and NFPA 58." LP-gas equipment "shall be installed in accordance with the Fuel Gas Code of New York State and NFPA 58, except as otherwise provided in this chapter."

The code's referenced standards list gives NFPA 58 as the 2024 edition, and Part 1225 does not change it.

We found no statewide license for gas piping in New York. The state law that does address plumbers is written for cities.

"It shall not be lawful in any city of this state" for a person to conduct the business of an employing or master plumber "unless he shall have first obtained a certificate of competency from such board of the city in which he conducts or proposes to conduct such business."

That section does not say whether gas piping counts as plumbing, and its text reaches only cities. No state rule on who may install gas piping in a town or village was found. Work that must conform to the Uniform Code needs a permit from the authority having jurisdiction unless its program exempts that kind of work (FCNYS 105.1.1 and 105.6), so your building department is where to ask about the permit and who may run the line.

City and County Examples

City of New York

New York City enforces its own fire code. The Fire Department (FDNY) says the code was amended by Local Law 47 of 2022 and that the amended code, the 2022 Fire Code, took effect April 15, 2022 (FDNY Fire Code page). Its open fire section starts with a ban.

"Kindling, building, maintaining or using an open fire is prohibited." The exceptions include portable outdoor barbecues under FC 307.5 and "Residential fire pits as authorized by FC 307.7." The commissioner may prohibit an allowed open fire or order it put out where it "will create an undue hazard because of conditions in the surrounding environment."

Residential fire pits may be used "on the premises of a detached Group R-3 occupancy in any R1, R2, or R3 residential zoning district." They must be operated per the manufacturer's instructions, constantly attended, and kept 10 ft from "any combustible waste, combustible material, or any combustible building surface." The Department may prohibit them where conditions create an undue fire hazard, "including during wind conditions or red flag weather."

The same section requires windows, doors and other openings within 25 ft of a fire pit in use to be kept closed to the extent feasible. Section 307.7 is in the Chapter 3 text FDNY posts now; we did not confirm which local law added it or when. The code defines a residential fire pit as "A freestanding vessel in which an open fire, fueled by wood or LPG," is kept outdoors on residential premises for private, non-commercial purposes (FC Chapter 2). Section 307.7.3 lets the Department set fire pit standards by rule, and the FDNY's compiled rules, dated July 1, 2026, contain no fire pit rule. Section 307.2 also requires the written authorization of the agencies with jurisdiction and the property owner for any allowed open fire, and it does not say what that means for a fire pit at your own home, so ask FDNY.

Propane is where the city's rules get tight.

It is unlawful to bring onto "any lot containing a building used for a residential occupancy, any LPG container with a capacity greater than 16.4 ounces (0.465 kg), except as authorized by the commissioner." For Group R-3 occupancies, portable outdoor barbecues may use LPG containers of 20 pounds or 16.4 ounces, with no more than two 20-pound containers per barbecue.

The 20 lb allowance and the LPG chapter's exception (6101.1) are both written for barbecues. The code's definition names LPG as a fire pit fuel, but Section 307.7 does not say what container size a fire pit may use. Ask FDNY before you connect a 20 lb cylinder to a fire pit.

A fixed natural gas fire table is not a residential fire pit as the code defines one. The code's definition of an open flame leaves out "any outdoor stationary decorative gas appliance, which shall comply with the construction codes and applicable provisions of this code," but Section 307 does not list such an appliance among its exceptions to the open fire ban. Ask FDNY and the Department of Buildings about one before you plan it.

Gas lines in the city follow one rule on who does the work.

"On and after January 1, 2020, it shall be unlawful to perform gas work unless such work is performed by" a licensed master plumber, or by a person working under a licensed master plumber's direct and continuing supervision who holds a gas work qualification.

Town of Brookhaven

Brookhaven, in Suffolk County on Long Island, ties its open burning rules to the state code.

"No person shall kindle or maintain or authorize to be kindled or maintained any open burning or bonfire unless in compliance with the Fire Code of New York State and this chapter." The permit section adds: "No permit shall be required to kindle a recreational fire in compliance with the Fire Code of New York State on a residential property."

So a recreational fire in Brookhaven follows the state code's 25 ft from a structure or combustible material, with no town permit. Fires for land management, pest control or a bonfire need an operating permit from the Division of Fire Prevention, issued for a specific date and a window of no more than 24 hours (§30-207).

Bonfires and rubbish fires on private property need a permit from the Chief Fire Marshal and must be "not less than 50 feet from any structure." The section "shall be in no way construed as being applicable to backyard barbecues or recreational fires as defined by the Fire Code of New York State."

The same section lets the Chief Fire Marshal prohibit bonfires and rubbish fires townwide when conditions make them hazardous. The town code also adopts "the codes and standards of the National Fire Protection Association currently in effect," except NFPA 1 and NFPA 5000 (§30-22), which on its text takes in NFPA 58 and NFPA 54.

The town also has its own LPG article, which applies "to all uses of liquefied petroleum gas" (§30-99) and limits where a cylinder can sit.

"No container of liquefied petroleum gas, either in use or in storage, will be permitted inside or on the roof or balcony of any occupied building or in or on any construction attached to an occupied building," except for small torch cylinders and approved temporary use. Storage of containers "must be outside the building, at least 25 feet from any building," in a vented noncombustible structure or a secured metal fence enclosure.

The code names no gas or propane fire pit, so ask the town's Division of Fire Prevention how these rules apply to yours. The eCode360 version read for this page includes legislation through May 28, 2026.

Getting a Permit

What is required varies by city, town, village and county, and the local fire code official decides. This is what the sources above support.

• Wood recreational fire outside New York City. No fire code operating permit, because FCNYS 105.5.36 exempts recreational fires. Your local program can require permits for other activities under 105.5.61. Brookhaven's code says no permit is needed for one on residential property.
• Wood or LPG fire pit in New York City. The Fire Code allows a residential fire pit only at a detached Group R-3 occupancy in an R1, R2 or R3 district. Ask FDNY what written authorization Section 307.2 requires.
• Spring brush ban. It runs March 16 through May 14 and covers brush burning. A campfire or fire pit that burns only charcoal or untreated wood is not part of it under the state rule, but a local ordinance can be stricter.
• Gas line to a fire feature. Ask your local building department. The state code requires a building permit for work that must conform to the Uniform Code unless the local program exempts it (FCNYS 105.1.1 and 105.6). In New York City, the work must be done by a licensed master plumber or a qualified worker under one.
• Propane in New York City. Ask FDNY before you bring a cylinder over 16.4 ounces onto a residential lot for anything other than a barbecue (FC 6105.3).

What This Means for Your Build

Wood, outside New York City. Plan on 25 ft between the fire and any structure or combustible material, and keep the fire within 3 ft across and 2 ft high so it stays a recreational fire. The distance runs to the structure, not your property line. Burn only charcoal or clean, untreated wood, which is what the state open fire rule allows, and stay with the fire until it is out. The spring brush ban does not stop a fire like this under the state rule, but check your town's code and your fire department.

Wood, inside New York City. Only at a detached Group R-3 home in an R1, R2 or R3 zoning district, in a freestanding vessel, 10 ft from combustible material and building surfaces, constantly attended, with nearby windows and doors closed where feasible. An attached house, an apartment building or a lot in another zoning district does not qualify on the code's text.

Gas. No state fire code section we read sets a distance for a gas fire pit, so plan its clearance from its listing and installation manual, and ask your fire code official how your unit is treated. A permanently fixed outdoor gas appliance at a one- or two-family home must be listed to ANSI Z21.97 (RCNYS G2453.1). The state open fire rule does not say whether a gas fire pit counts as an open fire, so ask your DEC regional office or fire department. In New York City, a fixed natural gas fire table is not a residential fire pit as the code defines one, so ask FDNY and the Department of Buildings before you plan one. Run your feature type and fuel through the clearance checker for the published manufacturer minimums, then read your own manual, which controls. Use the gas line sizing calculator to see whether your existing line can feed the burner before you call anyone.

Propane. Outside New York City, LP-gas follows the fire code's Chapter 61 and NFPA 58. Brookhaven's town code adds its own limit: it bars an LPG container, in use or in storage, on a balcony or on any construction attached to an occupied building, which on its face includes an attached deck, so ask the town's Division of Fire Prevention before you set up a propane fire pit there. Inside New York City, the 16.4 ounce limit on residential lots is the tradeoff to weigh: a propane fire pit may need FDNY's authorization for a standard 20 lb cylinder. The propane tank runtime calculator shows how many hours a tank gives you at your burner's output.

Gas lines and connections go through your local building authority, and a licensed tradesperson should do that work. This page covers New York City and the Town of Brookhaven. Your city, town, village, county and fire district can each add rules to what is here, and your fire code official's reading governs.