Cute Young Brunette Girl Undresses Her Sleeveless Shirt Near The Staircase With Wooden Handrails At Home

The distance between the wall and handrail gripping surface is also governed by local code with the most common requirement being 1½" (38 mm) minimum. The National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA) requires that the distance between the wall and handrail be a minimum of 2¼" (57 mm).
The 1992 Americans With Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG) stated that there was to be an absolute dimension of 1½" between a handrail and a wall. This was actually a "grab bar" dimension which was part of the 1986 ANSI A117.1. ANSI changed the notation to 1½" minimum in 1990. This was not corrected in ADAAG until 2004 which now calls for a 1½" (38 mm) clearance.
Codes also generally require that there be a 1½" clearance between the underside of the handrail and any obstruction -- including the horizontal bracket arm. There is an allowance however for variations in the handrail size -- for every 1/2" of additional perimeter dimension over 4", 1/8" may be subtracted from the clearance requirement.