Energy Performance of Buildings (Scotland) Regulations 2025: business and regulatory impact assessment
Business and regulatory impact assessment (BRIA) produced as part of our intention to lay updated Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) regulations in October 2025. This BRIA has considered the evidence to understand any potential business and regulatory outcomes from EPC reform.
Footnotes
1 The Energy Performance of Buildings (Scotland) Regulations 2008 (legislation.gov.uk)
3 EPCs are used to fulfil the requirements of Schedule 1, Part 2, of the Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 (Prescribed Documents) Regulations 2008: The Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 (Prescribed Documents) Regulations 2008
4 Domestic Energy Performance Certificates (EPC) reform: consultation - gov.scot
5 Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) reform: consultation - gov.scot
7 Domestic and non-domestic energy performance certificates: review - gov.scot
8 Directive - 2002/91 - EN - EUR-Lex
9 Directive - 2010/31 - EN - EUR-Lex; Directive - 2018/844 - EN - EUR-Lex; Directive - EU - 2024/1275 - EN - EUR-Lex
10 Climate Change (Emissions Reduction Targets) (Scotland) Act 2019
11 Annex Reform of domestic EPC rating metrics to support delivery of Net Zero
12 Transforming EPCs: Consumer Research Insights v2
13 Energy Performance Certificates: An Alternative Approach — Common Weal
14 Elmhurst Responds to 'EPC Reform' Consultation - Elmhurst Energy
15 Letter: Reform of domestic EPC rating metrics to Patrick Harvie MSP - Climate Change Committee
16 Domestic and non-domestic energy performance certificates: review - gov.scot
18 The Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 (Prescribed Documents) Regulations 2008
19 Fuel Poverty (Targets, Definition and Strategy) (Scotland) Act 2019 - which requires the Scottish Ministers to prepare a Fuel Poverty Strategy that must set out their approach to identifying residential buildings where improvements would be required to achieve, by 2030, an energy performance certificate band C or higher.
20 The Scottish House Condition Survey currently reports on Energy Efficiency Ratings for the Scottish dwelling stock calculated under two versions of SAP – the SAP 2009 methodology and the SAP 2012 methodology. Starting with the 2027 wave, EPCs under the SAP 10 methodology will be produced. The methodology will also be revised to incorporate the Home Energy Model in due course.
22 United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020
23Energy calculation as a service (ECaaS): Access the Home Energy Model - GOV.UK
24 Reforms to the Energy Performance of Buildings regime - GOV.UK
25 Domestic Energy Performance Certificates (EPC) reform: consultation - gov.scot
26 Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) reform: consultation - gov.scot
28Ministerial Foreword - Energy Performance Certificate reform consultation: response - gov.scot
29 The Energy Performance of Buildings (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2017
30 The Energy Performance of Buildings (Scotland) Regulations 2008
31 A separate Island Communities Impact Assessment considers specific impacts of the EPC reforms on rural and island communities.
33 Energy Performance Certificate reform: consultation analysis - gov.scot
34 2025 Technical Consultation Analysis report
35 Elmhurst Energy, Bacra, Core Logic (ECMK), Sterling Accreditation, Quidos, CIBSE
36 Reforms to the Energy Performance of Buildings regime - GOV.UK
37 Annex 1 of: Energy Performance Certificate Reform Consultation: Analysis of Responses to Consultation
40 Table 1.1 in Scottish House Condition Survey: 2023 Technical and Methodological Notes
41 See Table 1.26 of SHS Data Explorer and Chart 3 of Characteristics of households by tenure - Households in Scotland by housing tenure: Scottish Household Survey, 2023. Note that since households are interviewed while still in their current property, the length of time at address will somewhat underestimate the length of completed tenure.
42 For example, their old-style EPC could be more than 10 years old, or they may be required to produce a completely new EPC in order to meet eligibility requirements for a funding programme.
43 Average over the last 4 years; see Scottish Housing Regulator Charter indicators and data by outcomes and standards, sum of C3.1 General needs lets, and C3.2 Supported housing lets.
44 Average social sector new build completions over last 4 years; see Scottish Government Housing statistics quarterly update: new housebuilding and affordable housing supply.
45 There were 349,000 properties on the Scottish Landlord Register in July 2025. Multiplying this by 31% (share of households who have been in their tenancy for less than a year, as discussed above), gives an estimate of 108,000 new tenancies per year in the private rented sector. Note that the number of properties on the register may somewhat overestimate the size of the sector, e.g. there may be a delay in landlords deregistering properties that they have disposed of.
46 This is likely to be an overestimate, due to demand for EPCs from other government regulations and funding programmes, which do not form part of the requirements of the EPC Regulations themselves. An annual average of 19,000 EPCs have been issued in the rented sectors over the last four years where the reason given was something other than “rental” (also excluding EPCs where the reason given related to sale or new build), although the properties where an EPC is obtained for another reason will only partly overlap with those where there is a change in tenancy. Note also that, as in the social rented sector, some lets in the private rented sector will not require EPCs due to having a valid new build EPC, although it is not straightforward to estimate the incidence of this as private sector build completion statistics include properties for owner occupation as well as any which will be used in the private rented sector.
47 On average 216,000 total EPCs are issued each year (across all tenures and for all reasons)
48 When EPCs were originally introduced, the number of EPCs where the reason given was “rental” fell from 45,000 in 2009 (the first full year of operation) to 28,000 in 2010 in the social rented sector, while in the private rented sector it fell from 61,000 to 20,000 (note that the private sector was around 30% smaller in 2008 than currently).
49 As of December 2024, there were 27,406 short-term let licences in operation, with 3,305 applications pending determination. See Scottish Government Short Term Lets Licensing Statistics Scotland to 31 December 2024.
50 Reforming EPCs to support households in the energy transition - Which?
51 BRE calls for reforms to EPCs
52 Proof of concept that requiring energy labels for dwellings can induce retrofitting - ScienceDirect
54 Operational delivery of EPCs in Europe | ClimateXChange
55 The Energy Performance of Buildings (Scotland) Regulations 2008
56 The Energy Performance of Buildings (Scotland) Regulations 2008 (legislation.gov.uk)
Contact
Email: EPCenquiries@gov.scot