Energy Performance Certificate reform consultation: response

Update 17 March 2026

Regulations introducing new-style EPC certificates, validity periods and rating systems in Scotland will not come into force in October 2026 as planned. This applies to both domestic and non-domestic EPCs.
 
This means that the 2008 regulations and current EPC system remain in place until further notice, and planned transitional arrangements are paused. 

This delay is to align with the UK Government’s recently announced delay to the introduction of EPC reforms until the second half of 2027. 
 
Scotland's regulations depend on a new methodology (the Home Energy Model) and assessor training being finalised across the UK. We cannot confirm a new date until the UK Government agrees with industry and the Scottish Government its revised EPC reform timeline. 
 
We expect confirmation after the Scottish Parliament election. The regulations will then need to be amended by Parliament to reflect the revised commencement date. We will update stakeholders and the Parliament as soon as we have more information. 
 
The new Scottish EPC Accreditation Scheme has launched. Regulations that came into effect on 1 January 2026 allow for this. This lets us approve new Approved Organisations (AOs) in advance, giving them the certainty to make any investments needed to meet the new requirements. 

Errata

An errata was published on 30/01/2025 as a result of changes on PDF page 30, correcting the non-domestic Energy Efficiency Rating scale. Figure 6 on page 32 was also updated to reflect the correct scale. The HTML and PDF have been updated to reflect these changes.

An errata was published on 05/02/2025 as a result of changes to PDF Section 7. An error has been corrected in the EPC Operational Infrastructure summary box. The HTML and PDF have been updated to reflect these changes.