Landlord EPC Requirements: Staying Compliant in 2026

The short answer

To let a property in England or Wales today it must be rated EPC E or better. That has been the minimum since 01/04/2018 for new tenancies and 01/04/2020 for all existing ones, and it has not changed.

The confirmed next step is EPC C by 01/10/2030, on a single date for every privately rented home, with a £10,000 cost cap. That was announced on 21/01/2026, but the legislation to enact it has still not been made, so the detail can move.

If you own a Victorian conversion off Northcote Road or a terrace near Bellevue Road, the 2030 requirement is the one that will cost you money, and the work needed on solid wall stock takes years to plan rather than months. This guide covers what applies now, what is coming, and the traps in between.

Where the line sits, and where it moves to

ABC DEFG

Minimum from 01/10/2030 Minimum todayCannot letCannot let

Bands F and G cannot lawfully be let at all unless a valid exemption is registered. From 01/10/2030 the same becomes true of D and E, subject to the new cost cap and exemptions.

What landlords most often get wrong

You do not have to renew an EPC that expires mid-tenancy. The duty is triggered by marketing and letting, not by the calendar. Government is currently consulting on changing that, which tells you it is not the rule yet.
Listed buildings are not automatically exempt. The exemption only applies where compliance would unacceptably alter character or appearance, and it is assessed measure by measure.
Most holiday lets need no EPC at all, because the three-part test usually fails on who pays the energy bills.
Your rating can fall on reassessment, even if you have improved the property. The assessment method changed on 15/06/2025 and now demands evidence where it used to assume.
You cannot simply register a high cost exemption. You must first spend up to the cap and install everything achievable within it.
The section 21 link is gone. The old rule that an EPC was needed to serve a valid section 21 notice ended when section 21 was abolished on 01/05/2026.

Do you actually need an EPC?

This is the question most landlords get wrong, in both directions. The obligation is triggered by events, not held continuously.

You need a valid EPC when

You put the property on the market to let. The rating must appear in the advertisement
You grant a new tenancy. A copy must go to the tenant free of charge
You put the property on the market to sell

You do not need one when

An existing tenancy simply continues, even if the certificate expires
The property falls into one of the statutory exclusions below
The building is genuinely due for demolition, with all consents in place

If the EPC expires during a tenancy

You are not required to obtain a new one. The duties in the Energy Performance of Buildings Regulations attach to marketing and to granting a tenancy. A tenancy that is simply carrying on is neither.

How we know this is still the position

In its partial response of 21/01/2026 the government said it was working to refine the position on requiring a new EPC when an existing one expires for privately rented buildings. It would not be consulting on introducing that requirement if it already existed.

Much of the guidance saying otherwise is a hangover from the old section 21 rules, which required an EPC to have been served before a valid notice could be given. Section 21 was abolished on 01/05/2026, so that route no longer creates any renewal trigger. Our guide to the Renters' Rights Act covers what replaced it.

There is a further consequence that is technically correct and practically unwise. If no EPC is legally required because no trigger point has arisen, there is no F or G rating on record, and the minimum standard does not bite. That is the law. It is also a trap: the moment you market or re-let, a new certificate is needed and any substandard rating crystallises immediately, with no time to do the work. Treat it as a quirk to understand, not a plan to follow.

When no EPC is required at all

Statutory exclusions from the EPC requirement, England and Wales
Category	The detail that matters
Listed and protected buildings	Only in so far as compliance would unacceptably alter character or appearance. Not a blanket exemption. See below
Seasonal residential	Used, or intended to be used, for less than four months a year, or with expected energy use below 25% of all-year use
Standalone small buildings	Under 50 square metres of useful floor area, and genuinely standalone
Temporary buildings	Intended time of use of two years or less
Places of worship	Buildings used for worship and religious activities
Low energy industrial and agricultural	Workshops, industrial sites and non-residential agricultural buildings with low energy demand
Due for demolition	Requires all three: the building is suitable for demolition, the site is suitable for redevelopment, and all planning, listed building and conservation area consents are in place

Listed buildings: the most misreported rule in this area

The exemption applies in so far as compliance would unacceptably alter the building's character or appearance. It is not automatic and it is judged against the specific measures required. If the property could be improved without unacceptable alteration, for example loft insulation that nobody can see, an EPC is required.

Government guidance itself describes the blanket-exemption reading as a common misunderstanding. And note that conservation area status alone is not an exemption, which matters a great deal around Clapham Common and Wandsworth Common where a lot of stock sits in conservation areas without being individually listed.

Holiday lets

An EPC is required for a furnished holiday let only where all three of the following are true.

It is let for holiday purposes under short term arrangements of less than 31 days to each occupier.
It is let for a combined total of four months or more in any 12 month period.
The occupier is responsible for the energy costs.

In practice most holiday lets fail the third limb, because the owner pays the utilities as part of the price. That is why the majority currently need no EPC. Short-term lets are also excluded from the 2030 minimum standard, though the government has said that position will remain under review, and separately intends to bring short-term rentals into the EPC regime regardless of who pays the bills. Neither of those changes is law yet.

HMOs and flats

Houses in multiple occupation

An EPC is needed for a self-contained dwelling. Let the whole house on a single joint tenancy and you need one. Let individual rooms on separate tenancies with shared facilities and, under current rules, you do not.

This is changing. Government has confirmed it will require a valid EPC for the whole HMO when a single room is let, which brings room-by-room HMOs into the minimum standard. Not yet law. Our HMO investment guide covers the wider picture.

Flats

A self-contained flat is a building unit designed for separate use, so it needs its own EPC when sold or let. The certificate is assessed on that flat.

Responsibility sits with the flat's landlord, not the freeholder or the managing agent, which is worth knowing if you own one flat in a converted house and are waiting for someone else to sort it out.

The rule today: EPC E, and what happens if you cannot reach it

Since 01/04/2020 it has been unlawful to continue letting a property rated F or G, whether or not there has been a change of tenant. The obligation applies to assured, regulated and domestic agricultural tenancies.

If your property is below E you must improve it, up to a spending cap.

£3,500 Current cost cap to reach EPC E, including VAT In force since 01/04/2019

£5,000 Maximum total civil penalty per property under the current rules Per property, across all breaches

5 years Length of most registered exemptions Third party consent and new landlord differ

10 years EPC validity, unchanged and confirmed to stay Confirmed 21/01/2026

You cannot skip straight to the exemption

A common and expensive misreading is that if the works would cost more than £3,500 you can simply register a high cost exemption and carry on. You cannot. You must install everything achievable within the £3,500 first, and only then register the exemption for the shortfall. Registering without spending is not compliance.

The cap is also reduced by anything you already spent on unregistered energy efficiency improvements between 01/10/2017 and 31/03/2019. And if third party funding covers the full cost of reaching E, the cap does not apply at all.

Exemptions and the register

Every exemption must be registered on the PRS Exemptions Register. An unregistered exemption is not a defence, however genuine the underlying reason.

Exemptions from the current EPC E requirement
Exemption	Lasts	Evidence you need
High cost	5 years	Three quotes from qualified installers showing the cost exceeds £3,500, plus written confirmation you are satisfied it would be exceeded
All relevant improvements made	5 years	Details and installation dates of every measure carried out
Wall insulation would damage the property	5 years	Written opinion of a relevant expert that cavity, internal or external wall insulation would damage the fabric or structure
Third party consent refused	5 years, or the end of the tenancy if the tenant refused	Correspondence showing consent was required, sought, and refused or given on unreasonable conditions
Property devaluation	5 years	Report from an independent RICS surveyor confirming the measures would reduce market value by more than 5%
Recently became landlord	6 months	The date and circumstances. Applies only on specified events such as inheritance or a court order, not an ordinary purchase

One point to check with your solicitor: industry guidance almost universally states that exemptions do not transfer to a new owner, and the six month grace period for a new landlord only makes sense if that is right. We could not find that stated expressly in the regulations or in government guidance, so if you are buying a property with a registered exemption, do not assume you inherit it. Our guide to buying with a tenant in situ covers the wider due diligence.

Penalties

Civil penalties for breaching the current minimum standard
Breach	Maximum
Letting a substandard property for less than three months	£2,000
Letting a substandard property for three months or more	£4,000
Registering false or misleading information	£1,000
Failing to comply with a compliance notice	£2,000
Maximum total per property	£5,000

Alongside or instead of a fine, the local authority can publish the breach on the exemptions register, including the address and, where the landlord is not an individual, the name. For a portfolio landlord that publication is often the more painful penalty.

The government has said it intends to raise the maximum to £30,000 per breach under the new regime. That would require primary legislation and we could not find any Bill doing it, so treat £30,000 as a stated intention rather than a current risk.

The assessment method changed, and ratings can fall

This is the most consequential thing on this page for anyone planning ahead, and it gets almost no coverage.

On 15/06/2025 the domestic assessment methodology moved to RdSAP 10. Assessors now collect substantially more data: glazing type and condition, heating efficiency evidenced from model numbers or manufacturer data rather than assumed defaults, the presence of smart controls, refined floor area and insulation modelling, and revised heat loss calculations for flats and terraces.

The old approach

Where evidence was missing, the software applied default assumptions. Those defaults were often generous, and a property could score better than its actual specification justified.

Since 15/06/2025

Evidence beats assumption. Where you cannot document a system's specification, it may be rated lower than before. Ratings can fall on reassessment even where the property has been improved.

What to do before you commission a new EPC

Existing certificates are unaffected and remain valid for their full ten years. The risk arises the moment you have the property reassessed.

Assemble the paperwork first: boiler make, model and installation date, insulation certificates, cavity wall guarantees, glazing specifications and any smart control details. Handing that file to the assessor is the difference between being credited for work you have already done and being defaulted down for it.

The 2030 EPC C requirement

Announced on 21/01/2026, this is the change that will require actual spending on most Victorian and Edwardian stock.

15/06/2025 Happened
Assessment methodology moved to RdSAP 10. Evidence now beats assumption.
01/10/2025 Happened
Spending from this date counts towards the future £10,000 cap. Work done now is not wasted.
21/01/2026 Confirmed
Government response published. EPC C equivalent, single date of 01/10/2030, £10,000 cap, dual metric standard.
During 2027 Expected
The statutory instrument is intended to come into force. It has not been laid or made as at 15/08/2026, so this is an intention rather than a date.
Second half of 2027 Delayed
Reformed EPCs launch, with four headline metrics replacing the single rating. Originally targeted at October 2026 and pushed back on 09/03/2026.
Before 01/10/2029 Grace period
Properties rated C or above before this date are treated as compliant until that certificate expires or is replaced.
01/10/2030 The deadline
All privately rented homes in England and Wales must meet the new standard or have a registered exemption.
2035 Announced
The reformed Decent Homes Standard applies to the private rented sector. It absorbs the energy requirement rather than adding a separate one.

What the standard actually requires

It is not a single number. The new approach is a dual metric standard, and the order matters.

Step one, mandatory

Fabric performance

You must first invest towards measures that bring the property up to a primary fabric standard. Insulation and the building envelope come before anything else.

Step two, your choice

Heating system or smart readiness

Once the fabric standard is met, or a valid exemption is registered against it, you must then invest towards either the heating system metric or the smart readiness metric. Whichever suits the property.

An honest caveat, because nobody can currently tell you the answer

The reformed EPCs sit on a new underlying model, and the thresholds that will define compliance have not been published. Nobody, government included, can yet tell a landlord precisely what physical work will meet the 2030 standard on a given property.

What you can do now is deal with the obvious fabric measures, keep every receipt from 01/10/2025 onwards, and avoid committing to expensive specification decisions until the thresholds are confirmed.

The cost cap and what counts towards it

The proposed 2030 cost cap
Element	Position
Maximum spend per property	£10,000
Average expected spend	Around £5,400
Counts towards the cap	Improvement measures, EPC assessment costs, and third party funding from government schemes
Does not count towards the cap	Boiler Upgrade Scheme funding, which is expressly excluded
Spending window	Costs incurred from 01/10/2025 count
Low value properties	Where the property is worth under £100,000, the cap is the lower of 10% of value or £10,000

The Boiler Upgrade Scheme point is worth understanding, though it rests on a policy document rather than legislation. As drafted, a landlord could take £7,500 of heat pump grant and still have the full £10,000 of their own spending headroom available. Confirm it in the statutory instrument before relying on it.

Read the grace period carefully

A property rated C or above before 01/10/2029 is compliant until that certificate expires or is replaced. That is not permanent compliance. If your C-rated EPC runs out in 2031, you will be reassessed against the new dual metric standard at that point, not grandfathered indefinitely. Check your expiry dates now.

The solid wall problem on our patch

Much of the stock across SW11, SW12, SW17 and SW18 is solid wall Victorian and Edwardian construction, and this is where the arithmetic becomes uncomfortable.

Indicative costs of common measures. Figures from the Energy Saving Trust, 2026, for Great Britain
Measure	Typical cost	Note
Loft insulation, topping up to 270mm	£600 to £750	Lowest cost measure that shifts the rating. Insulating a bare loft costs and saves more
Cavity wall insulation	Around £2,200	Payback typically five years or less, where you have cavities at all
Internal solid wall insulation	Around £12,000	Three-bed semi. Loses internal floor area and disturbs cornicing
External solid wall insulation	Around £15,000	Three-bed semi. Rarely consentable on a period frontage in a conservation area
Full A-rated double glazing	Around £4,800	Semi-detached, replacing single glazing
Air source heat pump	Around £12,000	Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant of £7,500 available

A single solid wall measure at £12,000 to £15,000 exceeds the entire £10,000 cap on its own. For a great many period properties around the commons the realistic route to 2030 compliance will therefore be: do the affordable fabric measures, spend up to the cap, and register an exemption for the remainder.

The proposed exemption list includes a specific solid wall insulation exemption alongside the cost cap exemption, which suggests government has anticipated exactly this. External insulation is in any case rarely consentable on a period frontage in a conservation area, and internal insulation on a Victorian flat means losing floor area and disturbing original detailing that is part of the property's value.

Funding available to landlords

Energy efficiency funding, position as at 15/08/2026
Scheme	Status	Landlord eligibility
Boiler Upgrade Scheme	Open, England and Wales	Yes. £7,500 for an air or ground source heat pump, £5,000 biomass, £2,500 air-to-air. One grant per property
Warm Homes: Local Grant	Open, England only, to 31/03/2028	Yes, with conditions. One home fully funded per landlord, then a 50% contribution for each additional home
ECO4	Runs to 31/12/2026	Limited. Depends on the tenant's circumstances rather than yours
Great British Insulation Scheme	Closed 31/03/2026	No longer available

The Warm Homes: Local Grant has conditions worth knowing before you get your hopes up. The property must be in bands D to G, and an F or G property needs a registered exemption to qualify. The tenant must independently meet a household eligibility test. And because it is delivered by individual local authorities, availability depends on whether your borough secured an allocation, so check the current Wandsworth or Lambeth position rather than assuming.

An additional £1,500 heat pump supplement is available until March 2027 where a property is heated by oil or LPG with no mains gas connection, which is rare in inner London but not unheard of.

Improvement spending is generally deductible against rental income as an allowable expense, which improves the real cost of the work considerably. Our guide to allowable expenses for rental income covers the distinction between repairs and improvements, which matters here and is not always intuitive.

What has changed, and what to stop believing

Commonly published claims that are now wrong
Still widely published	The position now
You need a valid EPC to serve a section 21 notice	Section 21 was abolished on 01/05/2026. The link no longer exists
You must renew an EPC when it expires mid-tenancy	Not required. Government is consulting on introducing it, which confirms it is not the rule yet
Listed buildings are exempt from EPCs	Conditional only, judged measure by measure. Government calls the blanket reading a common misunderstanding
EPC validity is dropping to five years	Ten years retained, confirmed on 21/01/2026, for both existing and reformed certificates
New style EPCs arrive in October 2026	Pushed back on 09/03/2026 to the second half of 2027
EPC C applies to new tenancies from 2028, then all from 2030	The two-stage timetable was dropped. A single date of 01/10/2030
The cost cap for EPC C will be £15,000	Confirmed at £10,000
Existing EPCs were downgraded by the RdSAP 10 change	They were not. Only assessments from 15/06/2025 use the new method, though ratings can fall on reassessment
Scotland already requires EPC E for private lets	Scotland has no domestic minimum standard in force. Proposals only
The Great British Insulation Scheme can fund the work	It closed on 31/03/2026

Scotland and Wales

Wales: the same rules as England

The regulations are an England and Wales instrument, so the EPC E minimum applied on the same dates, the £3,500 cap and the £5,000 penalty ceiling are identical, and the 2030 EPC C requirement expressly covers both nations.

Welsh landlords can access the NEST scheme for eligible improvements.

Common error

Scotland: no minimum standard at all

There is currently no minimum energy efficiency standard in force for private rented homes in Scotland. Standards exist for the social sector only.

Proposals would introduce a fabric-focused band C measure for new tenancies from 2028 and all tenancies by the end of 2033, but these remain draft. We could not confirm whether the regulations have been laid.

What to do now

Check the expiry date on every certificate you hold. Anything expiring between now and 2031 will be reassessed against the new standard rather than grandfathered.
Build the evidence file before you reassess. Boiler model and install date, insulation certificates, cavity guarantees, glazing specification, smart controls. Without it, RdSAP 10 may rate you down.
Do the low cost fabric measures now. Loft and cavity insulation are the best value per point and spending from 01/10/2025 counts towards the future cap.
Keep every receipt from 01/10/2025. This is the single easiest thing to get wrong and the hardest to reconstruct later.
Do not commit to expensive specification decisions yet. The thresholds defining compliance have not been published.
Establish whether the property is solid wall, because that determines whether you are heading for compliance or for an exemption.
Register any current exemption properly. An unregistered exemption is no defence.
If you are buying, check the EPC and any registered exemption before exchange rather than after.

Working out what this means for a specific property

The honest position on 2030 is that the destination is confirmed and the route is not. What that means for any individual flat or house depends on its construction, its current rating, when the certificate expires and what has already been done to it.

We manage and let property across Battersea, Clapham, Balham, Wandsworth and Earlsfield, most of it period stock with exactly these constraints. If you want a view on where a particular property stands and what it would realistically cost to improve, book a market appraisal and we will go through it. Our property management and landlord services pages set out how we work.

Frequently asked questions

What EPC rating do I need to rent out a property?

EPC E or better in England and Wales. That has applied to new tenancies since 01/04/2018 and to all existing tenancies since 01/04/2020. Letting an F or G rated property is unlawful unless you have registered a valid exemption. From 01/10/2030 the minimum rises to an EPC C equivalent.

Can I rent a property with an EPC of E?

Yes. E is currently the minimum, so an E rated property can be let lawfully today. Plan ahead though: from 01/10/2030 an E will no longer be sufficient, and the work needed to move a period property from E to C can take years to specify, consent and carry out.

Can I rent out a property with an EPC of F or G?

Not unless you have registered a valid exemption on the PRS Exemptions Register. Letting a substandard property without one risks a penalty of up to £4,000, and up to £5,000 in total per property, plus publication of the breach. If the property is below E you must first spend up to £3,500 including VAT on improvements, install everything achievable within that, and only then register an exemption for the shortfall.

Do I need an EPC to rent my house?

Yes, in almost all cases. You need a valid EPC before you market the property, the rating must appear in the advertisement, and a copy must be given to the tenant free of charge. The exceptions are narrow and include genuinely listed buildings where compliance would unacceptably alter character, standalone buildings under 50 square metres, and properties used for less than four months a year.

Do I need a new EPC if it expires during a tenancy?

No. The obligation is triggered by marketing the property and by granting a tenancy, not by the certificate's expiry date. A tenancy that is simply continuing is neither. Government is currently consulting on whether to require renewal on expiry, which confirms it is not the rule at present. You will need a valid certificate again the moment you market or re-let.

Do holiday lets need an EPC?

Only where three conditions are all met: the property is let for holidays in periods of less than 31 days, it is let for a combined four months or more in any 12 months, and the occupier is responsible for the energy costs. Most holiday lets fail the third condition because the owner pays the utilities, so most do not currently need one.

Do HMOs need an EPC?

Under current rules, only where the property is let as a self-contained dwelling, such as the whole house on a single joint tenancy. Individual rooms let on separate tenancies with shared facilities do not currently require one. That is set to change: government has confirmed it will require an EPC for the whole HMO when a single room is let, which will also bring those properties into the minimum standard.

Are listed buildings exempt from EPC requirements?

Not automatically, and this is the most commonly misunderstood rule in this area. The exemption applies only in so far as compliance would unacceptably alter the building's character or appearance, judged against the specific measures required. If the property can be improved without unacceptable alteration, an EPC is required. Being in a conservation area is not an exemption at all.

How much does an EPC cost?

Typically £60 to £120, varying by property size, type and location. London prices sit at or above the top of that range, so get a local quote rather than relying on a national average.

Why did my EPC rating go down after a reassessment?

Most likely because of the methodology change on 15/06/2025. Assessors now require documentary evidence of things that were previously assumed, such as heating system efficiency and glazing specification. Where you cannot produce evidence, the system may rate the element lower than the old defaults did. Gather your paperwork before commissioning an assessment.

Is the 2030 EPC C requirement actually law yet?

No. It was confirmed as government policy on 21/01/2026, but the statutory instrument had still not been laid or made as at 15/08/2026, with an intention to bring it into force during 2027. The compliance date, the £10,000 cap and the dual metric approach are all stated policy rather than enacted law, and the thresholds defining compliance have not been published.