Solar Panels and the EPC in Scotland
An Energy Performance Certificate rates a building from A to G, with A the most efficient. It describes the building, using standard assumptions about occupancy, so two households in the same house get the same certificate. It is produced when a new building is completed, when a building is sold, and when a building is let to a new tenant. A certificate is valid for 10 years. After improvements, the owner can choose to commission a new one. This note does not promise that solar will move a home by a named band.
Energy Performance Certificates: overview · Energy Performance Certificates: requirements · correct as of 3 October 2026
What the assessment records
The assessment records the size and layout, the construction, and how the building is insulated, heated, ventilated, and lit. An assessor visits the property. The calculation method is approved for use in Scotland by Scottish Ministers. The certificate includes recommendations. Those recommendations are a prompt for advice. There is no requirement to carry them out. For advice on the home, Home Energy Scotland is the Scottish Government service.
Energy Performance Certificates: assessment process · Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan · correct as of 3 October 2026
The Scottish Government has said the current EPC system stays in place until the amended regulations come into force on 30 April 2028.
Energy Performance Certificate reform updates · correct as of 3 October 2026
Solar and the rating
Whether solar PV changes the rating is part of the calculation for that property: the array, the roof, shading, and the rest of the building. Bring the current certificate to the survey if the rating is the reason for the enquiry. The recommendations section is the starting point. Pentland Renewables surveys the roof and quotes the array. An assessor produces any new certificate. We do not issue the EPC.
The usual order of work is to reduce the heat the house loses, then look at heating, then generation and storage. Loft and wall insulation, where the house can take them, are often the first conversation. A sound roof and reasonable insulation can still make solar the right next job. Solar panels, battery storage, and heat pumps are separate lines on the same form.
Stone houses, batteries, and heating
Edinburgh and the Lothians have many stone houses, tenements, and villas. Some fabric measures are difficult on solid walls, and listed buildings and conservation areas add a planning step. Solar on a suitable roof is still a survey of that roof. The planning rules are on solar planning in the Lothians and solar on listed Edinburgh homes. The city note is the Edinburgh page.
Ask the assessor how a battery is treated in the method in use before you rely on it for the rating. In the house, a battery lets you use more of the solar electricity later in the day. Replacing the heating can also change the modelled rating. The assessor calculates that. A heat pump and solar can be surveyed together.
Selling and letting
When a home is advertised for sale, the EPC rating goes in the advert, and the certificate is part of the Home Report. When a home is let to a new tenant, an EPC is produced. Landlords should read the current Scottish Government guide and check Home Energy Scotland before planning works. Keep the installation paperwork, warranties, and any export arrangement with the house file.
Energy Performance Certificates: requirements · correct as of 3 October 2026
Funding
Home Energy Scotland is the free advice service funded by the Scottish Government. The scheme page lists the measures and the current grant and loan rules. Read that page for the amounts. Where the funding pays for a renewable system, check that the installer and the product are MCS certified. Micro-hydro is the published exception. That check belongs to the application.
Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan · correct as of 3 October 2026
The Home Energy Scotland table covers heat pumps, heat network connections, solar thermal, solar PV-T, biomass, wind, and hydro. Standalone solar PV and a home battery sit outside that list. The PV-T line is limited to solar PV-T systems. Check the page for the home before you rely on funding.
Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan · correct as of 3 October 2026
For energy efficiency funding, the improvement has to be recommended on the EPC. You can apply for a heat pump before an EPC is in place. Amounts stay on the scheme page and on the grants guide.
Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan · correct as of 3 October 2026
0% VAT on solar installs until 31 March 2027. From 1 April 2027 the rate is 5%. The same 0% covers a fitted heat pump and, from 1 February 2024, a home battery fitted at the house.
VAT Notice 708/6 · correct as of 3 October 2026
The survey
The visit records orientation, shading, roof condition, and how the house uses electricity. If you want a battery priced, say so. The workshop is Unit 2b Eastfield Industrial Estate, Penicuik, EH26 8HA. Book a survey through the quote form.
Questions
Will solar move my EPC by a set band?
The assessor calculates that for the house. This page does not promise a band.
Does the old certificate update itself?
An EPC is valid for 10 years. After improvements, the owner can choose to commission a new one.
Energy Performance Certificates: requirements · correct as of 3 October 2026
Is insulation a separate question from solar?
Yes. Where the loft or the walls can take insulation, that is often discussed first. Solar is quoted for the roof that was surveyed.
Can solar go on a listed building?
You need a planning application on a listed building, in its grounds, and in a World Heritage Site. Listed building consent stays in place where it is required.
Does a battery change the EPC?
Ask the assessor how the method in use treats a battery before you rely on it for the rating.
What MCS check applies if I use funding?
Where Home Energy Scotland funding pays for a renewable system, check that the installer and the product are MCS certified. Micro-hydro is the published exception.