EPB:  The Regulations

(To view the Regulatory Impact Assessment for Phase 3 (Articles 7, 9 & 10) please see RIA.pdf).

The requirement that a certificate is to be made available to the owner or to the prospective buyer or tenant when a building is constructed, sold or rented out and that air-conditioning systems are to be regularly inspected is introduced by these Regulations.

The Department of Finance and Personnel has taken the lead in preparing these Regulations in co-operation with the Department of Social Development (DSD).

To download a pdf version of

   the Regulations the EPB Regulations.pdf.

   the Explanatory Memorandum E M.pdf

  the Amendment Regulations EPB Amendment Regulations.pdf.

Regardless of the date when an existing dwelling has been placed on the market, from 30th June 2008, the relevant person (the seller) has a legal duty to make available to the prospective buyer or actual buyer a valid EPC at the earliest opportunity . This must be given free of charge.  The earliest opportunity is when the house is marketed or when a person asks to view the house or requests information on the house.

If an EPC has not been provided to the prospective buyer during marketing, it is the responsibility of the home owner to ensure a copy of the EPC has been given to the actual buyer.

An EPC is valid for 10 years and can therefore be reused in further transactions involving that property up to the end of this period.

From 30th December 2008 the relevant person (the landlord) of a building which is to be rented out has a legal duty to make available to the prospective tenant or actual tenant a valid EPC at the earliest opportunity (i.e. before entering into a contract to rent). There is no need to obtain an EPC for an existing tenancy. Once obtained, a certificate remains valid for up to 10 years. If a valid EPC still exists when changing tenants, a new certificate is not required. This applies to both private and social sector landlords and tenants.

It is likely that the more energy efficient properties will be more attractive to potential tenants and purchasers. It is clearly most cost-effective to design for energy efficiency rather than have to upgrade a property once it is constructed. Architects and other designers should therefore be encouraged to specify designs that are energy efficient.

From 30th September 2008 the relevant person (the builder) of a new building (dwelling and non-dwelling) has the same legal duty as the home seller and landlord above. When the construction of a new building is completed, the builder or person responsible for the construction is responsible for obtaining the certificate and providing it to the owner.

This will also apply if a building is converted into fewer or more units and there are changes to the heating, hot water provision or air conditioning/ ventilation services.

When the building is physically complete, the builder must obtain an EPC and provide the EPC to the new owner of the building and notify the local Building Control officers that this has been done. Once Building Control is satisfied that the EPC has been properly produced, it will then be able to issue a final completion certificate.

An EPC must be made available at the earliest opportunity before the conveyancing process commences and, as a constituent document in this process, it must, in any event, be provided as part of the completion of the sale. A valid EPC shall be made available when the prospective buyer requests information about the dwelling or makes a request to view it or when he makes an offer to buy it.

Where the relevant person employs an agent, the agent may make the EPC available to the prospective buyer. If the agreement between the seller and the agent provides, the agent may, on behalf of the seller, procure an EPC from an accredited energy assessor if a valid certificate is not already available. This agreement does not relieve the seller from the legal duty to ensure that a valid certificate is available.

The efficiency of a boiler has a significant impact on the overall energy efficiency of a building. Over 50% of the total energy consumption and CO₂ emissions for buildings come from heating and hot water use. Providing advice to home owners and businesses about the current efficiency of their heating and hot water systems is a vital step in increasing awareness of how the energy costs and CO₂ emissions from heating and hot water costs can be reduced.

The Department, together with industry, are encouraging heating and boiler installers to provide basic energy advice to users of heating and hot water systems about the energy efficiency of their systems. The advice given is in the form of a simple checklist and recommendations that can be included in a service visit and now forms part of industry recommended good practice guidelines.

Many commercial buildings and an increasing number of homes have air conditioning systems. These systems should be maintained carefully and managed in order that they do not consume too much energy. The Regulations therefore introduce measures to ensure that larger air conditioning systems are regularly inspected.

Air conditioning systems where the total system cooling capacity is greater than 12 kW (whether in dwellings or non-dwellings) will be inspected at intervals not exceeding 5 years. (As a rough guide, two 1 m² cassettes would probably have a total system cooling capacity which is less than 12 kW).

A written report will be produced by the energy assessor and will be given to the person who has control of the operation of the system (the relevant person) as soon as practicable after the completing the inspection.

The inspection report will include an assessment of efficiency, a review of sizing and advice on improvements or replacements and alternative solutions.

To download a comprehensive guide to air-conditioning inspections for buildings please see

Please see the following information leaflets:

commencement.pdf for the coming into effect dates;

epcguide.pdf for a practical guide to EPCs for the sale of existing dwellings

penalties.pdf for a guide to the penalty charges contained in the Regulations and

reviews/appeals.pdf for a summary of the review and appeal process.