Boiler Upgrade Scheme: Grant Eligibility Guidance

The Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) gives a grant of £7,500 towards the cost of an air source or ground source heat pump for properties in England and Wales. Eligible off-gas-grid homes currently heated by oil or LPG can claim £9,000 until 31 March 2027. See Ofgem's Boiler Upgrade Scheme guidance for full details.

The scheme is government-funded and run by Ofgem, but your installer manages the application for you.

Our role as your installer

As an MCS-certified installer, Solaris Energy handles the whole grant process for you. To start the formal application, we need you to sign and return your installation quote, either digitally or by hand.

Here's how we manage your application:

• Eligibility checks: we carry out due diligence at quote stage to confirm your likely eligibility.*

• Documentation: we take the lead on gathering the evidence needed to support your application.

• Direct savings: we pass the full BUS grant discount on to you at quote stage.

• Voucher redemption: we submit the redemption request as soon as your heat pump is commissioned.

• Record keeping: we store all application records securely for six years, as the scheme requires.

Your role as our customer

By asking us to apply on your behalf, you confirm that:

• Accurate information: the information you give us for your application is accurate to the best of your knowledge, and you accept full responsibility for it.

• Property ownership: you own the property (a home or a small business property).

• Existing heating (retrofit only): you can provide a valid Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) or other evidence of the existing fossil fuel heating system. This does not apply to new self-builds.

• Installation capacity: the installation is up to 45 kWth (kilowatts thermal), which covers most homes.

• Consent: you consent to us making the application on your behalf.

• Payment responsibility: if your BUS voucher is rejected or revoked, or funding is withdrawn at any stage, including after your heat pump is commissioned, you will pay Solaris Energy the full cost of the installation, including the £7,500 or £9,000 grant amount.

Are you eligible?

We recommend reading Ofgem's Boiler Upgrade Scheme guidance to check you are eligible before we start.

There are two application routes, Retrofit and Self-build. Below is a summary of what we'll need from you for each.

Retrofit: replacing an existing fossil fuel system

This route is for a heat pump installed in an existing property that currently has a fossil fuel heating system.

An eligible property must:

• Be registered independently from any other property

• Have its own Council Tax

• Have its own in-date EPC, or other evidence of the current fossil fuel system

• Have its own UPRN (Unique Property Reference Number). You can find it at FindMyAddress or by asking your local authority

• Be in your name (if it's in more than one name, only one is needed for the application)

An eligible property cannot be:

• A building you have built or converted in your garden, or an annexe or converted barn on your land, unless it is registered independently (with its own Council Tax, UPRN and EPC)

Also eligible:

• Business-owned properties. Ofgem will ask for further evidence of ownership and won't confirm eligibility until it has investigated.

• Second homes and rental properties. You don't have to live in the property.

• Non-domestic properties. Ofgem's published guidance here is limited, so it will advise case by case.

Evidence

You'll need one or more of the following:

• An in-date or expired EPC

• A utility bill dated within the last three months

• Recent fuel receipts

• Photos of the existing heating system

This list is not exhaustive. Ofgem assesses every application individually and may ask for more.

Off-gas-grid grant: £9,000

Eligible off-gas-grid homes in England and Wales currently heated by oil or LPG can claim £9,000, a £1,500 uplift on the standard grant. The uplift is temporary and runs until 31 March 2027. It's designed to help rural households switch to heat pumps.

The uplift applies to air source (air-to-water) and ground source heat pumps. Your property must also meet the standard Retrofit criteria above, and Ofgem may ask for extra evidence of your current oil or LPG heating. We'll confirm what's needed when we assess your property.

Self-build: a heat pump in a new property

An eligible property must:

• Be registered independently from any other property

• Have its own UPRN (Unique Property Reference Number). You can find it at FindMyAddress or by asking your local authority. For a new build, a UPRN should have been issued at planning approval stage

• Be in your name (if it's in more than one name, only one is needed for the application)

• Be built using personal funds, not business funds

• Be owned by you as the first owner

An eligible property cannot be:

• Owned by a business

• Funded by a business

• Part of a housing development

• A building you have built or converted in your garden, or an annexe or converted barn on your land, unless it is registered independently (with its own Council Tax, UPRN and EPC)

Also eligible:

• Second homes and rental properties. You don't have to live in the property, but it must be owned in your personal name and built with personal funds.

Evidence

You'll need one or more of the following:

• Title deeds, TP1 transfer document or contract of sale

• Self-build VAT exemption, self-build loan or mortgage documents

• Invoices for substantial structural materials or labour, such as foundations or a timber frame

• Trade or builder invoices or contracts

• Self-build insurance documents

• Financial records, such as bank statements showing invoices paid from personal accounts

• Planning permission or building control documents

This list is not exhaustive. Ofgem assesses every application individually and may ask for more.

Change of use and conversions

• Being converted now: if a non-residential building (such as a barn) is being converted and has no existing heating system, Ofgem treats it as a new build and the Self-build rules apply.

• Already converted: if the building was converted to a home previously and you can prove it (for example, an existing EPC showing a fossil fuel heating system), Ofgem treats it as a Retrofit.

The role of Ofgem

Ofgem carries out thorough ownership and eligibility checks on every application. This includes an identity check (not a credit check), so we'll need your full name when we apply.

Ofgem checks the UPRN register, the EPC register, your local planning portal and the Council Tax register to confirm the property is eligible. It may also ask for Land Registry documents, bank statements or proof of ID to confirm ownership.

For self-build applications, Ofgem will ask for invoices for substantial structural work to show you funded the build yourself. It may ask for bank statements to confirm these were paid from personal, not business, accounts.

The decision to approve or reject an application lies solely with Ofgem. Solaris Energy carries out due diligence early in the process, but we can only advise, not guarantee, and we have no say in the decision.

Important information

If you have any concerns about whether your property meets these criteria, please tell Solaris Energy as soon as possible so we can try to find a solution.

Solaris Energy has made over 100 successful BUS grant applications since the scheme began in 2022. However, we cannot guarantee your application will succeed. By proceeding with an installation quote, you accept that you are liable for the full cost of the installation, including the £7,500 or £9,000 grant amount, if your application is rejected.