Summary
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Details
- European Union
The EPBD is also mandatory for all EU Member States.
Each country must integrate its requirements into national building laws, energy codes, and permitting systems. The Directive imposes legally binding obligations to:
Set minimum energy performance standards for new and existing buildings.
Ensure all new buildings are zero-emission by 2030.
Introduce Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) for all buildings sold or rented.
Develop national renovation plans to improve the worst-performing building stock.
Phase out fossil-fuel heating incentives by 2025.
Exceptions and Flexibility
While mandatory, the EPBD allows certain exemptions and national flexibility:
Historical and protected buildings may be exempt from full renovation requirements to preserve cultural value.
Temporary buildings or religious structures may fall outside the full energy performance scope.
Small independent buildings (<50 m²) are often excluded from some reporting or certification obligations.
Member States can adapt timelines or intermediate targets based on local conditions and renovation capacity.
Deep dive
What’s Required
The EPBD sets binding obligations for EU Member States and involved stakeholders to enhance the energy performance of buildings. It requires governments to adopt national frameworks that set minimum energy performance standards for new and existing buildings, ensure that all new buildings reach zero-emission or nearly-zero energy building (NZEB) standards, and implement energy performance certificate (EPC) schemes for buildings offered for sale or rent.
Additionally, Member States must develop long-term renovation strategies, promote the use of renewables in buildings, and upgrade building systems (heating, cooling, ventilation) to improve efficiency. The latest revision focuses on deep renovation of the worst-performing buildings, digitalisation (building logbooks), and one-stop shops for renovation.
Important Deadlines
8 May 2024 – The revised EPBD (Directive (EU) 2024/1275) was published in the Official Journal and entered into force.
29 May 2026 – General transposition deadline: Member States must transpose the revised EPBD into national legislation by this date.
1 January 2025 – Specific provisions (e.g., phase-out of fossil‐fuel heating incentives) must be implemented by this date.
31 December 2026 – Submission of final national building renovation plans by Member States.
Public/other milestones – From 2028 for public buildings and 2030 for all new buildings, must be zero-emission, and other renovation targets for stock improvement apply in the subsequent years.
Current Status
The EPBD is already in force across the EU and has been substantially revised. The most recent version was adopted in 2024 and now enters its final transposition phase. Member States are currently preparing to integrate their provisions into domestic law. The directive is part of the EU’s drive to decarbonise the building stock by 2050 and form part of the broader European Green Deal, focusing heavily on building renovations, digitalisation, zero-emission targets, and streamlined renovation support.
Penalties for Non-Compliance
The EPBD itself does not set uniform EU-wide sanctions. Instead, it obliges each Member State to establish “effective, proportionate and dissuasive” penalties under national law for breaches of the transposed national measures derived from the directive. These may include administrative fines, restrictions on building permits, suspension of building licences, or other corrective measures for failure to meet energy performance requirements, certification obligations, or renovation strategy targets.
Examples of Known Violations
As of now, there are no widely publicised EU-level enforcement cases specifically under the EPBD that detail imposed penalties. Most enforcement occurs at the national or regional level within Member States and tends to be embedded within building permit or national energy code enforcement regimes.
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