The Boiler Upgrade Scheme Explained – (2026 Guide)
How to Qualify for £7,500 Towards an Air Source Heat Pump
If you’re fed up with high energy bills or worried about future gas price spikes, switching to a heat pump might finally make sense – and the UK Government wants to help you do it.
Through the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS), qualifying homeowners and self-builders can get up to £7,500 knocked off the cost of a heat pump installation, directly at the point of sale.
What the Scheme Actually Covers
Right now, the Boiler Upgrade Scheme offers:
£7,500 towards an air source heat pump
£7,500 towards a ground source heat pump
It’s not a loan. You don’t pay it back. It’s deducted from the total cost by your installer once the grant is approved.
You won’t get funding for replacing one fossil fuel boiler with another (like gas to gas), because the scheme aims to cut carbon, not shuffle existing systems around.
What matters most is that your installer handles the application for you – that’s part of why this works smoothly in practice.
The Eligibility Criteria
Let’s break it down in a way that’s easy to check:
1. Do You Own the Property?
You need to be a:
Homeowner
Private landlord
Builder on a self-build project
If you rent privately, you could be eligible with landlord consent, but social housing tenants aren’t covered under this particular scheme.
2. Are You Replacing an Old Heating System?
To qualify, the heat pump usually needs to replace:
✔ Gas boiler
✔ Oil boiler
✔ LPG boiler
✔ Electric storage heaters
If you already have a heat pump or low carbon heating, you normally cannot claim again unless it’s part of specific retrofit pathways.
3. Your EPC Must Be in Order
This is where a lot of people get stuck:
You must have a valid Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) for your home.
If that EPC says you need loft or cavity wall insulation, those measures usually have to be done first before the grant goes through.
We can help check this part for you – it’s worth double-checking before spending on a full survey.
4. The Installer Must Be Certified
Here’s a non-negotiable:
💡 Your installer must be MCS certified and the heat pump must be on the approved product list to qualify.
This isn’t just paperwork – it ensures the system is sized and installed correctly, which affects performance and efficiency.
Simple Eligibility Checklist
Ask yourself:
Do I own (or have control of) the property?
Am I replacing an old fossil-fuel heating system?
Do I have a current EPC?
Will I use an MCS certified installer?
If most answers are yes, you probably qualify.
The only way to know for sure is a quick assessment with your installer – but you can tell most of the above yourself before you call.
Why It’s Worth Considering Now
Here’s the thing: the money isn’t guaranteed forever. Even though the scheme runs into the late 2020s, the government budgets each year and once that allocation is used up, applications pause until the next release.
So acting sooner could mean:
Shorter waiting times
Less risk of funding running out
Better planning with solar or insulation upgrades
Is a Heat Pump Right for Your Home?
Lots of people worry: “Will a heat pump heat my home properly?”
Here’s the honest take:
Modern air source heat pumps are built for UK winters. They’re not perfect in every scenario, and they don’t run the same way gas boilers do — they run longer at lower temperatures. That means:
Better performance if your home is well insulated
Higher efficiency than boilers over time
Lower carbon emissions and more stable running costs
Pairing a heat pump with solar panels makes this even better – you generate your own power to run the pump on sunny days, lowering bills further.
Your Next Steps
Here’s how to make this work without overwhelm:
Check your EPC (we can help with this)
Talk to a heat pump expert
Get a tailored quotation
We handle the grant application
Your grant is deducted from the final price
We’ve helped many homeowners walk through this, and most people tell us the process felt easier than they expected.
Find Out If You Qualify?
If you’re curious whether the Boiler Upgrade Scheme can save you money on a heat pump, let’s take the guesswork out of it.
📞 Contact GreenLinc today for a personalised eligibility check and quote.
