An EPC is valid for 10 years from the date it is lodged on the register GOV.UK. The certificate shows its own expiry date, and the register entry shows it too, which you can check free by postcode GOV.UK register or with the expiry checker on this site.
What happens when it expires
Usually: nothing. There is no duty to keep a valid EPC on a home you live in. An expired certificate only matters at the next trigger event, which is marketing the property for sale or rent GOV.UK. Plenty of homes sit for years with expired EPCs and no one is in breach.
Landlords are the exception in practice. You need a valid EPC when you market and when you grant a tenancy, and the MEES floor is checked against a valid certificate. If your rental's EPC expires mid-tenancy the position is nuanced: the requirement bites again at re-letting or re-marketing. The landlord ruleset covers the sequencing.
The early renewal trap
Since 15 June 2025, existing-home assessments run under RdSAP 10 Elmhurst RdSAP 10, which replaced assumptions with evidence: measured windows, documented insulation, ventilation detail. A house assessed a second time under stricter inputs can come out lower than its old certificate, particularly where the old score leaned on generous defaults. If your current certificate shows an E and it is still valid, a casual renewal could hand you an F and a letting problem you did not have.
The full decision, situation by situation, is on should I renew my EPC now, with the methodology detail on the RdSAP 10 page.
When early renewal makes sense
- You have completed improvement works and want them scored while invoices are fresh.
- You are about to market and the certificate expires mid-campaign.
- Your old certificate under-recorded features you can now evidence, and you have headroom rather than a marginal score.
Before booking anything, check what the register already holds GOV.UK register: a previous owner's certificate may still have years to run.