Who qualifies for the £9,000 heat pump grant?

Owners of properties in England or Wales that are not connected to the mains gas grid and currently heat with oil or LPG, replacing that system with a heat pump installed by an MCS-certified installer, between 21 July 2026 and 31 March 2027. Around 865,000 homes are in scope.

What is the difference between the £9,000 and £7,500 grants?

£7,500 is the standard Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant for air source and ground source heat pumps in England and Wales, funded to 2029/30. £9,000 is a temporary uplift for eligible off-gas-grid homes heating with oil or LPG, running 21 July 2026 to 31 March 2027 only.

Do I apply for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme myself?

No. The scheme is installer-led. Your MCS-certified installer applies to Ofgem for the voucher on your behalf, and the grant is deducted from your quote. You confirm consent when Ofgem contacts you.

Can landlords claim the heat pump grant?

Yes. Landlords and owner-occupiers both qualify for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, including the £9,000 oil and LPG uplift, for eligible properties in England and Wales. New-build properties under construction generally do not qualify.

How much does a heat pump cost after the grant?

A typical air source heat pump installation costs roughly £10,000 to £15,000 before support, depending on property size and system complexity. After the £9,000 uplift, many oil and LPG households pay between £1,000 and £6,000. After the standard £7,500 grant, typical net costs are £2,500 to £7,500.

Does my home need loft or cavity wall insulation to qualify?

No. The requirement to have no outstanding loft or cavity wall insulation recommendations on your EPC was removed in 2024. Good insulation still improves heat pump running costs, but it is no longer a grant condition.

Is the grant available in Scotland or Northern Ireland?

No. The Boiler Upgrade Scheme covers England and Wales. Scotland has separate support through Home Energy Scotland grants and loans; Northern Ireland has its own schemes.

When does the £9,000 grant end?

The £9,000 uplift for oil and LPG homes ends on 31 March 2027. The standard £7,500 grant continues, with government funding confirmed to increase each year to 2029/30 under the Warm Homes Plan.

Can I get the grant for an air-to-air heat pump or air conditioning unit?

Air-to-air heat pumps attract a smaller £2,500 grant for residential properties as of 2026 and do not qualify for the £7,500 or £9,000 amounts, which apply to air-to-water and ground source systems. Check current scheme terms with your installer.

What happens if my installer is not MCS certified?

You cannot get the grant. Only MCS-certified installers can apply for and redeem Boiler Upgrade Scheme vouchers. Always verify certification on the official MCS register before signing anything.

Independent guide · Updated 11 July 2026

The £9,000 heat pump grant: complete 2026 guide

From 21 July 2026, the biggest home heating grant England and Wales has offered goes live for oil and LPG heated homes. This guide covers exactly who qualifies for £9,000 rather than £7,500, the dates that matter, how the installer-led application actually works, and what you will really pay after the grant. We are an independent matching service, we do not sell heat pumps, and this page is updated as the scheme changes.

Grant amounts at a glance

Your current heating	Grant	System covered	Window
Oil or LPG boiler, off the gas grid	£9,000	Air source or ground source heat pump	21 Jul 2026 to 31 Mar 2027
Mains gas boiler	£7,500	Air source or ground source heat pump	Funded to 2029/30
Any (residential)	£2,500	Air-to-air heat pump	Current scheme terms
Any eligible rural	£5,000	Biomass boiler (limited cases)	Current scheme terms

Who qualifies for the £9,000

✓ The property is in England or Wales (Scotland and Northern Ireland run separate schemes)
✓ You own it: owner-occupiers and landlords both qualify; tenants cannot apply, but can pass this guide to their landlord
✓ It is not connected to the mains gas grid and currently heats with an oil or LPG boiler (roughly 865,000 homes)
✓ The work is done by an MCS-certified installer, who claims the voucher for you
✓ Since 2024 there is no insulation precondition: outstanding loft or cavity wall recommendations on your EPC no longer block the grant

Miss the oil/LPG test but heat with mains gas? You still qualify for the standard £7,500, and everything below works the same way.

How the application actually works

The single most misunderstood fact about the Boiler Upgrade Scheme: you never apply for it yourself. It is installer-led from start to finish.

Check eligibility (60 seconds with our checker, or against the list above)
Choose an MCS-certified installer. This choice IS the application; a non-certified installer cannot get you the grant at any price. Verify certification on the official MCS register, or use a service that checks it at source
The installer applies to Ofgem for your voucher. Ofgem emails you to confirm consent; that is your only paperwork
Survey and quote: the installer designs the system and quotes with the grant already deducted
Installation and redemption: the work is certified through MCS and the installer redeems the voucher. Vouchers are valid for three months from issue, so the process is designed to move

What you will really pay

A typical air source heat pump installation in a three or four bedroom home runs roughly £10,000 to £15,000 before support, driven by property size, radiator upgrades, and hot water cylinder work. After the grant:

Install cost	After £9,000	After £7,500
£11,000	£2,000	£3,500
£13,000	£4,000	£5,500
£15,000	£6,000	£7,500

For oil-heated homes the running cost story matters as much as the install: heating oil prices are volatile, and a well-designed heat pump on the right electricity tariff typically undercuts oil over the year. Any honest installer will model your specific numbers at survey; treat anyone quoting savings before seeing your home with caution.

Dates that matter

21 July 2026: £9,000 uplift opens for oil and LPG homes
31 March 2027: £9,000 uplift ends. Surveys and voucher applications take weeks, so the practical deadline is earlier
To 2029/30: standard £7,500 scheme funded, with budgets confirmed to rise each year under the Warm Homes Plan

Where we fit in

We are not an installer and we do not sell heat pumps. We verify installers' MCS certification against the official register, then match each homeowner with one verified local installer, never a call list. It is free for homeowners; installers pay us for qualified introductions, which never affects your price.

Check my eligibility in 60 seconds

Common questions

Can landlords claim?

Yes, for eligible properties in England and Wales. New builds under construction generally do not qualify.

Does the grant cover ground source heat pumps?

Yes, both £7,500 and £9,000 apply to air source and ground source systems. Ground source installs cost more but run cheaper.

What if I am in Scotland or Northern Ireland?

Different schemes: Home Energy Scotland offers grants and loans; Northern Ireland has separate support. This guide covers England and Wales only.

Can I combine the grant with other support?

The BUS voucher cannot be doubled with other public grants for the same measure, but 0% VAT on heat pump installation applies automatically on top.

Is there a catch with free eligibility checkers?

The catch with many is that your details are sold to multiple firms. Ours go to one verified installer only, which is the entire point of the service.

My postcode has mains gas but my house uses oil. Which grant do I get?

Eligibility for the £9,000 is assessed for your property, not your postcode. An oil-heated home without a gas connection can qualify even where neighbours have gas. Your installer confirms this during the voucher application.

Local guides

Starting in Devon, England's most oil-heated county: see the town-by-town guides for local context, or go straight to the eligibility check.