Changes to Scotland's New Build Heat Standard (NBHS) came into force on 1 January 2025, after completing the parliamentary process. The Scottish Government proposed the changes in November 2024 following a review1.
The New Build Heat Standard requires new buildings to install climate-friendly heating systems instead of oil and gas boilers1. Under the changes now in force, bioenergy heating systems such as wood burners, and peat-burning systems, can be installed in all new homes and buildings, putting temporary arrangements into law and expanding them to apply to all buildings. They can also continue to be used in existing buildings being converted and captured by the Standard. The changes also allow any type of secondary heating in new buildings1.
The government stated that fossil fuel gas and oil boilers remain prohibited as a mains heating system in new-build homes and buildings1.
"These proposed changes have now completed the parliamentary process, and officially came into force on 1 January 2025."
The factsheet records that the NBHS was first published on 22 December 2023, and that a temporary ministerial direction allowing wood burning stoves to be installed in new build homes was introduced on 19 September 20241. The government states that heating Scotland's homes and buildings is one of the biggest contributors to its carbon emissions, and that the NBHS helps ensure new buildings do not contribute to this1.
| Change | Effect |
|---|---|
| Bioenergy systems, including wood burners | Can be installed in all new homes and buildings |
| Peat-burning systems | Can be installed in all new homes and buildings |
| Converted existing buildings | Bioenergy and peat systems can continue to be used |
| Secondary heating | Any type permitted in new buildings |
| Fossil fuel gas and oil boilers | Remain barred as a mains heating system in new builds |
Why it matters for households
For anyone buying or commissioning a new home in Scotland, the mains heating system still cannot be a fossil fuel gas or oil boiler1. What has changed is the range of other systems that can be fitted, and the freedom to add any form of secondary heating. A wood burning stove or a peat-burning system can now be installed as part of a new build, rather than only under the temporary direction that preceded these regulations1.
The practical effect is that a new home's primary heat source is expected to be something other than a gas or oil boiler, with bioenergy and peat systems available as options and secondary heating unrestricted. For a household weighing up energy independence, this widens the choice of on-site fuels, though the Standard itself does not set out running costs, fuel availability or efficiency for any of the permitted systems, and none of these have been reported in the factsheet1.
The rules apply to new buildings and to existing buildings being converted and captured by the Standard1. Homes outside those categories are not addressed by this change.
What happens next
The factsheet gives no further scheduled steps. The Scottish Government directs enquiries about the Standard to 2024heatstandard@gov.scot1. The NBHS sits within the wider Heat in Buildings Strategy1.
Sources1 cited
- New Build Heat Standard - gov.scot, gov.scot