Boiler Upgrade Scheme for Landlords and Second Homes: What Qualifies

Quick answer: yes — landlords and second-home owners can claim the Boiler Upgrade Scheme. GOV.UK is explicit that you qualify if you “own the property you’re applying for (including if it’s a business, a second home, or a property you rent out to tenants)”. The grant is £7,500 per property towards an air-to-water or ground source heat pump — rising to £9,000 where that property is currently heated by oil or LPG, for applications between 21 July 2026 and 31 March 2027. Social housing and unfinished new builds are the main exclusions.

What qualifies — the rules that matter for landlords

• The property is in England or Wales and you own it — individual, company or partnership ownership all work (Scotland runs its own scheme; see Home Energy Scotland grants and loans, and Wales also has Nest for low-income households)
• You are replacing a fossil-fuel system — gas, oil, LPG or electric heating
• The property has a valid EPC; deal with any outstanding loft or cavity insulation recommendations with your installer
• It is not social housing and has not already received public funding for a heat pump
• New builds are excluded — unless a genuine self-build (see the self-build grants guide) or a finished new build that was fitted with a fossil-fuel boiler
• One grant per property — a portfolio landlord can claim on each eligible property separately

The mechanics are installer-led: an MCS-certified installer applies to Ofgem, the grant comes off your invoice, and the system must be commissioned within 120 days of the application. Full scheme detail in our Boiler Upgrade Scheme guide.

Second homes and holiday lets

Second homes qualify on the same ownership test — there is no main-residence requirement. For furnished holiday lets the “business” wording in the eligibility list works in your favour: business-owned property is expressly allowed. The practical constraints are operational: the 120-day installation window needs to fit around bookings, and rural holiday cottages on oil or LPG should time applications inside the 21 July 2026 – 31 March 2027 uplift window to collect £9,000 rather than £7,500 — our complete uplift guide covers the timing rules.

Why rural landlords are the biggest winners this year

Off-gas rentals cluster at the bottom of the EPC scale, and oil or LPG heating is exactly what the temporary uplift targets. A typical £10,500–£12,500 heat pump quote on an oil-heated cottage becomes £1,500–£3,500 net inside the window — comparable to a like-for-like oil boiler swap, while moving the property towards the EPC C standard required for rentals by 2030. Public funding you receive also counts towards the proposed £10,000 MEES cost cap, reducing what you must spend from your own pocket before any exemption applies. The wider compliance picture is in our landlord grants and MEES guide.

BUS or the Warm Homes: Local Grant?

You cannot take public money twice for the same heat pump, so per property it is one or the other. Rough rule: WHLG where the tenant qualifies and the property needs fabric work too (its £15,000 + £15,000 structure funds insulation and heating — see WHLG for landlords); BUS where the tenant does not qualify, you want to move quickly, or an oil/LPG property can catch the £9,000 window. Insulation-only funding alongside a BUS heat pump is generally fine — different measure, different scheme.

Practicalities before you commit

• Tenanted installs: plan 2–5 days of disruption, agree access in writing, and brief tenants on running a heat pump — set-and-forget schedules beat on/off blasts
• Running costs land on the tenant: a well-designed system delivering heat at ~7.5p/kWh (SCOP 3.5, July–September 2026 cap) is a genuine letting point against oil, LPG or electric heating
• VAT: heat pump installations are zero-rated until 31 March 2027, for landlords as well as owner-occupiers
• Get the design right: insist on a room-by-room heat-loss calculation; an undersized unit in a draughty rental generates complaints, not compliance

Frequently asked questions

Can a limited company claim?

Yes — the GOV.UK eligibility wording explicitly includes property owned by a business. The installer-led application process is identical; the grant simply comes off the company’s invoice.

Can I claim on several properties at once?

Yes, one grant per eligible property with no stated portfolio limit — each needs its own application, EPC and installation. Practically, installer capacity inside the oil/LPG window is the constraint, so sequence your rural properties first.

Do tenants have to agree?

There is no formal tenant-consent step in the scheme itself, but you cannot realistically survey, install and commission without cooperation — and most tenancy agreements require reasonable notice for access. Bring tenants in early; lower heating bills are an easy conversation.

Is there a deadline?

The scheme runs to March 2030. The only hard date is the oil/LPG uplift: applications from 21 July 2026 to 31 March 2027 get £9,000; before and after, it is £7,500.

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