How we use them
We read the primary document rather than somebody’s summary of it. Where a thing is not settled we say so instead of filling the gap.
Three of these are worth the caution that travels with them. Our map of the fourteen licence areas is a working one and has not been checked postcode by postcode, which is why we also give you 105. The generation figures are modelled at one point per region under ideal conditions, so they are a ceiling rather than a forecast. And we name no device as compliant unless we have read its record on the register ourselves.
Terraces climbing the valley side in south Wales. Wales has its own planning rules and they are not England’s, which is the sort of thing these documents settle.
The Plugs and Sockets etc. (Safety) Regulations 1994 and Electricity Safety, Quality and Continuity Regulations 2002 (Amendment) Regulations 2026
SI 2026 No. 848. Made 16 July 2026, in force 27 August 2026. The instrument that made plug-in solar legal, and the source of the 800 watt definition.
Read 13 September 2026. Open the source
Plug-in Solar Device Interim Product Specification, version 2.0
Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, July 2026. The 800 VA and 3.5 A limits, four panels, two in series, 2000 W of panel, the 960 W assessment threshold, IP55 outdoors, the prohibited adaptors, and the requirement to register on the ENA Type Test Register. Version 1.0 is withdrawn.
Read 13 September 2026. Open the source
The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) (Amendment) Order 2026
SI 2026 No. 896. Made 29 July 2026, in force 27 August 2026. The planning definition of plug-in solar, the timber wall, balcony, enclosure and cladding exclusion, and the 200 mm and 400 mm projection limits.
Read 13 September 2026. Open the source
Planning Portal guidance on solar equipment on a house or a block of flats
The summary of the 27 August 2026 change and the twelve month transitional period running to 27 August 2027.
Read 13 September 2026. Open the source
Ofgem decision on Distribution Code modification DCRP/MP/26/02
Dated 11 August 2026. Engineering Recommendation G98 Issue 2 Amendment 1, and the restriction to one device per household.
Read 13 September 2026. Open the source
Plug-in solar: final stage impact assessment
DESNZ, 16 July 2026. The 28 day registration process, the export tariff link, the restriction on combustible cladding and buildings under remediation, and the position of Northern Ireland.
Read 13 September 2026. Open the source
Government response to the plug-in solar consultation
July 2026. Landlord and freeholder consent, lease restrictions, older wiring, and the argument about batteries.
Read 13 September 2026. Open the source
ENA Type Test Register, Connect Direct live device register
Searchable without a login. Manufacturer, model, type, registered capacity and compliance status, with non-compliant devices kept on the list.
Read 13 September 2026. Open the source
Circular 1/2024: householder permitted development rights
Scottish Government. Class 6HA and Class 6HB, the one metre and 500 mm limits, and conservation areas. No mention of plug-in solar.
Read 13 September 2026. Open the source
Planning permission for solar panels
Welsh Government. The 200 mm limit, the flat roof rules that differ from England, and standalone panels. No mention of plug-in solar.
Read 13 September 2026. Open the source
Photovoltaic Geographical Information System
European Commission Joint Research Centre. Every generation figure on this site: 0.8 kWp, 14 per cent system losses, four mountings at one point per region, queried 13 September 2026.
Read 13 September 2026. Open the source
Vendor blogs and retailer compliance tables are not sources. Where two sellers contradicted each other about the same product we recorded the contradiction and left it unresolved rather than picking one.
Not sure it's allowed at yours?
Postcode and where you'd put it. We'll check the rules for you.
- England
- Scotland
- Wales
Start with your postcode
Name, email, postcode, and where you'd put the panel. We reply with whether the rules cover that spot, what it would generate there, and what happens next.
We reply by email. Nothing is sold on and no manufacturer pays us.