"My EPC is valid for ten years, I have time." In 2026, that is the sentence that exposes the most owners to a nasty surprise when they come to sell or let. The French EPC (the DPE, Diagnostic de Performance Énergétique — France's Energy Performance Certificate) does have a ten-year validity as the rule — but it does not apply to every assessment, and a sheet of paper stamped "DPE" in a drawer may well have expired more than a year ago without anyone flagging it. Before relying on it, you need to know which of the three validity regimes applies to your home.
The stakes are concrete: since 1 July 2021, the EPC has been legally binding and conditions the right to let a home rated F or G. Presenting an expired assessment to a buyer or tenant means risking an urgent re-do, a delayed sale, or basing a lease on a label that no longer has legal value. The good news: in many cases you do not need a new paid assessment — a free certificate is enough.
Ten years, but not for everyone: EPCs carried out between 1 January 2018 and 30 June 2021 expired on 31 December 2024 (decree no. 2020-1610 of 17 December 2020). Only EPCs issued from 1 July 2021 enjoy the full ten-year validity (article D.126-19 of the CCH, French Construction and Housing Code).
What this article covers
The three EPC validity regimes and which one applies to your home, the exact legal basis for the ten-year rule, the difference between ADEME's free update certificate and a full paid re-assessment, what to do after renovation works, and the four situations that genuinely require a new EPC.
The ten-year rule and its exceptions
The validity period of a home EPC is set at ten years by article D.126-19 of the French Construction and Housing Code (CCH). This rule applies to any EPC issued under the methodology in force, known as 3CL-DPE 2021 (decree of 31 March 2021), that is, from 1 July 2021, the date the reform came into force. For these assessments, the ten-year period is firm: no provision has shortened it to date.
The complexity lies with EPCs carried out before this reform, under the old "bills-based" method. To clear the stock of older, less reliable assessments, decree no. 2020-1610 of 17 December 2020 set a transitional period that shortened their validity. The table below summarises the three regimes.
| EPC issue date | Method | Validity | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Before 1 January 2018 | "Bills-based" (old) | Expired since 1 January 2023 | Decree no. 2020-1610 of 17 December 2020 |
| 1 January 2018 to 30 June 2021 | "Bills-based" (old) | Expired since 31 December 2024 | Decree no. 2020-1610 of 17 December 2020 |
| From 1 July 2021 | 3CL-DPE 2021 | Full ten years | Article D.126-19 CCH; decree of 31 March 2021 |
The practical consequence is clear: in 2026, any EPC issued before 1 July 2021 has expired, whatever "end-of-validity date" is printed on the old document. Many owners keep an assessment showing a distant expiry — say 2027 or 2028 — without knowing the transitional period invalidated it long before. If you are planning a sale or a letting, this is the first thing to check: an expired EPC cannot appear in a listing, nor in the technical diagnostic file handed to the buyer or tenant.
This enforceability is the core of the system. Since 1 July 2021, the EPC engages the liability of whoever commissions it: the seller (article L.271-4 CCH) as well as the landlord (article L.126-29 CCH). Only the accompanying works recommendations keep a purely indicative value. An expired assessment no longer has that probative force: it no longer protects the seller and no longer allows letting a home subject to the thermal-sieve (passoire thermique) ban timetable (Law no. 2021-1104 of 22 August 2021, the Climate & Resilience Act; CCH arts. L.173-1-1 and L.173-2).
Free certificate or re-assessment: what actually needs redoing?
This is the question that decides whether updating your EPC will cost you nothing or several hundred euros. The answer depends on why you want to update the assessment. Since 2026, two tools coexist, and they are not interchangeable: the free new-label certificate, and the new, paid EPC.
The free certificate: the recalculation at coefficient 1.9
The order of 13 August 2025, amending the order of 31 March 2021 on the 3CL-DPE 2021 method, lowers the conversion coefficient of electricity into primary energy from 2.3 to 1.9 as of 1 January 2026. This coefficient is the factor applied to each kilowatt-hour of electricity consumed (final energy) to obtain the conventional primary-energy consumption — the figure that sets the class from A to G. Mechanically, the electricity share of consumption falls by about 17% (the 1.9 / 2.3 ratio), and according to the government estimate presented when the reform was announced (economie.gouv.fr), around 850,000 electrically heated homes leave classes F and G.
To materialise this change without redoing an assessment, ADEME issues a new-label certificate free of charge on the DPE-Audit Observatory (observatoire-dpe-audit.ademe.fr), from the 13-character number of your EPC. No assessor, no visit, no delay. This certificate is reserved for EPCs issued from 1 July 2021 and still within their validity: it supplements the original assessment without altering its validity period, which remains ten years from its issue date.
⚠️ Warning: the process is free, without exception. Intermediaries are already charging for a so-called "2026 EPC update": no body — neither assessor, agency, nor platform — is authorised to sell you the official certificate. The only channel is ADEME's DPE-Audit Observatory (service-public.gouv.fr).
The new EPC: when the certificate is not enough
The certificate merely recalculates the electricity share of primary energy: it corrects nothing else. A full new assessment, carried out by a certified assessor, is therefore required in three cases. First, when your EPC predates 1 July 2021: issued under the old method and expired, it is not eligible for the certificate, and only a new EPC produces a label calculated at coefficient 1.9. Next, after renovation works that have changed the home's performance (see the next section). Finally, when you suspect a data-entry error in the original assessment — floor area, insulation, or heating type wrongly recorded.
| Your situation | Free certificate | New paid EPC |
|---|---|---|
| Post-July 2021 EPC, electric heating, no works | Enough | Not needed |
| EPC issued before 1 July 2021 (expired) | Not eligible | Mandatory |
| Renovation works done since the EPC | Does not reflect the works | Recommended |
| Doubt about an entered figure (inconsistency) | Does not fix the error | Recommended |
| Gas, oil or wood heating | No effect (coefficient unchanged) | Depends on date / works |
The useful reflex: before any spending, check the issue date and the consistency of your assessment. If your EPC is later than July 2021, no works have been done and you simply want the label at coefficient 1.9, ordering a new assessment is a pointless expense: the free certificate produces exactly the same class.
What to do after renovation works?
It is one of the most persistent misconceptions: no, works do not shorten your EPC's validity, and they do not update it automatically. Facade insulation, replacing a boiler or fitting high-performance windows improve the home's real performance, but the EPC in force stays valid until its ten-year term — with its old label.
No legal obligation requires you to redo the EPC after works. But keeping it as is means forgoing the benefit of your investment: until the assessment is redone, your home stays officially rated according to its previous state. To have the improved performance recognised — and, where relevant, to escape a rental ban based on a now-obsolete label — you must order a new assessment from a certified assessor.
The decision is therefore economic before it is regulatory. If you have just completed a package of works likely to gain one or two classes, redoing the EPC is almost always worthwhile: the updated label raises the property's resale value, conditions the right to let, and materialises the home's "green value". Conversely, minor works that do not change the class do not justify the cost of a new assessment. Before hiring an assessor, it is best to estimate the expected class gain to know whether the operation is worth it.
What to check before redoing your EPC: the issue date of the current assessment (post-July 2021?), the heating energy (electric? coefficient 1.9 may be enough), the nature of the works done (do they change the class?), and the 13-character number on the document — it serves both the free certificate and the online check.
When should you redo your EPC? The four triggers
Beyond the case of works, four situations should prompt you to question your assessment's validity. Recognising them avoids the double penalty: a sale blocked for lack of a valid EPC, or a pointless expense for an assessment that is still good.
Trigger 1 — The expiry is approaching (or already past)
Check the issue date first. If your EPC predates 1 July 2021, it has already expired: a new assessment is essential before any sale or letting. If it is later, calculate its ten-year expiry (article D.126-19 CCH) and plan ahead: an EPC that expires during a sale mandate will have to be redone, and it is better to schedule it before publishing the listing than to stall a preliminary agreement.
Trigger 2 — A sale
To sell, a valid EPC must appear in the listing and in the technical diagnostic file attached to the preliminary contract (article L.271-4 CCH). If your assessment has expired, you must redo it; if it is recent and no works have taken place, it remains valid. With electric heating, attach the free certificate at coefficient 1.9 to display the most favourable label.
Trigger 3 — A letting
Letting follows the same enforceability logic (article L.126-29 CCH), with an added stake: the thermal-sieve ban timetable. A home rated G can no longer be offered for let since 1 January 2025, and class F will follow on 1 January 2028 (Law no. 2021-1104, CCH arts. L.173-1-1 and L.173-2). A valid, up-to-date EPC is therefore the condition for access to the rental market.
⚠️ Warning: an EPC that is "still valid" is not necessarily accurate. Formal validity (less than ten years old, 3CL method) does not guarantee the accuracy of the data entered. A class that is atypical compared with similar homes is a reason to verify the assessment — not to rely on it blindly because it has not expired.
Trigger 4 — A doubt about reliability
If the label seems inconsistent — an A or B class on never-renovated old stock, or very different from comparable homes in the same building — do not simply note that the assessment is "valid". Verify its authenticity (13-character ADEME registration number, QR code) and its consistency before basing a decision on it. A serious inconsistency may justify a counter-assessment by another certified professional.
Check your EPC's validity and consistency
Paste the 13-character number of your EPC: the OneDpe verification tool confirms its authenticity and validity, compares it with similar homes and flags the inconsistencies that warrant a second opinion — before you commit to a sale, a purchase or a letting.
To go further: the complete EPC guide for 2026 and our step-by-step guide to ADEME's free 2026 EPC certificate.
Conclusion
The EPC's ten-year validity is not a universal rule: it applies only to assessments issued since 1 July 2021 (article D.126-19 CCH). Any earlier EPC has now expired, regardless of the date shown on the old document. Before a sale, a letting or after works, the first reflex is to check the issue date, then choose the right tool: ADEME's free certificate for a simple recalculation at coefficient 1.9, a new assessment to record works or correct a figure.
The right reflex: check the assessment's validity and its consistency before relying on it. The OneDpe EPC check confirms in seconds whether your EPC is authentic, still valid and statistically consistent — to avoid both the expired assessment and the pointless expense.
