Hungary

In Hungary, responsibility for the transposition of the EPBD rests with the Ministry of Energy. ÉMI, as a ministerial background institution, was assigned in 2018 to represent Hungary in the CA EPBD.

In 2023, the Hungarian Government introduced the 9/2023 (V.25) Decree of the Ministry of Construction and Transport about the Energy Performance of Buildings, replacing the previous 7/2006. (V.24.) TNM Decree  from 2006. The Hungarian Government Decree on the Certification of Energy Performance of Buildings was also modified by the new decree.

The new decrees effect important changes concerning the energy performance requirements for buildings as well as for Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs).

Key changes to the requirements:

• While most elements of the requirements system remain, the share of renewable energy is replaced by the life-cycle-based CO2 emission requirement.
• The structure of the requirements has also changed slightly: the general requirement is chosen separately, as well as the requirement specifically for new buildings with nearly zero energy requirements (NZEB) and major renovations.
• The actual requirement system still consists of 3+1 levels, such as U-value of the components of the building envelope, specific heat loss coefficient and calculated annual primary energy use in kWh/(m2 year), completed by the restriction on specific CO2 emissions.
• The first three levels of the requirement system apply to both major renovations and new buildings - with different limit values - but the specific CO2 emission limit value is only required by the regulation for new projects.

Changes concerning EPCs include:

• More details about the substructures are now mandatory in the EPC.
• From 1 January 2024, a new EPC must be issued for all buildings and apartments when they are sold, rented or taken into use.
• In the classification, new energy efficiency categorisation rules and a new scale have been introduced. The requirement for the renewable energy share is replaced by the required value for CO2 emissions, therefore the classification is also adjusted to this.
• 1-letter notation from A to I is reintroduced, where A corresponds to the nearly zero energy level.
• The EPCs are issued by independent experts licensed by the Hungarian Chamber of Engineers and the Chamber of Architects.
• In accordance with EU directives, deep renovations are prioritised, so proposals for this must be developed better than before, and a renovation passport must be issued for each certified building, which includes the schedule of renovation steps.

Besides these changes, new support programmes have been introduced expanding on the earlier state subsidy programmes for retrofits and deep renovation of public buildings. The new KEHOP Plusz programme is aimed at  residential buildings, public buildings and other systems and seeks to promote energy efficiency measures, improve the efficiency of district heating and cooling systems and develop intelligent energy systems, networks and storage, with the aim to create greater flexibility of transmission and distribution networks. The TOP Plusz programme covers the entire country and aims to improve the energy efficiency of municipal buildings and to encourage the use of renewable energy sources.

The energy efficiency tax credit continues as a state subsidy to incentivise SMEs and large companies to invest in energy efficiency and/or renewable energy with the aim of reducing their primary energy consumption.

From July 2024, a new home renovation scheme became available for energy modernisation of family houses built before 1990. The scheme involves co-payment from own resource with a maximum subsidy of HUF 6 million (€15 thousand), half of which is an interest-free loan, and the other half is a non-refundable grant.