Heating: new environmental requirements for equipment installed in buildings

The Ministry of City and Housing has published in the Official Journal of the French Republic (JORF No. 0214 of September 13, 2026) Decree No. 2026-863 of September 12, 2026 (NOR VLOL2612626D), which tightens the environmental performance requirements applicable to heating, cooling, and domestic hot water production equipment installed in buildings. The text amends the Construction and Housing Code and sets a maximum threshold for the energy transformation coefficient for this equipment.

A threshold of 79 grams of CO2 equivalent

The decree inserts a new article R. 172-14 into the Construction and Housing Code. To be installed in a new building, heating, cooling, or domestic hot water production equipment must now meet a minimum environmental performance result: the transformation coefficient of each type of energy used by the equipment must be lower than 79 grams of CO2 equivalent per kilowatt-hour of final energy in LHV (Lower Heating Value).

This obligation does not apply to equipment connected to a heating or cooling network, nor to equipment used as backup.

Exemptions for extensions

The threshold is not applicable to building extensions in two scenarios:

• in the event of non-compliance with easements or provisions relating to land law or property law;
• when the works do not include the installation of new equipment and the extension meets one of the following conditions:
  • the surface area of the extension is less than 150 m²;
  • the surface area of the extension is less than 30% of the surface area of the existing building.

The project owner must justify that their building falls under these exemptions via a note prepared by a professional in the installation of heating devices, or by a professional meeting the conditions set by Decree No. 2022-780 of May 4, 2022 relating to energy audits. This note is to be kept for the entire lifespan of the equipment concerned.

A progressive implementation schedule

The new requirements apply to the construction of buildings or parts of buildings according to a staggered schedule, based on the date of submission of the building permit application or the prior declaration:

• as of January 1, 2027 for residential buildings;
• as of January 1, 2028 for buildings under the project management of a public body, within the meaning of Article L. 235-1 of the Energy Code;
• as of January 1, 2030 for other buildings.

Furthermore, Article R. 171-13 of the Construction and Housing Code is amended for existing buildings: the concept of “greenhouse gas emission level of the equipment” is replaced by that of “transformation coefficient for each type of energy used by the equipment.” These provisions apply to works undertaken after January 1, 2027.

Scope for professionals and project owners

The decree, signed by the Minister for Ecological Transition, Biodiversity, and International Negotiations on Climate and Nature, the Minister of Economy, Finance, and Industrial, Energy, and Digital Sovereignty, and the Minister of the City and Housing, requires installation professionals and project owners to anticipate the transition toward low-carbon footprint equipment. For individuals and companies, this text means that heating and domestic hot water equipment must gradually comply with an emissions ceiling, following a schedule that prioritizes new housing first, then public buildings, before extending to the entire building stock.

Official source: Decree No. 2026-863 of September 12, 2026, relating to environmental performance requirements concerning the installation of heating, cooling, or domestic hot water production equipment in a building, NOR VLOL2612626D, published in the Official Journal of the French Republic No. 0214 of September 13, 2026.