We're writing to provide an urgent update regarding the recent release of VE 2025 and its current status for lodging Energy Performance Certificates (EPC's) in the UK.
As many of you are aware, we have a long-standing and rigorous process for ensuring our Virtual Environment software is officially approved for EPC lodgement by the UK government's appointed body. This approval is essential for our software to be recognised by accreditation schemes (like CIBSE, Stroma, Elmhurst, etc.) and for the EPCs you produce to be accepted by the government's central register.
We recently released VE 2025, and while we have completed our thorough internal validation and submitted the software for approval as per our usual procedures, we have encountered an unforeseen and significant delay in the official approval process.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), through its appointed approval body, is currently unable to process new software approvals. We have been informed that the contract with their approval body has lapsed, and discussions are ongoing. This means they are unable to provide formal approval for VE 2025 at this time. We anticipate that a resolution, including the re-establishment of the approval process, may not occur until July at the earliest.
As a direct consequence of this delay, VE 2025 (v7.0.29) is not yet listed on the approved software lists maintained by accreditation schemes. If you use VE 2025 to generate an EPC and attempt to lodge it, you will receive a message from your accreditation portal indicating that the software version is not approved, and your EPC will not be accepted by the central register.
For any projects requiring an EPC lodgement in the immediate future, you MUST use VE 2024. VE 2024 utilises the previously approved software version (v7.0.28, SBEM v6.1.e.2) and can be used to lodge EPCs without issue.
Most users will have VE 2024 installed alongside VE 2025. If you need to complete and lodge an EPC, please use your VE 2024 installation.
We understand this situation is extremely frustrating and may impact your project timelines, and we sincerely apologise for any inconvenience this causes. We are in continuous communication with the MHCLG and their appointed approval body, and we are doing everything within our power to expedite the approval of VE 2025.
Your experiences highlight the direct impact of this delay on industry professionals. If you encounter difficulties lodging an EPC produced with VE 2025, we encourage you to contact your respective accreditation scheme and enquire about the status of VE 2025 approval. Your feedback to them will reinforce the urgency for a swift resolution from the MHCLG.
We will provide further updates as soon as we have concrete information regarding the re-establishment of the approval process and the expected timeline for VE 2025's official approval. Please monitor this forum, our website, and your VE software's "Check for Updates" messages for the latest information.
Thank you for your understanding and continued support