Yes, since 27 August 2026 — provided the device meets a specification the government published in July. Before that date it was not lawful, and a great deal of what is still online was written when it was not.
This guide covers what actually changed, what makes a kit compliant rather than merely available, and the three things the new rules did not touch.
What changed on 27 August 2026
A statutory instrument — SI 2026/848, amending the Plugs and Sockets etc. (Safety) Regulations 1994 and the Electricity Safety, Quality and Continuity Regulations 2002 — created a new legal category called a plug-in microgenerator, and allowed an approved plug to be used to feed power into a socket.
It was made on 16 July 2026, laid before Parliament the following day, and came into force on 27 August. The relevant regulation extends to England, Wales and Scotland. It does not extend to Northern Ireland, so if you are reading this from Belfast the old position still applies to you.
Before this, the objection was not that a plug-in system was dangerous in some dramatic way. It was that a socket circuit is designed to deliver power outward, and its protective devices are sized on that assumption. The new specification exists to make a device that is safe to connect the other way — which is why compliance with it, rather than the plug alone, is what makes an installation lawful.
What counts as a compliant plug-in microgenerator
Five things, all of which have to be true at once. Availability is not compliance — a kit being on sale in the UK does not establish that it meets any of these.
On the plug itself: the regulations let a notified body approve a plug that departs from BS 1363 only in respect of the prohibition on connecting a generator. Everything else about BS 1363 conformity still applies. A European kit with a European plug and a travel adaptor is not a compliant device, whatever the listing says.
| Condition | Detail |
|---|---|
| Solar only | Electricity generated by direct conversion of solar energy. Not wind, not anything else. |
| 800 W ceiling | Maximum rated alternating current output of 800 watts. |
| Plug and socket | Intended for connection to the installation by a standard plug and socket, operating in parallel with the distribution network. |
| No storage | It must not import energy from the installation for storage — so a battery is outside the category, except for control and auxiliary functions. |
| Interim Product Specification | Compliance with the Plug-in Solar Device Interim Product Specification version 2, published by the Secretary of State on 16 July 2026. |
Three things the new rules did not change
The change is narrower than the headlines suggested. It made a connection method lawful. It did not make the rest of the job go away.
You still have to tell the network operator
G98 notification still applies, within 28 days of commissioning. The statutory instrument imposes no notification requirement of its own, but it did not remove the one that already existed under the Energy Networks Association process. There is no fee and it is not a permission gate.
You still need permission from whoever owns the building
Nothing in the new rules gives a tenant the right to fix something to a landlord’s balcony, or a flat owner the right to alter common property. That is your tenancy agreement, your title deeds or your lease, and it is unaffected.
The railing still has to hold it
A balustrade is engineered to stop a person falling against it, not to carry a 1.7 m sail in a February gale. Making the electrical connection lawful did nothing whatsoever about the structural question, which is the one most likely to stop your installation.
So why pay to have it fitted?
Fair question, and the honest answer changed on 27 August. Until then we could say an electrician was legally necessary. Now we cannot, so here is the actual case.
Start with VAT, because it is the part people miss. Installed energy-saving materials are zero-rated until 31 March 2027. That relief applies to a system installed by the supplier — a kit you buy over the counter and fit yourself is standard-rated at 20%. Our kit line is £929.52 before VAT. Buy the hardware and you pay VAT on it. Have us fit the whole thing and you pay none.
Which means you are not comparing £1,380 against the kit price. You are comparing it against roughly £1,115, and everything the visit includes — the survey, the wind-load assessment, the mounting, a fixed connection instead of a lead through the door, the electrical installation certificate, and the G98 filing — costs about £264. That is a different decision from the one the install line makes it look like.
It is still your decision. If you are confident about your railing, happy to run a lead, and do not need a certificate to show a factor, buying a compliant kit and plugging it in is now a perfectly legitimate thing to do, and we would rather say so than pretend otherwise.
The comparison above assumes you would pay our product line for the same hardware retail. If you can buy an equivalent compliant kit for less, the gap narrows. We would rather you did that arithmetic with the right numbers than be told the connection is illegal.
Frequently asked
- So can I just buy a kit and plug it in?
- Since 27 August 2026, yes — if it is a compliant plug-in microgenerator: solar only, 800 W or less of AC output, no storage, meeting the Interim Product Specification version 2, with an approved plug. You still need to notify your network operator under G98 within 28 days, you still need your landlord or factor to agree to anything fixed to the building, and you are still the person deciding whether your railing will hold a panel in a gale.
- Are the German kits fine now?
- Only if they meet the UK Interim Product Specification and carry an approved plug. Being legal in Germany and being on sale here are both different questions from being compliant here. Ask the seller which specification the device meets, in writing, and be suspicious of an answer that talks about Europe rather than about the UK specification by name.
- Does this apply in Northern Ireland?
- No. The regulation that permits the connection extends to England, Wales and Scotland only. We do not install in Northern Ireland, so we are not the right people to tell you what applies there — but do not assume this guide covers you.
- Can I plug in a battery?
- Not under this category. A plug-in microgenerator must not import energy from your installation for storage, other than for control and auxiliary functions, so battery systems sit outside the new rules entirely. The consultation was explicit that it did not cover storage.
- Do I still need an electrician?
- Not for the connection, if the kit is compliant and you are plugging it in. We still make a fixed connection on the systems we install, because it is tidier, it means no lead through a door or window, and it produces a certificate — which is the document a factor or a landlord will ask for. That is now a choice rather than a legal requirement, and it is priced as one.