This law applies to the following categories of residential and non-residential, public and private, future and existing buildings, including their elements, as well as building units, as follows:
a) individual houses (single-family buildings of different types: individual houses, townhouses, duplexes);
b) housing blocks;
c) office buildings;
d) buildings of educational institutions;
e) buildings of medical institutions;
f) hotels;
g) restaurants, cafes;
h) sports buildings;
i) buildings for wholesale and retail trade services;
j) other types of buildings with energy consumption, including mixed use.
By nearly zero-energy building, the law means all future buildings and (from 27 April 2025) existing buildings that will be put up for sale or leased, which will have to have a very high energy performance high, where almost zero or very low energy demand should be met to a very large extent with energy from renewable sources, including on-site or nearby production.
By energy from renewable sources is understood the energy obtained by capitalizing on renewable non-fossil sources, respectively:
- wind energy,
- solar energy,
- aerothermal energy,
- geothermal energy,
- hydrothermal and ocean energy,
- hydroelectric energy,
- biomass,
- biogas,
- waste fermentation gas (landfill gas) and gas from wastewater treatment plants.
The determination of the energy performance of the building is assessed based on the energy requirement under the conditions of normal (standard) use of the building, which includes, among other things, the energy used for heating, cooling, ventilation and conditioning, the preparation of domestic hot water and lighting. Energy performance is expressed through a numerical indicator of specific primary energy consumption, in kWh/(m2·year), and through an indicator of greenhouse gas emissions, in kg CO2eq/(m2·year).
New electronic registers related to the energy performance determination process will be established and will constitute the National Information System in the field of energy efficiency:
1. The electronic register of energy evaluators,
2. The electronic register of energy performance certificates,
3. The electronic register of heating system inspectors,
4. Electronic register of inspection reports of heating systems,
5. The electronic register of ventilation and air conditioning system inspectors,
6. Electronic register of inspection reports of ventilation and conditioning systems,
When issuing construction permits (urban planning certificates, building permits), local public administration authorities are obliged to ensure compliance with the minimum energy performance requirements established by Law no. 282/2023.
At the design stage of future buildings, with the exception of individual dwellings, the technical, economic and environmental feasibility of using alternative high efficiency systems shall be analyzed and taken into account, subject to availability to them, to which are attributed:
a) decentralized energy supply systems, based on energy from renewable sources;
b) cogeneration/trigeneration systems;
c) centralized or block heating or cooling systems;
d) heat pumps.
Until the initiation of construction works, the beneficiary of the future building is obliged to notify the administrative authority with technical supervision and control functions (Energy Efficiency Agency) regarding the performance of the above-mentioned analysis and to present, at its request, a summary of the respective analysis.
In future or to be reconstructed non-residential buildings that have more than 10 parking spaces, it is mandatory to install at least one recharging point for electric vehicles and the integrated infrastructure for recharging electric vehicles, in particular the electrical cables laid through the conduit, so that it is possible to subsequently install recharging points for every second parking space, if:
a) the parking lot is located inside the building;
b) the parking lot is physically adjacent to the building.
The provisions that all future buildings must be buildings whose energy consumption is almost equal to zero do not apply in specific justified cases, when the cost-benefit analysis during the normal operation period of the respective building is negative, a fact about which the Secretariat of the Community is informed Energy (EU structure).
Energy performance certification is mandatory for:
a) future buildings and new building units;
b) existing buildings and building units that are subject to major renovation;
c) existing buildings and building units that are offered for sale or leased (as of April 27, 2025);
d) existing public buildings with a total usable area of over 250 m2;
If the future building or the existing building undergoing major renovation is sold or leased, the seller or lessor of the building, at the request of the buyer or lessee, is obliged to present the energy performance certificate.
Existing buildings whose owners confirm in a document that they are likely to be reconstructed, extended, modernized or demolished, partially or totally, and the potential buyer or lessee intends to reconstruct, extend, modernize or demolish them, are not subject to energy performance certification, partially or totally.
In the case of individual houses, the energy performance certification can be based on the assessment of another representative building, similar in terms of design, size and energy performance, provided that this similarity can be guaranteed by the energy assessor carrying out the energy performance certification of the building in question.
The results of the energy performance certification of the building are presented by the energy evaluator in the report on the evaluation of the energy performance of the building, based on which the energy performance certificate is drawn up. The energy performance assessment report is attached to the energy performance certificate.
At the stage of drawing up the project documentation of a future designed building, of an existing building undergoing major renovation, it is necessary to obtain the preliminary energy performance certificate for the assessment of its future performance class. The set of project documentation is submitted to the project verifier for approval together with the preliminary energy performance certificate.
The preliminary certificate of energy performance is drawn up using the specialized software developed by the public support institution, which is part of the National Information System in the field of energy efficiency.
Upon completion of the preparation of the preliminary energy performance certificate by the energy evaluator, using the specialized software, the certificate, including the annex, is automatically saved in the database managed by the public support institution and is automatically registered in the Electronic Register of Energy Performance Certificates, with the mention "preliminary certificate".
Before putting into operation the newly constructed building, the existing building after major renovation or the existing building unit undergoing major renovation, the owner is obliged to ensure the assessment of the energy performance achieved for the respective building or building unit and to request the issuance of the energy performance certificate . The preliminary energy performance certificate loses its validity when the energy performance certificate is issued.
The energy performance certificate is issued for a period of 10 years and is kept by the energy assessor, by the company that drew it up and by the owner of the building for the entire duration of its validity.
The building owner must ensure that the energy performance certificate is issued for:
a) future buildings – until they are put into operation;
b) existing buildings and for building units that are for sale or leased - no later than April 27, 2025;
c) existing buildings and for building units that have undergone major renovation - until the renovated building is put into operation;
After April 27, 2025, in the case of the sale of the building or building unit, the owner is obliged to present the energy performance certificate to the potential buyer, including by publishing it, on the appropriate web pages, together with the announcement of the sale. After concluding the sale-purchase contract, the owner is obliged to hand over the respective energy performance certificate to the buyer.
If the building or the building unit is transferred to the lease, the lessor is obliged to present the energy performance certificate to the potential tenant, including by publishing it on the corresponding web pages, together with the announcement regarding the transfer to the lease. After concluding the rental contract, the lessor is obliged to give the lessee a copy of the respective energy performance certificate.
If the building or building unit is sold or leased before it is built, the seller or lessor is obliged to provide the buyer or lessee with information on the results of the assessment of its future energy performance. After putting the building or building unit into operation, the seller or the lessor is obliged to hand over the energy performance certificate to the buyer, and a copy of the energy performance certificate to the lessee.
When selling or leasing a building or building units, the seller or lessor is obliged to indicate, in all types of advertising placed for this purpose, the information on the energy performance indicators specified in the energy performance certificate issued or, in the case of the sale or the location of the building or building unit that has not been built, the information on the energy performance indicators determined following the evaluation of the future energy performance.
Energy performance certificates issued for existing buildings and for building units that are for sale or let are published on the corresponding web pages together with the announcements of the sale or let. In the case of buildings that have undergone major renovations, they are placed in a place visible to the public within 10 days from the date of issue. The publication obligation does not extend to energy performance assessment reports.
The publication of energy performance certificates in cases other than the sale or lease of buildings is voluntary and may become mandatory if that obligation is stipulated in a contract or in a program to improve the energy performance of buildings.
Accessible parts of heating systems or combined heating and ventilation systems with a useful rated output of more than 70 kW, such as the heat generator, control system and circulation pump(s), used for heating buildings, are subject to periodic inspections (with the preparation of a report on the results of the inspection), except for buildings equipped with automation and control systems.
Accessible parts of ventilation and conditioning systems or combined ventilation and conditioning systems with a useful nominal power of more than 70 kW are subject to periodic inspections (with the preparation of a report on the results of the inspection), except for buildings equipped with automation and control systems .
The energy performance certification, heating system inspection and ventilation and air conditioning system inspection services are provided on the basis of the contract concluded between the beneficiary and a company that has employed one or more energy assessors or appropriate inspectors, and the price to be paid by the beneficiary is freely determined, depending on the complexity of the works performed.
The list of companies that provide energy performance certification services, companies that provide heating system inspection services and those that provide ventilation and air conditioning system inspection services is published in the National Information System in the field of energy efficiency.
In the exercise of the profession, energy assessors, heating system inspectors and ventilation and air conditioning system inspectors must be impartial and refrain from conflicts of interest, as well as ensure compliance with confidentiality, as required by law.
The owner of the building is obliged:
a) to ensure that, when designing a future building, a new unit of the existing building or major renovation works, the minimum energy performance requirements are respected;
b) to ensure the evaluation of the energy performance of the future building, of the existing building subject to major renovation or recently built, of the newly designed building unit or of the building unit subject to major renovation;
c) to ensure the periodic inspection of the heating system and the periodic inspection of the ventilation and conditioning system, in the manner and in the cases established by law;
d) to provide the energy assessor, the heating systems inspector and the ventilation and conditioning systems inspector with the necessary documentation and data for carrying out the respective activities, as well as ensuring their access to the building and to the building's technical systems;
e) to present and hand over the energy performance certificate, the heating system inspection report and the ventilation and conditioning system inspection report to the new owner or tenant, in the cases provided by this law;
f) to keep the energy performance certificate, the inspection report of the heating system and the inspection report of the ventilation and conditioning system for the entire period of their validity;
i) publish the energy performance certificate in the manner and in the cases established by law;
j) to present the requested information and documents to the administrative authority with technical supervision and control functions, as well as to ensure the access of its representatives to the building and to the building's technical systems in order to verify the energy performance certificates, the inspection reports of the heating systems and of inspection reports of ventilation and conditioning systems.
Building owners, energy assessors, inspectors of heating systems and inspectors of ventilation and air conditioning systems exercise in good faith the rights and obligations established by law, and for non-compliance with the provisions mentioned above, they bear criminal liability in accordance with the Criminal Code.
In conclusion, the new provisions of the legislation in the field of energy efficiency of buildings will increase the prices of real estates that will hold certificates regarding the minimum energy performance established by law and will accordingly decrease the prices of other existing real estates (which will not meet the energy performance requirements and will require investment in renovation).