Warm Home Discount (Scotland) Scheme continued to 31 March 2031

The Warm Home Discount (Scotland) Regulations 2026 continue the fuel poverty scheme in Scotland until 31 March 2031. The regulations were made on 30 April 2026 and came into force on 1 May 2026¹. The scheme, established by the Warm Home Discount Regulations 2011 and continued in Scotland by the 2022 Regulations, is renamed the Warm Home Discount (Scotland) Scheme for the period running from commencement to 31 March 2031, described in the regulations as the "scheme period"¹.

The regulations set the prescribed rebate at £150¹. They apply to Scotland only, apart from regulation 1 and regulation 38, which extend to England and Wales and Scotland¹. The Secretary of State made the regulations under sections 9, 10, 14(4) and 31(5) and (6) of the Energy Act 2010, with the consent of the Treasury and the agreement of the Scottish Ministers¹.

The scheme runs in annual "scheme years". The first is the period from commencement to 31 March 2027; later scheme years are 12-month periods beginning 1 April in each year from 2027 to 2030¹. Scheme years 16 to 20 are the years beginning in 2026, 2027, 2028, 2029 and 2030 respectively¹. Suppliers must provide the prescribed rebate to core group customers named in a notice on or before 31 March in the scheme year, or within 30 days of receiving the notice, depending on the type of notice¹. In scheme year 20, a standard rebate notice may not be given after 1 March 2031¹.

Supplier obligations are scaled by customer numbers. A supplier must have had at least 1,000 GB domestic customers on 31 December preceding the start of the scheme year to meet the condition cited in the regulations¹. Spending caps are set as percentages of a supplier's obligation: up to £300,000 for customers supplied with neither electricity nor gas through a pre-payment meter, up to £600,000 in one case and up to £800,000 in another, with a further threshold where the aggregate non-core spending obligation for the scheme year exceeds £7 million¹. Where a supplier notified the Authority of its intention to meet all or part of a failed supplier's non-core spending obligation for scheme year 15, a figure of 10% of S applies rather than 5% of S¹.

Key dates in the regulations include notification of GB domestic customer numbers by 1 February in 2027, 2028, 2029, 2030 and 2031, and a deadline of 30 November 2026 for scheme year 16, with 15 November in the scheme year for other years¹. The regulations also treat someone staying in hospital as continuing to occupy their home if the stay has not exceeded 52 weeks from admission, and make similar provision for temporary residence in a care home or hospice¹.

Why it matters for households

The continuation applies to households in Scotland. The Warm Home Discount is a rebate on electricity bills delivered through suppliers, and the regulations keep the prescribed rebate at £150 for the life of the scheme¹. Because the scheme now runs to 31 March 2031, the rebate is set to be available across scheme years 16 to 20, covering the years beginning in 2026 through 2030¹.

Eligibility turns on being a core group customer or a broader group customer as defined in the regulations, and on the supplier's customer numbers and spending obligations¹. The 1,000 GB domestic customer threshold determines which suppliers carry obligations¹. The regulations also preserve the treatment of people in hospital for up to 52 weeks, and of temporary care home or hospice residents, as still occupying their home for scheme purposes¹.

The scheme is Scotland-only in its operation, so the equivalent arrangements elsewhere in the UK are not set by these regulations¹. Further detail on benefits and on how the scheme operates across the nations is covered in the site's guides.

What happens next

Suppliers must notify the Gas and Electricity Markets Authority of their number of GB domestic customers on the preceding 31 December by 1 February in 2027, 2028, 2029, 2030 and 2031¹. For scheme year 16, the relevant date is 30 November 2026; for other scheme years it is 15 November in the scheme year¹. Rebates to core group customers named in a notice must be provided on or before 31 March in the scheme year, or within 30 days of receipt of the notice, depending on the notice type¹. In scheme year 20, no standard rebate notice may be given after 1 March 2031¹.