Who is allowed to issue an energy performance certificate?

You are collecting quotes for an energy performance certificate (Energieausweis): one from the chimney sweep, one from an engineering firm, one from someone who calls themselves an energy consultant. This article is for owners facing that choice. Who is allowed to issue one at all is set out exhaustively in a single section of the Act — drawn both more narrowly and more widely than most people assume.

Five questions: who is authorised, how can you tell, what does the registration number say, may your chimney sweep do it, and what happens without authorisation.

#Who is allowed to issue an energy performance certificate?

Authorised to issue is anyone who belongs to one of the five groups in § 88 (1) of the Building Modernisation Act (Gebäudemodernisierungsgesetz, GModG) and — for groups 2 to 4 — meets one of the three requirements of subsection (2).1 The list is exhaustive: anyone who falls into none of the groups may not issue — however much experience they have. When you need the certificate is covered in energy performance certificate duty; here the subject is the person who signs.

The first point is tied to a degree; for crafts and technicians, in practice, the training or the public appointment remain. The rule of thumb “two years of professional experience are always enough” is not correct.

Three routes complete the picture: anyone who has passed the energy consultancy qualification examination (Qualifikationsprüfung Energieberatung) of the Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control is authorised under § 88 (5) GModG even without these core professions.1 Equivalent training from the EU, the EEA or Switzerland is treated as equal.8 And three grandfathered authorisations from 2007 continue to apply to existing residential buildings — two of them lose their basis on 1 January 2027.7

#How can you tell that your issuer is authorised?

You cannot look it up; you have to ask. There is no official certificate of approval and no complete list of issuers; according to the consumer advice centre (Verbraucherzentrale), entries in provider directories are mostly based on unverified self-declarations.15

The restriction to residential buildings is the only limitation by building type: if the training was restricted to residential buildings, the authorisation applies only to them (§ 88 (3) GModG).1 By type of certificate the Act makes no distinction — anyone authorised is authorised for both; which one is permitted is decided by the building (consumption or demand certificate).

#What the registration number says — and what it does not

Every energy performance certificate bears a registration number (Registriernummer). The issuer applies for it at the registration office, stating their name and address, the federal state and postcode of the building, the date of issue and the type of certificate and building (§ 98 GModG).4 Before handing the certificate over, they enter it; it is a mandatory detail just like their name, professional title and signature (§ 85 GModG).3 Where both appear is shown in the energy performance certificate template.

Checks take place nonetheless: a random algorithm draws a sample with a fixed minimum share per certificate type, building type and federal state. Stage 1 runs purely electronically; stages 2 and 3 are carried out by the states’ inspection bodies — up to and including an on-site inspection.12 For this purpose the issuer keeps the documents for two years (§ 99 GModG).5

#May my chimney sweep do it?

Yes, and not as an exception: § 88 (1) no. 3 letter a GModG names “the chimney sweep trade” on an equal footing with the licensed building, finishing and building-services trades.1 That fulfils only the first stage; as with every craft, subsection (2) must be added, usually the training under Annex 11. The Federal Association of the Chimney Sweep Trade cites more than 11,000 qualified energy consultants in the trade.16

Two roles should be kept apart: the fireplace inspection and the checks under § 97 GModG are carried out by the authorised district chimney sweep (bevollmächtigter Bezirksschornsteinfeger) as a sovereign task within the sweeping district. The energy performance certificate is independent of that — a free service, not tied to the district.

#What happens if someone issues without authorisation?

Anyone who issues an energy performance certificate contrary to § 88 (1) GModG commits an administrative offence; § 108 (1) no. 22 provides for a fine of up to 10,000 euros.6 On 1 January 2027 the provision moves to no. 23, the amount stays the same — one of the changes of the Building Modernisation Act.9 It is the issuer who is penalised — you are not liable for their lack of authorisation, but you bear the risk: a document from an unauthorised person is not a proper energy performance certificate, and your duty to present one remains. Which other fines apply is set out under energy performance certificate fines.

The Act divides responsibility for the accuracy of the values: you answer for your data, the issuer for the data they determined themselves (§ 83 GModG).2 They must check your information carefully and may not rely on it if in doubt; both duties are subject to fines. From 1 January 2027 they must additionally walk through an existing building or have suitable photographs provided.9 If the certificate does not meet the requirements, you can demand free rectification and, after setting a deadline, withdraw from the contract.15

#Conclusion: ask about the basis, not the number

The authorisation to issue is regulated exhaustively and attaches to a person, not to a seal. Because there is neither a certificate of approval nor a public register, the written statement of the basis is your only reliable means of checking. The registration number does not replace it.