There has been lots of speculation on the introduction of Plug-in-Solar or Balcony Solar in the UK following an announcement by the UK Government earlier this year. However there were a number of technical and safety issues to overcome before plug-in-solar could be legally used in the UK. It looks like we now have a date of the 27 August 2026 where plug-in-solar is legalised, so let’s examine what that means and how you can choose a safe system and avoid what will undoubtedly be a plethora of potentially unsafe online market place sales.
What law changed?
The law that legalises Plug in Solar in the UK is The Plugs and Sockets etc. (Safety) Regulations 1994 and Electricity Safety, Quality and Continuity Regulations 2002 (Amendment) Regulations 2026
This law was Made 16th July 2026, Laid before Parliament 17th July 2026, and is Coming into force 27th August 2026.
The government has moved extremely fast on this. Following a 14 day consultation period the legislation was made on the same day as the consultation closed.
What does this mean?
It means that a Compliant Plug in Solar Product can be plugged into a UK 13 amp socket from the 27th August 2026.
There are some restrictions. It must generate electricity directly from sunlight. So this excludes plug-in-battery systems. Given announcements made by Octopus that they are looking to introduce plug-in-battery systems next year, it’s likely that they will eventually be legalised too. But as it stands only plug-in-solar devices will be legalised on 27 August 2026.
- The maximum rated inverter output cannot exceed 800W, 800VA, or 3.5A.
- It must be intended to connect to a standard low voltage UK household installation using a plug and socket.
- It must operate in parallel with the electricity network
- It must not be designed to import electricity to the house for the purposes of storing for use later. So no plug in battery storage currently.
- A kit can contain up to 4 panels, a maximum of 2000W panels with a maximum of two panels per string.
- The kit must connect to an eligible final power circuit. This excludes things like extension leads, multi-way adapters.
- The interim regulations permit one kit per eligible final connection circuit. Whilst in theory this allows one plug-in-solar on an upstairs circuit, and one on a downstairs; G98 network connection rules currently only allows one system per household. This is perhaps a future pathway.
What is a compliant product?
This is the really important part to avoid a potentially dangerous system.
Devices must comply with the Plug-in Solar Device Interim Product Specification Version 2.0, July 2026
There are many microinverters for sale with a three pin plug on that are not legal. Only tightly defined properly approved products are allowed. It must be supplied as a complete kit with a factory fitted British plug.
To search for compliant products use the ENA Connect Direct Type Test Approval register and filter for ‘Plug-in-Solar’. At the time of writing there are no approved products. It is likely that manufacturers will be rushing to get their products approved in the next few weeks.
There are many online stores currently advertising ‘Plug-in-solar’ kits. At the time of writing none of these are legal to use.
How much will it cost and how much will I save?
It’s estimated that a typical Plug-in-Solar system might cost £299.
If an 800W microinverter plug-in-solar can be oriented to a similar angle as a rooftop solar system then it might typically generate 600kWh per year.
If all that electricity is used, which for most it will be as this is quite a low generation level, at a unit rate of 20p/kWh you could save
£0.2/kWh x 600kWh = £120 per year. So perhaps 3 years payback.
It should be noted that a typical rooftop system is rated at 3.68kW. So the generation from a plug in solar system will be much less, and in winter will hardly be noticeable. A rooftop solar system is designed to last 25 years+ whereas as a plugin system by its nature might be moved around and is potentially therefore less durable.
Nonetheless if you are in a flat with a balcony or have other restrictions it might allow you to generate some usable solar and save some money, mainly in the summer months.
Will my whole house be supplied?
Yes. Solar microinverters generate at a slightly higher voltage than the incoming grid supply. Anything your house side of your electricity meter will be supplied by any solar you generate. So if your solar is plugged in upstairs it will supply devices plugged in downstairs or in the garage. All solar works this way.
Can I get paid for export?
Not presently. Firstly it’s unlikely that you will generate enough solar to actually export electricity. This may change if a pathway to allow more than one plug in solar system is introduced. Currently only MCS certified installations can easily get solar export payments. Octopus do have a paid pathway for non-MCS export payments.
However this is a rapidly changing legislative area so as plug-in-solar rolls out we are likely to see further changes including a pathway to plug-in-battery storage.
Why hasn’t plug-in-battery storage been legalised?
I suspect this is related to potential safety concerns particularly regarding the siting of battery storage. BS7671 is introducing restrictions on the siting of battery storage with relation to escape routes – i’ll cover this in a separate post.
However it seems likely that plug-in-battery storage will be facilitated next year.