GUIDE · FOR UK SOLAR INSTALLERS · 10 MIN READ

How to Start a Solar Panel Business in the UK

MCS ceiling for solar PV

50kW

MCS ceiling for solar PV

MCS fee per installation registered

£30

MCS fee per installation registered

VAT registration threshold

£90k

VAT registration threshold

Minimum employers' liability cover

£5m

Minimum employers' liability cover

A practical checklist for electricians, roofers and sales people setting up on their own. We don't sell certification or training: every rule and fee comes from the official sources listed at the end, and nothing here is legal, tax or financial advice.

Decide what kind of solar business you're starting

Three choices shape everything after them: the certification you need, how you price, and where your customers come from.

• Domestic, commercial or both. Homeowners decide quickly and the work is repeatable; businesses take longer, need a proposal built on their consumption and often a G99 application, but each job is bigger. The rules differ too: residential installs are currently zero-rated for VAT, commercial ones aren't, and MCS covers solar PV only up to 50kW.
• Install yourself or sell and subcontract. Some new businesses fit every job themselves; others sell, design and project-manage, and use a qualified installation team. Either way, the business that signs the contract carries the certification, warranty and consumer duties, so choose before you pick a certification route.
• Which technologies. MCS lets you certify one technology or several. Solar PV with battery storage is a common pairing; battery storage is a separate MCS technology and a separate qualification.

If commercial roofs are the plan, read how to sell commercial solar and the commercial solar survey checklist early: the sales cycle and the site visit are different from domestic work.

The start-up checklist

The order matters: certification bodies assess a finished installation, so the people, processes and insurance have to be in place before you can be certified, and you can't certify a job retrospectively.

Business structure and VAT

GOV.UK says most businesses register as a sole trader or a limited company. A sole trader is the simplest to set up and keep records for, but you are personally responsible for all of the business's debts. A limited company is legally separate from its owners, whose liability is limited to what they invested, though directors have extra rules for taking money out. It is usually easier to move from sole trader to limited company later than the other way round. An accountant will tell you which suits your plans.

VAT matters more in solar than in most trades:

• Registration. You must register once taxable turnover for the last 12 months goes over £90,000, or you expect it to within 30 days. Zero-rated sales count towards that figure.
• Residential work. HMRC's Notice 708/6 zero-rates the installation of solar panels in residential accommodation from 1 May 2023 to 31 March 2027, and batteries were added from 1 February 2024. From 1 April 2027 the reduced rate of 5% applies.
• Commercial work. The relief covers residential accommodation and buildings used solely for a relevant charitable purpose, so installs on business premises don't get it. Business customers are more interested in tax relief on the system itself: see solar panels and capital allowances.

Skills and the MCS business roles

MCS asks a business to show it engages skilled, competent and experienced people in three roles. In a small business or a sole trader, one person can hold several:

• Main Contact handles scheme queries and is the contact for MCS and your certification body.
• Licensee signs the Installer Agreement and accepts ultimate responsibility for meeting the scheme's requirements.
• Technical Supervisor makes sure each installation meets the MCS installation and performance-estimate standards, and signs off every installation. Larger businesses may need more than one.

The recognised solar PV courses are Level 3 awards built for qualified electricians. Our guide on how to become a solar installer compares them, with entry requirements and centre finders. If you're coming from sales or roofing, the usual route is to employ or contract a qualified electrician as Technical Supervisor.

Certification and building regulations

MCS is the UK's quality mark for small-scale renewables. It covers domestic and commercial installations up to 50kW for electrical technologies, including solar PV and battery storage. MCS says certification is required for several government incentives, that many insurers and finance companies look for it, and that an installation can't be certified retrospectively. For solar PV the commercial weight is the Smart Export Guarantee: for PV of 50kW or less, Ofgem's guidance says both the installation and the installer must be suitably certified (MCS or an equivalent) for the customer to be paid for exported electricity.

To apply, you learn the standards (for PV, MIS 3002), build the team above, document your processes, then apply to a certification body. MCS says costs vary between bodies, and on top there is a £30 fee for every installation you register. Our MCS certification guide covers the redeveloped scheme, the five certification bodies for solar PV and their published fees. The MIS 3002 guide explains the installation standard, and the MCS Installations Database guide shows how each job is registered.

Consumer protection changed in 2026. Under the redeveloped MCS scheme, membership of a consumer code such as RECC is no longer mandatory; installers follow the MCS Customer Commitment and buy an approved financial protection product for each customer instead. RECC remains a Chartered Trading Standards Institute-approved code for businesses selling to domestic consumers.

Building regulations are separate from MCS. NAPIT says all microgeneration installations are notifiable work under the Building Regulations in England and Wales. GOV.UK lists the competent person schemes authorised for microgeneration and renewable technologies (APHC, BESCA, Certsure, HETAS, NAPIT and OFTEC); joining one lets you self-certify the work instead of getting building regulations approval for each job.

Insurance and site safety

• Employers' liability. Compulsory as soon as you become an employer, for at least £5 million from an authorised insurer. GOV.UK says you can be fined £2,500 for every day you aren't properly insured, and £1,000 for not displaying the certificate.
• Other cover. Public liability, professional indemnity for design work, tools, vans and stock aren't set by law in the same way, but your certification body, customers and main contractors may ask for them. A broker can quote the bundle.
• Roof work. HSE names falls from edges, through fragile roofs and through rooflights as the main causes of death and injury on roofs. Plan access and edge protection for every job.
• CDM 2015. On domestic jobs the client's legal duties normally pass to you as the contractor (or to the principal contractor if there is more than one). Commercial clients carry their duties in full, but expect to be asked for method statements and risk assessments.

Suppliers, software and the grid

You'll need trade accounts for panels, inverters, batteries and mounting, and a design tool that produces the MCS performance estimate customers are quoted on. Compare UK solar wholesalers and distributors and solar design software for UK installers. Every grid-connected system also needs the network operator's paperwork: small systems are notified under G98, larger ones need a G99 application, and our DNO application guide shows which operator to apply to. Build the DNO lead time into the dates you promise customers.

Winning your first customers

New solar businesses rarely fail on installation quality; they fail on an empty diary. Most start with people they already know and referrals, then pick one channel they can run well:

• SEO for solar companies: slow to start, cheap to keep going.
• Google and Facebook ads: fast, but every enquiry needs qualifying by phone.
• Partnerships and referrals: energy brokers, landlords and contractors who already have the customer's trust.
• Bought leads or booked surveys: compare suppliers in UK solar lead companies compared and read what makes a good solar lead.

Our guide on how to get solar leads compares nine channels side by side. Whichever you choose, judge it on cost per signed contract, not cost per lead.

Once you're certified and want commercial roofs, Solar Surveys UK books qualified commercial solar survey appointments with business owners. You pay per booked appointment, with no retainer, from £400+VAT to £1,000+VAT depending on system size (see how much commercial solar leads cost and how commercial solar leads work).

Starting a solar business: FAQ