Knowledge/Licences and standards/Victoria's rental minimum standards, date by date

Victoria's rental minimum standards, date by date

Three dates to know. From 1 March 2027, failed hot water or heating gets replaced with electric, and a new lease needs efficient cooling, 4 star showerheads and ceiling insulation. 1 July 2027 brings draught proofing. 1 July 2030 brings cooling in every rental, lease or no lease. And existing evaporative already meets the cooling standard.

Source: energy.vic.gov.au, electrification and efficiency standards for buildings Last checked 24 September 2026 Trade reference. Not advice on an individual job.

First deadlines: 1 Mar 2027on failure, and on a new lease
Draught proofing: 1 Jul 2027on a new lease
Cooling in every rental: 1 Jul 2030lease or no lease
Existing evaporative: Compliesmeets the cooling standard

The timeline

Source: energy.vic.gov.au. The government's page says the standards are "phased in over 4 years, beginning from 1 January 2027", with exemptions where going electric or complying is impractical or too costly. That 1 January date is for new buildings. For rentals, the first deadline is 1 March 2027.
Date	Requirement	Trigger
1 Mar 2027	Failed hot water or heating appliance replaced with a heat pump water heater or an efficient electric reverse cycle air conditioner (RCAC) in the main living area	On failure
1 Mar 2027	Energy efficient cooling in the living area, plus 4 star showerheads	New lease
1 Mar 2027	Ceiling spaces with no insulation upgraded to R5.0, installed by an accredited professional	New lease
1 Jul 2027	Draught proofing on external doors, windows and wall vents	New lease
1 Jul 2030	Efficient electric cooling in the living area of all rental properties	Every rental

The line worth telling every landlord

There's one line tucked into the cooling rule that matters a lot if you install or service evaporative. The government's wording asks for "energy efficient cooling in the living area", and adds that if evaporative cooling is already installed, it meets the standard.

So existing evaporative satisfies the 1 March 2027 rental cooling standard. It doesn't have to come out and be replaced with a split.

A lot of the trade assumes the opposite. It means this rule won't kill evaporative service work. It's also a citable answer to a question plenty of landlords are about to ask you.

Owner occupier versus rental, the bit people mix up

Source: energy.vic.gov.au. For owner occupiers, the rule only covers hot water. Gas ducted heating isn't covered, so it can be replaced like for like with no end date.
Appliance	Owner occupier	Rental
Gas hot water	Must go electric on failure from 1 Mar 2027	Heat pump water heater on failure from 1 Mar 2027
Gas space heating, including ducted	No requirement to upgrade. Replace like for like	Efficient electric RCAC on failure from 1 Mar 2027
Gas cooktop	No requirement to upgrade	No requirement to upgrade

People mix this up all the time, so it's worth being able to say it in one line. Owner occupier, hot water only. Rental, hot water and heating.

Draught proofing a house with an open flued heater

The 1 July 2027 draught proofing rule covers wall vents, and an open flued gas heater needs fixed ventilation to burn safely. Separately, the Building and Plumbing Commission (formerly the VBA) lists evaporative cooler vents among the things that get sealed in energy efficiency work. That's sealing the vents, not taking the cooler out.

If you're doing rental compliance work in 2027, get your head around that combination before somebody seals up a house with an open flued heater still in it.

Not sure what your licence actually covers?

It's one of the most common things contractors get wrong, and it's usually because somebody told them the wrong thing years ago and it stuck.

Tell Kevin what work you're doing and he'll tell you what it needs.

Who this is for: small and medium HVAC contractors in Victoria. If you're a homeowner after a rebate or a repair, you need a licensed contractor, not us, and yours can point you the right way.

Review date: 1 March 2027. Figures in this area change without much notice and this page carries some that will go stale. Every number above is dated and sourced so you can check it yourself. If you find something out of date here, tell us and we will fix it.