The set of EPB standards play a key role to support the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) of the European Union. The EPBD aims to promote the improvement of energy performance in buildings across the EU, taking into account outdoor climatic and local conditions, indoor climate requirements, and cost-effectiveness.

The most recent revision of the EPBD was published in May 2024, continuing the EU's commitment to reducing energy consumption and enhancing building performance. The directive has evolved significantly since its first version in 2002, with each revision strengthening the role of standardization in achieving consistent implementation across member states.

Revision of the EPBD in 2024

On December 15, 2021 the European Commission published its proposal for the revision of the EPBD:

"Buildings are one of the largest sources of energy consumption in Europe. Boosting their energy efficiency would cut emissions, tackle energy poverty, reduce people's vulnerability to energy prices and support the economic recovery and job creation. The Renovation Wave Strategy (MEMO) presented in October 2020 set out measures aiming to at least double the annual energy renovation rate by 2030.

The revision of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) is an essential element of this Strategy. It upgrades the existing regulatory framework to reflect higher ambitions and more pressing needs in climate and social action while providing Member States with the flexibility needed to take into account the differences in the building stock across Europe."

The revised EPBD was published in May 2024.

EPBD Timeline

2002

First EPBD

The first version of the EPBD was published as Directive 2002/91/EC, establishing the initial framework for improving energy performance in buildings across the EU.

2010

EPBD Recast

In the interest of clarity and effectiveness, the EPBD was recast as Directive 2010/31/EU, introducing more specific requirements and guidelines.

2018

EPBD Amendment

A revised version of the EPBD was published as Directive 2018/844/EU, introducing a stronger role for EPB standards and more ambitious targets.

2024

Latest Revision

The latest revised EPBD was published in May 2024, further strengthening requirements and aligning with the EU's climate neutrality objectives.

Revised EPBD in 2018: Stronger Role of the EPB standards

EU Member States are encouraged to consider applicable standards, in particular from the list of EPB standards. The EPBD aims to promote the improvement of the energy performance of buildings within the European Union, taking into account outdoor climatic and local conditions, as well as indoor climate requirements and cost-effectiveness. (Article 1).

Direct Reference to Standards

"Member States shall describe their national calculation methodology following the national annexes of the overarching standards, namely ISO 52000-1, 52003-1, 52010-1, 52016-1, and 52018-1, developed under mandate M/480 given to the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN). This provision shall not constitute a legal codification of those standards."

— EPBD Annex 1, point 1 (2018)

Enhanced Transparency

Although the new EPBD does not force the Member States to apply the set of EPB standards, the obligation to describe the national calculation methodology following the national annexes of the overarching standards will push the Member States to explain where and why they deviate from these standards.

Five 'overarching' EPB standards explicitly mentioned in the EPBD:2018

The EPBD lists five EPB standards as 'overarching'. The meaning of the terms 'overarching' in the new EPBD and in the modular structure of the set of EPB standards only partly overlap. In the modular structure the term overarching refers to the standards that deal with the overall energy performance of a building (module M1), while other modules deal with the building as such (M2) or specific technical building systems or services (M3 etc.)

ISO 52000-1

The overarching EPB standard, providing the general framework of the EPB assessment. It establishes a systematic, comprehensive and modular structure for assessing the energy performance of new and existing buildings (EPB) in a holistic way.

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ISO 52003-1

Provides general insight on how to make good use of the outputs of the set of EPB assessment standards for different purposes (post-processing) in the form of overall and partial EPB indicators.

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ISO 52010-1

Contains procedures to assess the climatic data needed as common input or boundary condition for many elements in the energy calculations.

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ISO 52016-1

Provides the procedures to calculate the internal temperatures and energy needs for heating and cooling for the building as such.

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ISO 52018-1

Provides an overview of options of indicators enabling (optional) specific EPB requirements (post-processing) at the level of the building as such (building energy needs or building fabric).

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Overarching

Sub-ModulesM1 Module
GeneralEN ISO 52000-1
Common terms and definitions, symbols, units and subscriptsEN ISO 52000-1
ApplicationsEN ISO 52000-1
Ways to Express Energy PerformanceEN ISO 52003-1
Building Functions and Building BoundariesEN ISO 52000-1
Building Occupancy and Operating ConditionsEN 16798-1ISO 17772-1
Aggregation of Energy Services and Energy CarriersEN ISO 52000-1
Building ZoningEN ISO 52000-1
Calculated Energy PerformanceEN ISO 52000-1
Measured Energy PerformanceEN ISO 52000-1
Ways to express Indoor ComfortEN 16798-1ISO 17772-1
External Environment ConditionsEN ISO 52010-1
Economic CalculationEN 15459-1

Building as such

Sub-ModulesM2 Module
Building Energy NeedsEN ISO 52016-1EN ISO 52017-1
(Free) Indoor Conditions without SystemsEN ISO 52016-1EN ISO 52017-1
Ways to Express Energy PerformanceEN ISO 52018-1
Heat Transfer by TransmissionEN ISO 10077-1EN ISO 10077-2EN ISO 10211EN ISO 12631EN ISO 13370EN ISO 13789EN ISO 14683EN ISO 6946
Heat Transfer by Distribution & Control Infiltration and VentilationEN ISO 13789
Internal Heat Gains EN 16798-1ISO 17772-1
Solar Heat Gains EN ISO 52022-1EN ISO 52022-3
1 Building Dynamics (thermal mass)EN ISO 13786

Technical Building Systems (under EPBD)

Sub-ModulesM3
Heating
M4
Coolling
M5
Ventilation
M6
Humidification
M7
Dehumidification
M8
Domestic Hot Water
M9
Lighting
M10
Building Autom. & Controls
M11
Photovoltaic, Wind
GeneralEN 15316-1EN ISO 16798-9EN 16798-3EN 16798-3EN 16798-3EN 15316-1EN 15193-1EN 15232-1 
Needs     EN 12831-3EN 15193-1  
Maximum Load and PowerEN ISO 52016-1EN 12831-1EN ISO 52016-1 EN ISO 52016-1EN ISO 52016-1EN 12831-3   
Ways to Express Energy PerformanceEN 15316-1EN ISO 16798-9EN 16798-3EN 16798-3EN 16798-3EN 15316-1EN 15193-1EN 15232-1 
Emission & ControlEN 15316-2EN 15500-1EN 12098-1EN 12098-3EN 12098-5EN 15316-2EN 15500-1EN 16798-7EN 15500-1EN 16798-5-1EN 16798-5-2EN 16798-5-1EN 16798-5-2  EN 15232-1 
Distribution & ControlEN 15316-3EN 12098-1EN 12098-3EN 12098-5EN 15316-3EN 16798-5-1EN 16798-5-2  EN 15316-3 EN 15232-1 
Storage & ControlEN 15316-5EN 12098-1EN 12098-3EN 12098-5EN 16798-15   EN 15316-5EN 15316-4-3 EN 15232-1 
Generation & ControlEN 12098-1EN 12098-3EN 12098-5EN 15316-4-1EN 15316-4-2EN 15316-4-3EN 15316-4-4EN 15316-4-5EN 15316-4-8EN 16798-13EN 15316-4-2EN 15316-4-5EN 16798-5-1EN 16798-5-2EN 16798-5-1EN 16798-5-2EN 16798-5-1EN 16798-5-2EN 15316-4-1EN 15316-4-2EN 15316-4-3EN 15316-4-4EN 15316-4-5 EN 15232-1EN 15316-4-3EN 15316-4-4EN 15316-4-5EN 15316-4-10
Load Dispatching & Operating ConditionsEN 15316-1EN ISO 16798-9     EN 15232-1 
Measured Energy PerformanceEN 15378-3    EN 15378-3EN 15193-1EN 15232-1 
InspectionEN 15378-1EN 16798-17EN 16798-17EN 16798-17EN 16798-17EN 15378-1EN 15193-1EN 16946-1 
BMS       EN 16947-1 
EN ISO 52000-1

Energy performance of buildings — Overarching EPB assessment — Part 1: General framework and procedures

Published: 2017-06
EN 16798-1

Energy performance of buildings — Ventilation of buildings — Part 1: Indoor environmental input parameters for design and assessment of energy performance of buildings addressing indoor air quality, thermal environment, lighting and acoustics

Published: 2019-05
EN ISO 52003-1

Energy performance of buildings — Indicators, requirements, ratings and certificates — Part 1: General aspects and application to the overall energy performance

Published: 2017-06
ISO 17772-1

Energy performance of buildings — Indoor environmental quality — Part 1: Indoor environmental input parameters for the design and assessment of energy performance of buildings

Published: 2017-06
EN ISO 52010-1

Energy performance of buildings — External climatic conditions — Part 1: Conversion of climatic data for energy calculations

Published: 2017-06
EN 15459-1

Energy performance of buildings — Economic evaluation procedure for energy systems in buildings — Part 1: Calculation procedures

Published: 2017-06
EN ISO 52016-1

Energy performance of buildings – Energy needs for heating and cooling, internal temperatures and sensible and latent heat loads — Part 1: Calculation procedures

Published: 2017-06
EN ISO 52017-1

Energy performance of buildings — Sensible and latent heat loads and internal temperatures — Part 1: Generic calculation procedures

Published: 2017-06
EN ISO 52018-1

Energy performance of buildings — Indicators for partial EPB requirements related to thermal energy balance and fabric features — Part 1: Overview of options

Published: 2017-06
EN ISO 10077-1

Thermal performance of windows, doors and shutters — Calculation of thermal transmittance — Part 1: General

Published: 2017-06
EN ISO 10077-2

Thermal performance of windows, doors and shutters — Calculation of thermal transmittance — Part 2: Numerical method for frames

Published: 2017-06
EN ISO 10211

Thermal bridges in building construction — Heat flows and surface temperatures — Detailed calculations

Published: 2017-06
EN ISO 10211

Thermal bridges in building construction — Heat flows and surface temperatures — Detailed calculations

Published: 2017-06
EN ISO 13370

Thermal performance of buildings — Heat transfer via the ground — Calculation methods

Published: 2017-06
EN ISO 13789

Thermal performance of buildings — Transmission and ventilation heat transfer coefficients — Calculation method

Published: 2017-06
EN ISO 13789

Thermal performance of buildings — Transmission and ventilation heat transfer coefficients — Calculation method

Published: 2017-06
EN ISO 14683

Thermal bridges in building construction — Linear thermal transmittance — Simplified methods and default values

Published: 2017-06
EN ISO 6946

Building components and building elements — Thermal Resistance and thermal transmittance — Calculation methods

Published: 2017-06
EN ISO 12631

Thermal performance of curtain walling — Calculation of thermal transmittance

Published: 2017-06
EN ISO 10211

Thermal bridges in building construction — Heat flows and surface temperatures — Detailed calculations

Published: 2017-06
EN ISO 52022-1

Energy performance of buildings — Thermal, solar and daylight properties of building components and elements — Part 1: Simplified calculation method of the solar and daylight characteristics for solar protection devices combined with glazing

Published: 2017-06
EN ISO 52022-3

Energy performance of buildings — Thermal, solar and daylight properties of building components and elements — Part 3: Detailed calculation method of the solar and daylight characteristics for solar protection devices combined with glazing

Published: 2017-06
EN ISO 13786

Thermal performance of building components — Dynamic thermal characteristics — Calculation methods

Published: 2017-06
EN 15316-1

Energy performance of buildings — Method for calculation of system energy requirements and system efficiencies — Part 1: General and Energy performance expression

Published: 2017-04
EN 16798-9

Energy performance of buildings — Ventilation for buildings — Part 9: Calculation methods for energy requirements of cooling systems

Published: 2017-06
EN 16798-3

Energy performance of buildings — Ventilation for buildings — Part 3: For non-residential buildings – Performance requirements for ventilation and room-conditioning systems

Published: 2017-07
EN 15193-1

Energy performance of buildings — Energy requirements for lighting — Part 1: Specifications

Published: 2017-04
EN 15232-1

Energy performance of buildings — Energy performance of buildings — Part 1: Impact of Building Automation, Controls and Building Management

Published: 2017-05
EN 12831-3

Energy performance of buildings — Method for calculation of the design heat load — Part 3: Domestic hot water systems heat load and characterisation of needs

Published: 2017-07
EN 12831-1

Energy performance of buildings — Method for calculation of the design heat load — Part 1: Space heating load

Published: 2017-07
EN 15316-2

Energy performance of buildings — Method for calculation of system energy requirements and system efficiencies — Part 2: Space emission systems (heating and cooling)

Published: 2017-05
EN 16798-7

Energy performance of buildings — Part 7: Ventilation for buildings — Calculation methods for the determination of air flow rates in buildings including infiltration

Published: 2017-06
EN 16798-5-1

Energy performance of buildings — Ventilation for buildings — Calculation methods for energy requirements of ventilation and air conditioning systems — Part 5-1 Distribution and generation — Method 1

Published: 2017-05
EN 15500-1

Energy performance of buildings — Control for heating, ventilating and air conditioning applications — Part 1: Electronic individual zone control equipment

Published: 2017-05
EN 16798-5-2

Energy performance of buildings — Ventilation for buildings — Part 5-2: Calculation methods for energy requirements of ventilation systems — Method 2: Distribution and generation

Published: 2017-08
EN 12098-1

Energy performance of buildings — Controls for heating systems — Part 1: Control equipment for hot water heating systems

Published: 2017-05
EN 12098-3

Energy performance of buildings — Controls for heating systems — Part 3: Control equipment for electrical heating systems

Published: 2017-05
EN 12098-5

Energy performance of buildings — Controls for heating systems — Part 5: Start-stop schedulers for heating systems

Published: 2017-05
EN 15316-3

Energy performance of buildings — Method for calculation of system energy requirements and system efficiencies — Part 3: Space distribution systems (DHW, heating and cooling)

Published: 2017-04
EN 15316-5

Energy performance of buildings — Method for calculation of system energy requirements and system efficiencies — Part 5: Space heating and DHW storage systems (not cooling)

Published: 2017-05
EN 16798-15

Energy performance of buildings — Ventilation for buildings — Part 15: Calculation of cooling systems

Published: 2017-06
EN 15316-4-3

Energy performance of buildings — Method for calculation of system energy requirements and system efficiencies — Part 4-3: Heat generation systems, thermal solar and photovoltaic systems

Published: 2017-05
EN 16798-13

Energy performance of buildings — Ventilation for buildings — Part 13: Calculation of cooling systems

Published: 2017-06
EN 15316-4-1

Energy performance of buildings — Method for calculation of system energy requirements and system efficiencies — Part 4-1: Space heating and DHW generation systems

Published: 2017-05
EN 15316-4-2

Energy performance of buildings — Method for calculation of system energy requirements and system efficiencies — Part 4-2: Space heating generation systems, heat pump systems

Published: 2017-04
EN 15316-4-4

Energy performance of buildings – Method for calculation of system energy requirements and system efficiencies – Part 4–4: Heat generation systems, building-integrated cogeneration systems

Published: 2017-04
EN 15316-4-5

Energy performance of buildings — Method for calculation of system energy requirements and system efficiencies — Part 4-5: District heating and cooling

Published: 2017-05
EN 15316-4-10

Energy performance of buildings — Method for calculation of system energy requirements and system efficiencies — Part 4–10: Wind power generation systems

Published: 2017-05
EN 15316-4-8

Energy performance of buildings — Method for calculation of system energy requirements and system efficiencies — Part 4-8: Space heating generation systems, air heating and overhead radiant heating systems, including stoves (local)

Published: 2017-04
EN 15378-3

Energy performance of buildings — Heating and DHW systems in buildings — Part 3: Measured energy performance

Published: 2017-04
EN 15378-1

Energy performance of buildings — Heating systems and DHW in buildings — Part 1: Inspection of boilers, heating systems and DHW

Published: 2017-05
EN 16798-17

Energy performance of buildings — Ventilation for buildings — Part 17: Guidelines for inspection of ventilation and air conditioning systems

Published: 2017-06
EN 16946-1

Energy performance of buildings — Inspection of Automation, Controls and Technical Building Management — Part 1

Published: 2017-07
EN 16947-1

Energy performance of buildings — Building Management System — Part 1

Published: 2017-06