Blog · Published 2026-10-20

Is your business eligible for a solar grant? Six questions that decide it

There is no single business solar grant that every UK SME can apply for in October 2026. What exists is a stack: tax relief, export income and, depending on where the site is and how much energy it uses, a few regional or devolved routes. Six questions decide which parts of the stack apply to your business, and this post takes them in order.

1. Which nation is the site in?

The nation changes the answer more than anything else.

England. We found no national grant for business solar PV that is open to applications. Regional routes come and go: the West Midlands Business Energy Advice Service (BEAS 3) opened in autumn 2026 for SMEs in the West Midlands Combined Authority area, while the York and North Yorkshire programme and the West of England Green Business Grants have closed. Our regional funding guide covers what councils and growth hubs offer now.

Scotland. The SME Loan Scheme is administered by the Energy Saving Trust, but Business Energy Scotland says it is not accepting new applications for solar PV.

Wales. The Development Bank of Wales Green Business Loan Scheme lends from £1,000 to £1.5m at discounted rates to Wales-based businesses that have traded for at least two years, and lists solar PV as a typical eligible project. See the Welsh business finance guide.

Northern Ireland. Invest NI's Energy Efficiency Capital Grant is paused, and Power NI's 20% NISEP scheme for commercial customers has closed for 2026/27; Power NI expects the next to open in April 2027, subject to funding approval. See the Northern Ireland guide.

2. What kind of organisation are you?

Companies, sole traders and partnerships can use tax relief. The annual investment allowance lets a business deduct up to £1m of qualifying spend from its profits in the year it claims. Solar panels are special-rate plant, so full expensing does not apply to them and the allowance is the route: see the annual investment allowance on solar panels. Who can claim, and how much it is worth, depends on your structure, so confirm it with your accountant.

Charities and churches usually pay little or no tax, so tax relief is worth little to them and funding comes from trusts instead. Benefact Trust runs building grants for churches and Christian charities and Methodist Grants for Methodist bodies, and each sets its own rules. See the charity and faith funding guide.

Farms. The Improving Farm Productivity grant closed on 31 July 2025 and the 2026 Farming Equipment and Technology Fund closed on 12 May 2026. Defra has said it intends to bring its grant schemes together from 2027 but has published no details. See the farm funding guide.

Public sector bodies. The Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme stopped taking new applications in November 2024; see the PSDS guide.

3. Do you pay tax on the profit?

The annual investment allowance is a tax deduction, not a grant, so what it is worth depends on the tax you would otherwise pay. As an illustration, a business that spends £100,000 on panels and pays corporation tax at 25% would see its tax bill fall by £25,000 if it can deduct the full £100,000 in year one. A loss-making business, or a charity, gets far less from the same deduction. The £1m annual limit is shared across a group of companies, which matters if the group buys other equipment in the same year.

Above the £1m limit, special-rate expenditure can still qualify for a 50% first-year allowance, which is why we do not quote full expensing figures for solar. Model the numbers with your accountant before you rely on them.

4. Do you own the roof, or lease it?

Almost every route assumes the business can put panels on the roof. Get the landlord's consent in writing before you spend anything, and check how long is left on the lease. BEAS, for example, requires premises that the business owns or has at least three years left on the lease. For a tenant, who owns the panels and who claims tax relief on them are questions for your accountant and your lease, not for a scheme page.

5. How big is the system, and will it export?

Size decides the export rules. The Smart Export Guarantee covers installations up to 5MW in Great Britain. Up to 50kW both the installation and the installer must be MCS-certified (or an equivalent scheme); from 50kW to 5MW the installation must be suitably certified and the supplier decides what evidence it accepts. You also need an export meter that takes half-hourly readings, and an export MPAN.

Ofgem's 2024/25 data found rates of 1p to 12p per kWh offered on tariffs that do not tie you to the supplier's import, so read what suppliers offer and the rules before you assume a number. Any accredited generator can also claim REGOs, though at about 71p a certificate in August 2026 the income is small.

6. When do you plan to order?

Grants are rarely retrospective, and the schemes that closed will not reopen because you are not ready. BEAS starts with a free energy audit and pays the grant after the work, so check a programme's order of events before you contract anyone. The IETF closed in July 2025, PSDS Phase 4 in November 2024, the Improving Farm Productivity grant in July 2025 and UKSPF in March 2026.

If a quote tells you a grant is still open, check the administrator's page and the date. Our register of what is open and what has closed shows how each route stands, and the deadline tracker lists administrators and lead times.

What the answers usually add up to

An English limited company outside the West Midlands: the annual investment allowance, Smart Export Guarantee income and, if the admin is worth it, REGOs. There is no grant to wait for.

A West Midlands SME with high energy use: BEAS 3 as well, if it passes the programme's energy-use and turnover tests, with solar PV capped at £50,000 of grant.

A Welsh SME that has traded for two years: a Development Bank of Wales loan alongside the allowance and SEG.

A Scottish SME: the allowance and SEG; the SME Loan Scheme is not accepting solar PV.

A Northern Ireland business: the allowance is a tax relief claimed on your return (confirm it with your accountant). The SEG covers Great Britain only, so ask your supplier what export terms it offers, and ask Power NI when the next NISEP scheme opens.

A charity or church: trust funding first, then export income; tax relief matters little.

Check your own position

The free eligibility check takes about a minute. Tell us your sector, postcode and energy spend and we reply by email with the routes that appear to apply and any that have closed. We do not currently pass enquiries to any installer.

FAQs

FAQs on this topic

Is there a government grant for solar panels for my business?

We found no national grant for business solar PV that is open to applications in England in October 2026. Tax relief (the annual investment allowance) and export income (the Smart Export Guarantee in Great Britain) apply in most cases, and a few regional or devolved routes are open to some businesses. The six questions above show which.

Is the annual investment allowance a grant?

No. It is a deduction from your taxable profit, so what it is worth depends on the tax you would otherwise pay. Confirm who can claim it, and how much, with your accountant.

Can a sole trader use these routes?

It depends on the route. BEAS excludes sole traders. The Development Bank of Wales lends to limited companies, sole traders and partnerships that have traded for at least two years. Ask your accountant who can claim the annual investment allowance.

Do I need MCS certification?

For the Smart Export Guarantee, yes up to 50kW: both the installation and the installer must be MCS-certified or hold an equivalent certification. Above 50kW the installation must be suitably certified and the supplier decides what evidence it accepts.