Key deadline: 15 October 2026. The current edition of BS 7671 (including A2:2022 and A3:2024) remains valid until then. After that date, Amendment 4 is the only standard in use. Act now to ensure your installations, processes, and documentation are ready.
If your business owns, manages, or is responsible for electrical installations - whether in offices, healthcare facilities, data centres, or commercial premises - Amendment 4 (AMD4) to BS 7671:2018 directly affects you.
Published on 15th April 2026, AMD4 is one of the most substantial updates to UK electrical installation regulations in recent years. It doesn’t just refine existing rules, it formally brings modern technologies, critical infrastructure requirements, and inspection standards into a single, updated framework.
Particularly for high-risk environments including healthcare and buildings with escape routes.
Battery storage systems and Power over Ethernet (PoE) are now formally regulated for the first time.
Updated EICR classification rules reduce inconsistency and improve evidence-based reporting.
For the first time, energy performance considerations are built into the regulations.
One of the most immediate practical changes concerns how Electrical Installation Condition Reports (EICRs) are issued and classified. Under AMD4, an FI (Further Investigation) code can no longer result in an unsatisfactory report outcome on its own. Only C1 (Danger present) and C2 (Potentially dangerous) codes will lead to a report being classed as unsatisfactory.
This change should reduce the number of reports that are unnecessarily failed, but it places greater responsibility on inspectors to use the right classification codes accurately. Reports can now also include photographic and thermal imaging evidence - raising the bar for quality and accountability.
What this means for property owners and facilities managers: If you commission EICRs on your premises, expect reporting to become more consistent - and more evidenced. Make sure your approved contractor is aware of the updated classification approach before your next inspection.
Section 710, covering medical locations, has been substantially revised. If you manage or own healthcare premises, these changes carry real cost and complexity implications.
Group 2 medical locations (such as operating theatres and intensive care units) must now have two independent power supplies, fire-resistant supply systems in line with BS 8519, and Uninterruptible Power Supplies (UPS). AFDDs and Type AC RCDs are explicitly prohibited in these environments.
Inspection frequencies have also changed: supplementary bonding must now be tested and recorded annually for Group 2 locations, and every three years for Group 1. Critically, this applies specifically to supplementary bonding, not to the electrical installation as a whole.
Note for healthcare estates teams: The new inspection frequency applies to supplementary bonding testing only, not to the whole of Group 1 and 2 electrical installation circuits. Ensure this distinction is clearly understood by your contractors and reflected in your maintenance schedules.
Two technologies that have grown rapidly in commercial use, battery energy storage systems and Power over Ethernet, are now formally regulated under AMD4.
Battery storage systems are reclassified from loads to generating sets, and a new chapter establishes inspection requirements covering installation location, protective devices, cabling, isolation, and warning labelling. If your site has solar PV with battery storage, or a standalone storage system, these must now be included in inspection processes.
Power over Ethernet (PoE), the technology that powers IP cameras, access control systems, and networked devices via data cabling, gets its own section (716) for the first time. Requirements cover the use of SELV/PELV systems, defined voltage and current limits, and cable standards. PoE infrastructure must now be included in EICR assessments, which means the boundary between IT and electrical compliance is narrowing.
If you have IT infrastructure carrying electrical power: Your next EICR should include PoE systems. Speak with both your electrical contractor and IT team to ensure coverage is complete and compliant.
Beyond the headline changes, AMD4 introduces a range of updates that affect a wide range of installation types:
Not sure which of these changes apply to your specific installation or building type? Contact us to discuss your compliance requirements and we’ll help you understand what needs to change before the October 2026 deadline.
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