The Minister of Environment and Energy, Giorgos Stathakis, signed today the Joint Ministerial Decision on the announcement of the programme "Home Savings II", which includes the Implementation Guide.

According to the announcement Ministry of Environment and Energy , the new programme provides funding for the implementation of interventions aimed at energy saving in the domestic building sector, reducing energy consumption and consequently energy costs of households, with particular attention to low and middle income groups.

The available resources from the NSRF 2014-2020 amount to approximately 250 million euros, while the total budget of the programme, including private capital, is expected to reach 500 million euro.

It is reminded that on Monday 5/2/2018 the Hellenic Bank Association delivered the integrated information system. In this system, the electronic submission of applications and the monitoring of their progress for inclusion in the funded actions will take place, in order to facilitate the interested parties and ensure transparency, in the service of the applications based on the absolute time order of submission.

The process of connecting the banks to the IT system will start gradually from February 15 and is expected to be completed by the end of the month, when the submission of applications will begin.

Who can join Exoikon Kato' Oikon II

The new program can include detached houses, apartment buildings and individual apartments, which have a building permit or other legal document. Especially apartment buildings have the right to be included in the program, but each one will be considered as one residence, as one unit.

Eligible residence is provided that:

• It is used as a main residence.
• It exists legally, it is not arbitrary.
• It has been classified based on the Energy Performance Certificate of the First Energy Inspection (A' EPC) in a category lower than or equal to D.

Natural persons who have the right of ownership (full or partial) or usufruct may participate.

According to the Ministry of Environment, the major breakthrough introduced by the new Exoikonomisi Kat' Oikon II is the decoupling of the obligation to take a loan from participation in the programme. Therefore, obtaining a loan from a banking institution is not mandatory.

The budget of each application will not exceed 25,000 euros.

Application procedure

Interested citizens will be able to fill in their application for inclusion in the program, through the special website and the special platform of the program, where they will check if they meet the above criteria. It is noted that applications will be made only electronically and the online application will serve as a solemn declaration. By simplifying the application process, it is easier for citizens, as well as significantly reducing bureaucracy.

Furthermore, through the online application, interested parties will be able to choose whether to apply for a loan or not. Then, if they meet the conditions for participation, they will be able to choose the financial institution to which they will turn, which will examine their creditworthiness. There will be no need for their physical presence.

A prerequisite for inclusion in the program is the conduct of an energy audit by an Energy Inspector, who will issue the required Energy Performance Certificate. The interventions will then be selected according to the findings/results of the inspection, with the aim of achieving maximum energy savings and maximum improvement of the energy efficiency of the dwellings.

After the implementation of the interventions, a second energy audit will be carried out to check whether the objectives set have been achieved, and therefore the corresponding grant.

The cost of the Energy Inspector will be covered by the Program, provided that the application has received the required approval.

The interventions that can be made by the interested parties will concern the following categories:

1. Replacement of Frames.
2. Installation of shading systems.
3. Installation of thermal insulation in the building shell including the roof / roof and the cockpit.
4. Heating system upgrade.
5. Upgrade of domestic hot water supply system.

It is important to note that in Exoikonikon II, interested parties will have the opportunity to submit their application until the projected funds of the Programme per Region are covered. In practice, this means that the online submission platform will be closed as soon as the funds are exhausted. In this way, the big problem inherited from previous governments, of pending approved applications, which were not covered, as the required funds had not been secured, will be avoided.