Electrical installation certificate (EIC): who signs it, what goes on it, and why it has three signatures
In short: An electrical installation certificate (EIC) certifies new circuits, consumer unit replacements and new installations. It carries separate signatures for design, construction, and inspection and testing, and is only complete with its schedule of inspections and circuit-by-circuit schedule of test results. It does not expire.
Key points
- An EIC certifies new circuits, consumer unit changes and new installations, and does not expire.
- Three signatures cover design, construction, and inspection and testing.
- It is only complete with the schedule of inspections and the schedule of test results.
- Notifiable work in England and Wales pairs the EIC with Part P notification.
- No EIC for past work: ask the installer, or have an electrician inspect and issue an EICR.
The electrical installation certificate is the senior document in BS 7671. Every new circuit, every new board, every new installation ends with one, and unlike the condition report it does not expire: it stands forever as the record of who designed the work, who built it, and who tested it. That is also why it carries three signatures.
The three signatures
The EIC separates responsibility for design, construction, and inspection and testing. On a commercial project those can be three different firms. On a domestic job they are usually one electrician signing three times, and the repetition is the point: each signature is a separate declaration that one stage of the work complies with BS 7671. Signing for design means owning the cable calculations and protective device selection, signing for inspection means owning every reading on the schedule.
The schedules are the certificate
An EIC without its two schedules is a cover letter. The schedule of inspections records what was visually and physically checked. The schedule of test results records, circuit by circuit, the continuity, insulation resistance, polarity, earth fault loop impedance and RCD figures that prove the installation is safe to energise. When a certificate is challenged years later, at a sale, after an incident, at a scheme assessment, the schedules are what gets read. A reading that cannot be right, a Zs lower than Ze, an RCD over its disconnection time, undermines the whole document, which is why software that validates readings on site earns its keep on exactly this form.
When an EIC is required
- Every new circuit, regardless of length or load
- Consumer unit replacements, certifying every circuit reconnected
- New installations in full, from a rewire to a new build
- Additions and alterations that go beyond the scope of a minor works certificate
Where the work is notifiable under Part P in England and Wales, the EIC pairs with notification to building control, normally through the installer's scheme membership.
What the customer should receive
The certificate with both schedules, within days of completion, alongside the invoice rather than weeks behind it. For rental property the EIC joins the compliance file next to the EICR. For everyone it goes in the drawer with the deeds, because the next electrician, the buyer's conveyancer and the insurer all read the same document, and the homeowner who can produce it is in a stronger position than the one who remembers paying for it.
What sits on each schedule
The two schedules do different jobs, and knowing which is which makes a challenged certificate far easier to defend.
| Schedule of inspections | Schedule of test results |
|---|---|
| What was checked by eye and by hand | What was measured with the tester |
| Connections, enclosures, conductor selection, presence of devices and notices | Continuity, insulation resistance, polarity, Zs, RCD times, circuit by circuit |
| Recorded as acceptable, not applicable or a limitation | Recorded as numbers, one row per circuit |
The readings have to be physically possible
The schedule of test results is where a certificate is made or broken, because the numbers have to agree with each other and with physics. A measured Zs at a point cannot be lower than the Ze at the origin, and the earth fault loop impedance has to be low enough that the protective device disconnects in time: broadly 0.4 seconds for a final circuit up to 32A on a TN system, 0.2 seconds for higher-current circuits, and 5 seconds for distribution circuits. An RCD on a 30mA circuit should clear well inside its rated time. When a figure on the schedule cannot be right, the whole document is in doubt, which is exactly why software that validates readings on site earns its place on this form above any other.
When the supply itself has to change
Some new work outgrows the existing supply: a second consumer unit, a high-load EV charger, or a job where the main fuse or earthing arrangement is not adequate for what is being added. That is a conversation with the Distribution Network Operator, not something the EIC alone resolves, and it is better raised at quoting than discovered at energising. Flagging it early is part of signing honestly for design.
Common questions
Who can issue an electrical installation certificate?
The person responsible for the work: a competent electrician, usually registered with a scheme such as NICEIC or NAPIT so the work can be notified under Part P where required. The signatory takes responsibility for design, construction and testing, which on most domestic jobs is the same person.
Is an EIC a legal requirement?
BS 7671 requires certification for new electrical work, and Part P of the Building Regulations requires notifiable domestic work in England and Wales to be certified and notified. In practice, new circuits without an EIC become a problem at sale, remortgage or insurance time.
What if I never received an EIC for work done?
Ask the installer first; reissuing paperwork is routine. If that fails, a registered electrician can inspect the work and issue an EICR describing its condition. An EICR does not replace the EIC, but it documents that the installation has been inspected and tested.
Why does an EIC have three signatures?
Because it certifies three separate things: design, construction, and inspection and testing. On a commercial job those can be three different firms. On a domestic job it is usually one electrician signing three times, each signature a separate declaration that one stage complies with BS 7671.
Does an electrical installation certificate expire?
No. An EIC certifies the work as installed on the day and stands as a permanent record. That is the difference from an EICR, which reports condition at a point in time and, for rentals, is renewed at least every five years.
What should come with an EIC?
Both schedules: the schedule of inspections and the schedule of test results. An EIC without its schedules is incomplete, because the schedules are the evidence that the installation was actually tested and is safe to energise.
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