If you’ve been putting off going solar, or adding a battery, there’s a real deadline worth knowing about: the government rebate that brings the upfront cost down steps lower on 1 January 2027. Installing before the end of 2026 locks in the higher amount.
What the STC rebate actually is
When you install eligible solar or battery equipment, your system earns Small-scale Technology Certificates (STCs) under the federal government’s Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme. Your installer typically assigns these certificates to a supplier in exchange for an upfront discount off your quoted price, which is why the “rebate” shows up as a lower price on your invoice rather than a cheque in the mail.
Why the value drops on 1 January 2027
The number of certificates a system earns is based on a “deeming period”, an estimate of how many years of clean energy it will generate. That deeming period shortens by one year every 1 January as the scheme winds down. A system installed in 2026 is deemed over 5 years; the same system installed from 1 January 2027 is deemed over 4 years, meaning fewer certificates and a smaller upfront discount. The deeming period keeps shrinking each year until the scheme ends entirely on 31 December 2030.
What this means for your install date
In practical terms, the STC discount on a typical residential system is smaller from January 2027 onward, and it will keep stepping down every year after that. If you’re already considering solar or battery storage, there’s a genuine cost advantage to getting your system installed and signed off before 31 December 2026 rather than after. It’s also worth remembering that certificate prices themselves can move with the market, so the exact dollar difference isn’t fixed, but the direction, fewer certificates each year, is locked in by the scheme’s design.
Book your install before the deadline
Between now and the end of the year is when demand for installs typically picks up as people look to lock in the current rebate, so it’s worth getting your system assessed and quoted sooner rather than later. Call us on 1300 720 958 for a quote, and we’ll make sure your install is booked in comfortably ahead of the 1 January 2027 change.
