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The energy passport, and what it says about the bill

Mandatory on sale and on letting in all four countries, under four names. What a class means, and what it does not.

3 min readChecked on 19 August 2026

View of Dudelange — Photo: Jwh · CC BY-SA 3.0 lu · Wikimedia Commons

In brief

Mandatory: On sale and on letting in all four countries
Four names: Energy passport, DPE, PEB certificate, Energieausweis
What it rates: The envelope and the equipment, not the occupants' behaviour
Comparability: Sound within a country, misleading across a border

Four names for the same document

Energy passport in Luxembourg, DPE in France, PEB certificate in Wallonia, Energieausweis in Germany: the European directive requires everywhere that a survey be handed to the buyer or tenant before commitment. The scales and calculation methods do not map onto each other across borders, which makes a direct class comparison between Thionville and Mamer misleading. Within one country, the letter is comparable, and that is what it is for.

One letter, two realities

The document rates the envelope and the equipment — insulation, windows, heating, ventilation — not the occupants' behaviour. Two households in the same identically rated flat can post bills that differ twofold. The class estimates the order of magnitude of the work ahead, not next year's bill. On an older property, the letter is often the best available summary of what has not been renovated.

What the class blocks or subsidises

France has begun phasing out the letting of the worst-rated homes, which has pushed poorly insulated stock towards buyers willing to renovate. Luxembourg pushes the other way, through renovation grants and high requirements on new build. In practice, a cross-border buyer is comparing two markets whose rules point in opposite directions: on the French side a poor rating is negotiated, on the Luxembourgish side it is renovated.

Using it on a viewing

Ask for the document before the viewing rather than after: it gives the build year, the heating system and the weak points, which shapes the questions to ask on site. Check its validity date and, on a renovated property, whether the survey predates the work. Support schemes and prohibition thresholds move quickly in all four countries: confirm the state of the law when you buy rather than when you read this guide.

What to do

Ask for the document before the viewing: it shapes the questions to ask on site.
Check its date, and on a renovated property, whether it predates or follows the work.
Read the recommended works: they cost the gap between the current class and the next.
Check the grants available in the property's country before negotiating: they change the maths on a poor rating.

Common questions

Does an F rating rule out a purchase?

No, it moves the budget: the negotiated price has to absorb the cost of the work and the time it takes. In France, the phased ban on letting the worst-rated homes has created a clear discount on that segment; on the Luxembourg side, renovation grants pull the other way.

Can a French DPE be compared with a Luxembourgish passport?

Not letter for letter. The calculation methods, the uses counted and the class thresholds differ. What compares is the estimated consumption in kWh per square metre per year, provided you check that they cover the same items.

Can the seller refuse to provide one?

No: it is an obligation, and the absence of the document is itself information about how the file has been handled. On new build it is drawn up at handover and follows from the permit calculations.

Worth a look on this site

The cost of living in Dudelange, energy included →Work out the real cost of an address →

Official sources

The amounts, thresholds and rates quoted change regularly, sometimes mid-year. Check them against these official pages before deciding anything. Checked on: 19 August 2026.