EV chargers in new buildings: the rules

What rules apply today

The requirements for new buildings come from Poland’s Act on Electromobility and Alternative Fuels. They depend on the type of building and the number of parking spaces:

• New residential buildings with more than 10 parking spaces — ducting for electrical wires and cables at every space (passive infrastructure). The chargers themselves do not have to be installed straight away.
• New non-residential buildings with more than 10 spaces — at least one charging point, plus ducting that allows a point to be installed at no fewer than one in five spaces.
• Buildings undergoing major renovation — the same requirements, if the renovation costs more than 25% of the building’s value and the charging installation costs no more than 7% of the renovation cost.

What the EPBD directive changes

Directive (EU) 2024/1275 (EPBD, the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive) goes further than the current Polish rules. The deadline for transposing it passed on 29 May 2026, and its requirements are to be written into, among other things, Poland’s technical conditions for buildings. For new developments this means:

• Residential buildings with more than 3 parking spaces — pre-cabling for at least 50% of spaces and ducting for the rest.
• Non-residential buildings with more than 5 spaces — at least 1 charging point per 5 spaces, pre-cabling for at least 50% of spaces and ducting for the rest.

As of September 2026. The EPBD requirements apply in Poland once transposed into national law. A building designed today will be in use for decades, so we recommend designing to the EPBD standard from the outset. This article does not constitute legal advice.

Ducting, pre-cabling and ready-to-use points

The regulations use three levels of readiness. Each level costs more at the construction stage, but far less than retrofitting it in an occupied building:

• Ducting (passive infrastructure) — empty routes: cable trays, conduits and wall penetrations through which a cable can be run to the parking space in the future.
• Pre-cabling — supply cables already run to the parking spaces and terminated so that installing a charger simply means connecting it.
• Ready-to-use charging point — an installed and commissioned charger, ideally with a MID-certified meter and OCPP support.

What to design in so you do not rework it later

• Connection capacity with headroom for charging, or dynamic load balancing (DLB) that lets you serve every space on a sensibly sized connection.
• A switchboard with room for the protective devices and MID meters of future points.
• Cable routes to the target number of spaces, not just to the first chargers.
• Connectivity in the garage — network cabling or space for a router with a SIM card, because a charger without internet access cannot bill residents.
• Fire-safety requirements for the underground garage, agreed with a certified fire-safety expert already at the design stage.
• The billing model after handover — who will operate the chargers and how residents will pay for energy.

Why it is cheaper now

Running cable routes and power supply at the shell stage is work done together with the rest of the installation. The same work in a completed building means chasing walls, drilling through floor slabs, working in a garage that is in use, and getting the housing community’s consent for every change. On top of that come separate assessments and designs when residents request chargers one by one.

A single collective design at the development stage covers all parking spaces. At Domena Power, the installation assessment and design cost 3,000 zł net (3,690 zł gross) for the first point and 330 zł net (405.90 zł gross) for each additional one.

EV infrastructure as a selling point

For buyers of an apartment with a parking space, charging readiness increasingly tips the balance. A space with power already run to it, or a working charger, is a concrete argument in the sales brochure — and a building handed over with a working billing system spares the future housing community disputes over who pays for the electricity.

After handover: a system, not a problem

A charger alone does not solve the billing question. With the Domena Power system, every session is assigned to a resident and their unit, and the property manager downloads reports for issuing debit notes. The developer hands the housing community a working, well-organised infrastructure and is not left with operating obligations. The subscription is 30 zł net per month for the first charger and 10 zł net for each additional one, with no commission on energy.