The schemes at a glance
| What it is | How it reaches you | |
|---|---|---|
| Victoria: Victorian Energy Upgrades | A voluntary program for systems that both heat and cool | A discount through an accredited provider, with a minimum co-payment |
| NSW: Energy Savings Scheme | A discount on a new or replacement high efficiency air conditioner | On the installer's quote, through an Accredited Certificate Provider |
| ACT: Sustainable Household Scheme | Low-interest loans for electric upgrades | Through Brighte, the ACT Government's loan partner |
| ACT: Home Energy Support | Rebates for concession card holders who own and live in their home | Pre-approval first, then a supplier on the Brighte list |
| SA: Retailer Energy Productivity Scheme | Targets that energy retailers have to meet | Through an energy retailer, or a business a retailer contracts |
| Queensland, WA, Tasmania, NT | No current heating and cooling rebate we could confirm | Ask who funds any offer, and get it in writing |
Victoria: Victorian Energy Upgrades
VEU is voluntary, and the products come from private providers rather than the Victorian Government. The air conditioner categories need a system that heats and cools, which leaves out gas heaters and evaporative coolers.
From 30 September 2026, a ducted VEU job has a minimum co-payment of $3,000, and the co-payment can't be handed back to you in money, goods or services. Our VEU guide has the full co-payment table.
New South Wales: the Energy Savings Scheme
In NSW the ESS discount is taken off the installer's quote up front. The installer partners with an Accredited Certificate Provider, and those providers are independent of the NSW Government.
Timing matters here. The nomination form must be signed before installation begins. Gas space heaters with an implementation date from 1 July 2026 don't qualify, and nothing connected with unsolicited doorknocking does either. Our NSW Energy Savings Scheme guide goes further.
ACT: a loan scheme and a rebate
Canberra has two programs worth knowing. The Sustainable Household Scheme lends money at low interest through Brighte for electric heating and cooling and other upgrades. Home Energy Support adds rebates for homeowners who live in the home and hold a Pensioner Concession Card, DVA Gold Card or Health Care Card.
For the rebate, wait until the ACT Government has pre-approved your application before you accept a quote, and only use an accredited supplier on the Brighte list. Our ACT Sustainable Household Scheme guide covers both.
South Australia: the REPS
South Australia's Retailer Energy Productivity Scheme (REPS) isn't a rebate you apply for yourself. It obliges energy retailers to meet yearly energy productivity targets, and retailers can contract other businesses to deliver REPS activities for them. So a REPS offer comes through a retailer, or through a business a retailer has contracted.
Since 1 January 2026, the revised REPS Code requires retailers to make sure the businesses they contract directly are members of the Energy and Water Ombudsman of South Australia. A deposit is only allowed if the activity will be done in that calendar year, and retailers must audit at least 5 percent of REPS activities.
We couldn't confirm at the source which heating and cooling activities REPS includes right now. Before you agree to anything, ask the retailer or their contractor to name the REPS activity in writing.
Queensland: no rebate we could confirm
We couldn't confirm a current Queensland air conditioner rebate at the source. If an offer mentions one, ask who's funding it and get the details in writing before you sign.
Whatever you decide, check the licence. In Queensland, mechanical services work, which includes installing and repairing air conditioning, needs a QBCC licence at any value, and the electrical side needs a licence from the Electrical Safety Office.
Western Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory
We haven't confirmed a current state heating and cooling rebate in any of these three, so treat any offer with care and get the details in writing.
The licence rules still apply. In WA, connecting fixed wiring and adding a protective device in the switchboard for a new air conditioner needs an electrical contractor's licence. In Tasmania, refrigerated air conditioning work is prescribed plumbing work. And the national refrigerant handling licence applies in the NT as it does everywhere else.
How to check any rebate offer
Name the scheme and the business
Ask which scheme the discount comes from and who's behind it: the accredited person in Victoria, the certificate provider in NSW, or the retailer in South Australia.
Get it on the written quote
The discount, and what you'll pay after it, belong on the quote itself, not in a promise for later.
Check the timing
Some schemes need paperwork before any work starts: the nomination form in NSW, and pre-approval for the ACT rebate.
Check the licence
A discount doesn't change who's allowed to do the work. Our licence guide covers each state.
Take your time
If you sign at home, you may be able to cancel. Our cooling-off guide explains when.
Warning signs in every state
- Anyone who says they're from the Government, or that the Government is paying for your system.
- A Victorian ducted system offered with nothing to pay, when the minimum co-payment is $3,000.
- Cashback, vouchers or extras offered to cover a co-payment.
- A knock on the door or a cold call you never agreed to. VEU bans both without prior consent, and the ESS excludes doorknocked activities.
- Pressure to sign, or pay a deposit, on the day.
- An installer who won't give you their licence numbers.
What's on you, and what's on the installer
You can
- Asking which scheme, which provider, and what you'll pay.
- Keeping the quote and every form you sign.
- Checking the installer's licence on your state's register.
- Turning down doorstep and cold-call offers.
Leave to a licensed installer
- Telling you whether your system and job qualify.
- Handling the scheme paperwork with their provider or retailer.
- Doing the install under the right state licences.
What we'd do
What we'd do
We'd pick the system first and let any discount follow, because a rebate never makes the wrong system right. Then we'd get the scheme, the provider and the final amount on a written quote, from an installer who does that kind of job every week and holds the licences for it. If any part of the offer arrived uninvited, we'd say no and move on.
