Some people or businesses who sell or supply electricity are exempt from our electricity licensing requirements. These people may need to register their exemption with us.
Information on electricity licensing exemptions for sellers and suppliers
Overview
Anyone supplying, selling, generating or transmitting electricity in Victoria must hold an electricity licence granted by us, or be exempt from that requirement.
What are licensing exemptions and embedded networks?
In Victoria, if you are engaged in the generation, supply, sale, transmission, or distribution of electricity, or the sale or supply of natural gas or operation of a natural gas distribution pipeline, you need a licence from the Essential Services Commission.
It is prohibited to engage in these activities without a licence unless you have either been specifically granted an exemption or are eligible for a general exemption.
Certain activities related to the small-scale sale, distribution and generation of electricity are eligible for a general exemption from licence requirements under the provisions the General Exemption Order 2017, issued by an Order in Council. While people covered by the General Exemption Order may be exempt from the legal requirement to have a licence, this does not mean that they are exempt from regulation.
What are my obligations as an exempt person?
Even if you are exempt from holding an electricity licence, you must still comply with the relevant obligations. This ensures customers of exempt electricity sellers and suppliers have similar protections to other Victorian electricity customers.
All retail and distribution activities covered by the General Exemption Order require exempt persons to comply with either the provisions of the Energy Retail Code or the Electricity Distribution Code that are specified by the commission. In addition, all persons eligible for the general exemptions must comply with other conditions specified in the General Exemption Order.
The commission has produced a guide to assist you in the exempt categories covered by the General Exemption Order to understand your obligations on matters such as:
- registering your exemption with the commission
- joining the commission approved customer dispute resolution scheme- Energy and Water Ombudsman Victoria
- maximum pricing
- the provision of information requirements
- disconnection.
We have also developed a range of documents to assist in the operation of your embedded network including sample bill, disconnection, and service agreement templates.
Embedded network register
Majority of people selling/supplying electricity through an embedded network need to register with us for an electricity licensing exception.
If you are running an embedded network or if your apartment building or shopping centre has 10 or more residences/tenants, you need to be registered.
All caravan parks, holiday parks, residential land lease parks, manufactured home estates and retirement villages with an embedded network must register with us, regardless of how many customers reside at the site.
Check if you need to register
You may qualify to register for an electricity licence exemption if you fall into one of the following exemption categories. Make sure you read our Registration Guideline for Exempt Persons to confirm you have identified the correct category.
If you don't fall into any of these exemption categories, you need to apply to us for an electricity licence.
What activities need registering
You may need to register with us for a licensing exemption if you are involved in:
- network (supply) activities
- retail (selling) activities
- solar power purchase agreement providers and community energy projects may also be covered under a ‘multiple activity exemption’ category.
You may also need to register for an exemption if you:
- sell or supply electricity through an embedded electricity network
- purchase electricity (from a licensed retailer) that is sold to customers who are individually metered.
This exemption category includes people who supply or sell electricity through a third-party service provider or agent.
If you are undertaking an activity that falls in a registration category you must register via the self-service portal.
We aim to process 90 per cent of completed exemption registration requests within five business days of receiving the request.
You can search for your address here to see if you’re on an embedded network.
Network not registered?
Notify us about embedded networks that may not be registered: exemptionregister@esc.vic.gov.au.
What do I do if I fall into the 'registration exemption' category?
You must become a member of an approved dispute resolution body. We have approved the Energy and Water Ombudsman (Victoria) as a dispute resolution scheme for electricity licensing exemptions. Note, this does not apply to solar power purchase agreement providers, community energy projects or generators that are exempt under the General Exemption Order (a key document related to electricity licensing exemptions).
Also ensure you register with us for a licensing exemption (if you are eligible to register).
If you are exempt electricity seller, you must comply with the relevant clauses of the Energy Retail Code.
If you are an exempt electricity supplier, you must also comply with clause 1.3.5 of the Electricity Distribution Code.
Some embedded networks may not need to be registered
If there are less than 10 residences/tenants, you may still be sold and supplied electricity via an embedded network. However, the seller and supplier are not required to register with us. Even if they are not on the register, they still need to abide by rules that protect your consumer rights.
Deemed exemption
If you fall into this category, you don't need to register with us for a licensing exemption. However, you still need to comply with the General Exemption Order (a key document related to electricity licensing exemptions).
You may fall into the deemed exemption category if you are a business or person that:
- sells or supplies metered electricity to fewer than 10 small commercial/retail customers
- sells or supplies metered electricity to fewer than 10 residential customers, or to occupants of holiday accommodation on a short-term basis (this excludes retirement villages, caravan parks, holiday parks, residential land lease parks, and manufactured home estates. If you fall into one of these excluded areas, read our Registration Guideline for Exempt Persons for more information)
- temporarily sells or supplies electricity on construction sites
- sells or supplies electricity to a related company (for example, a parent company selling electricity to a subsidiary company)
- sells or supplies electricity ancillary to telecommunication services, such as data centres.
You may also fall into the ‘deemed exemption’ category if you are a government agency selling or supplying metered electricity to non-residential customers for purposes that are ancillary to their primary functions or objectives under the laws under which they are established.
What you need to do if you fall into the 'deemed exemption' category
You must become a member of an approved dispute resolution body. We have approved the Energy and Water Ombudsman (Victoria) as a dispute resolution scheme for electricity licensing exemptions. This does not apply to solar power purchase agreement providers, community energy projects or generators that are exempt under the General Exemption Order (a key document related to electricity licensing exemptions).
If you are exempt electricity seller, you must comply with the relevant clauses of the Energy Retail Code.
If you are an exempt electricity supplier, you must also comply with clause 1.3.5 of the Electricity Distribution Code.
Multiple activity exemption
You may fall into this category if you generate or distribute electricity on:
- a site you don't own or occupy
- a portion of a site that you occupy (but don't own) for the purpose of generating and distributing electricity.
You may also fall into this category if you supply or sell electricity:
- to the owner or occupier of the premises on which the generation occurs
- to a licensed retailer.
What you need to do if you fall into the 'multiple activity exemption' category
You must register with us for a licensing exemption and comply with the conditions of your exemption as shown in the General Exemption Order (a key document related to electricity licensing exemptions).
Contact us if you have questions
If you're not sure if you qualify for an exemption, email us at exemptionregister@esc.vic.gov.au.
17 May 2018
This document notes the information we ask exempt persons to provide when registering. It also provides detail on who is and isn’t required to register, why exempt persons are required to register, and how to register.
(pdf, 426.94 KB)