Certificate of Electrical Safety (COES), Victoria

Written and checked by the Energy Merchants desk · Reviewed 3 October 2026

A COES is the Victorian form of the electrical safety certificate. The licensed electrician who did the work lodges it with Energy Safe Victoria, the state’s electrical safety regulator, and the customer receives a copy.

Which jobs need one

In Victoria, solar PV systems and battery installations are prescribed electrical work, so the electrician must lodge a certificate for them. The regulator also runs audits of lodged certificates, and the installer can be asked to show their evidence for the work.

In practice

For installers claiming STCs, the COES is a core piece of the compliance file. It confirms the identity of the licensed person, the address and the date. In Victoria many jobs also involve a second scheme, the Victorian Energy Upgrades program, run by the Essential Services Commission. See VEEC and the guide to VEECs and STCs on the same job.

Consistency matters. The address on the COES, the written statement and the registry creation should be identical, and the date should line up with the installation date. A claim with a certificate dated well after the installation date draws questions.

Worked example

A Geelong installer completes a solar and battery job on a Tuesday and lodges the COES the same day. In Victoria, Geelong is zone 4 for the STC calculation, with a rating of 1.185. The certificate is one document. The STC calculation is another. They answer different questions.

Common confusion

COES is sometimes used loosely for any state’s certificate, but in this form it is the Victorian one. It is separate from the Solar Victoria rebate paperwork, which has its own process. At the time of writing the Solar Victoria household income cap fell to $150,000 on 1 July 2026, so check eligibility with Solar Victoria.

See STC photo requirements, VEEC trading and the glossary.