The Minor Electrical Installation Works Certificate, explained

A Minor Electrical Installation Works Certificate, usually called a Minor Works Certificate, is the BS 7671 model form for additions and alterations that do not include a new circuit, such as adding a socket or lighting point to an existing circuit or relocating a light switch. You issue one for each circuit you altered or extended, with that circuit's test results, and the original goes to the person who ordered the work. If the job adds a new circuit or replaces a consumer unit, you need an Electrical Installation Certificate instead.

Sources last checked 19 October 2026.

What the form is for

The IET publishes the model form as part of the BS 7671 model forms. The current version is for BS 7671:2018+A4:2026, which the IET and BSI published on 15 April 2026. The form states in its header that it is to be used only for minor electrical work which does not include the provision of a new circuit.

The notes on the form add that it may also be used for replacing equipment such as accessories or luminaires, but not for replacing consumer units, distribution boards or similar items. They also say that appropriate inspection and testing should always be carried out irrespective of the extent of the work.

Minor Works or EIC

The test is whether you introduced a new circuit. The IET's notes for the Electrical Installation Certificate say it is for the initial certification of a new installation, for an addition or alteration where one or more new circuits have been introduced, and for replacing a consumer unit or distribution board.

Those same notes allow an EIC where there are multiple additions, alterations or remedial works that do not extend to new circuits, as an alternative to issuing several Minor Works Certificates. So an EIC can stand in for a batch of minor works. It does not work the other way round. A Minor Works Certificate is not appropriate for new circuits, and the guidance printed on the form tells the client they should have received an EIC if they asked for more extensive installation work.

Neither form is for periodic inspection of an existing installation. That is an Electrical Installation Condition Report.

What goes on it

The form has five sections:

• Section A: the client, the address, the date the work was completed, a description of the work, any departures from BS 7671 for the circuit altered or extended, and comments on the existing installation, including any defects you observed (Regulation 644.1.2).
• Section B: the presence and adequacy of the earthing and bonding arrangements. System earthing type, Zdb at the distribution board supplying the circuit, and the main protective conductors.
• Section C: circuit details. Distribution board reference, circuit number and description, reference method, conductor csa, the overcurrent device, and RCD, AFDD and SPD details where fitted.
• Section D: test results for the altered or extended circuit, where relevant and practicable. Protective conductor continuity, ring final circuit continuity, insulation resistance, polarity, maximum measured Zs, RCD disconnection time and test button operation, plus AFDD and SPD checks where fitted. Under A4 the ring continuity wording refers to r1-r1, rn-rn and r2-r2.
• Section E: the declaration that the work does not impair the safety of the existing installation and has been designed, constructed, inspected and tested in accordance with BS 7671.

Part P and notification

In England, Approved Document P says notifiable electrical work is set out in regulation 12(6A) of the Building Regulations 2010: installing a new circuit, replacing a consumer unit, and any addition or alteration to existing circuits in a special location. Special locations are defined as the space around a bath tap or shower head in a room containing a bath or shower, and a room containing a swimming pool or sauna heater. Every other addition or alteration to existing circuits is not notifiable.

So most Minor Works jobs are not notifiable, but not all. Adding a socket to an existing circuit in the bathroom zone is. Notifiable work must be certified by a registered competent person, a registered third-party certifier or a building control body, and the Building Regulations compliance certificate goes to the occupier and the building control body within 30 days. That compliance certificate is separate from your BS 7671 form.

Approved Document P also says that non-notifiable work should still be designed, installed, inspected, tested and certificated in accordance with BS 7671, and that a local authority can take enforcement action if it finds non-notifiable work unsafe and non-compliant. Paragraph 3.3 refers to a BS 7671 electrical installation certificate for registered competent persons, so check with your scheme provider which form it expects for notifiable minor work.

Who issues it and who keeps it

The signature is that of the person authorised by the company that carried out the design, construction, and inspection and testing. The original goes to the person who ordered the work and you keep a duplicate. If they are not the owner of the installation they should pass it to the owner. The recipient is told to keep it somewhere safe and show it to anyone inspecting or working on the installation later.

Common mistakes

• Using a Minor Works Certificate for work that added a new circuit. That is an EIC job.
• Covering several circuits with one certificate. The form's guidance says a separate certificate should be received for each existing circuit on which minor works have been carried out.
• Using it for a consumer unit or distribution board replacement.
• Leaving Section A comments blank when you did see defects in the existing installation.
• Skipping the tests because the job was small. The form says testing is always required.
• Issuing it on a superseded edition of the form after the current one is available.