FiT and Smart Export FAQs
What’s the difference between Feed in Tariff and Export tariff?
Feed-in Tariff (FiT) and Smart Export are two different schemes for how you are paid for your exported energy. The primary difference between the two is how your exported energy is measured and what you’re paid for.
FiT was a government-backed scheme between 2011 and 2019 designed to encourage investment in low-carbon electricity generation. It’s made up of two parts
Generation payments: customers with FiT are paid for every unit of generated electricity, regardless of whether it’s used in the property or exported to the grid
Export payments: FiT agreements typically include a “deemed” export payment which is estimated (usually 50% of your generated electricity) rather than an actual measurement of what’s exported to the grid.
Smart Export tariffs are controlled by energy suppliers, and credit customers for the energy they’ve exported to the grid. This is usually measured using the export register on a smart meter, and suppliers are entitled to include specific requirements in order to access certain tariffs (similar to import tariffs)
Can I have both?
You cannot receive FiT export credits and payments from a Smart Export tariff at the same time because you cannot be paid twice for the same exported energy
How do I get an Export tariff if I have a Feed in Tariff?
To start receiving smart export credits, you need to end your FiT Export credits by contacting your current FiT provider to update the export status on your Feed in Tariff agreement
To be eligible for smart export, the FiT export status needs to be “negotiated” or “no export”
To update the status, you’ll need to contact the current provider and share with them a FiT generation or export read, depending on your current FIT status
What’s the difference between FiT Export and Smart Export tariff rates?
FiT Export rates are legacy, government-backed payments, so the rate is the same across installations, depending on when they were installed. For many FiT customers, the export payment is "deemed", meaning it’s calculated as an estimate (typically around 50% of generated energy) rather than based on actual measurements.
In contrast, Smart Export tariff rates are market-based rates that pay you based on the actual, metered export recorded by your smart meter. As the rates aren’t government controlled, suppliers credit at different rates for different tariffs.
If I give up my FiT export credits, will I lose my FIT generation payments?
No, giving up your FiT export credits will not affect your FiT generation payments, as they’re two separate parts of the agreement
Once I lose my FIT export payments, can I get them back?
You can, but you can only change your FiT export status once per year, and once you’ve switched away from “deemed” (estimated) export, you cannot return to that status. So if you wanted to go back to receiving FIT export, it would need to be as a metered installation.
How do I update my FIT export status?
Depending on who your FiT provider is:
Contact your current FiT supplier: Ask them to set your export status to "Negotiated export." They will likely need a final generation or export meter reading from you to process this.
Move your FiT to Octopus: You can transfer your entire FiT agreement over to us. We’ll handle the transition and manage the export status update for you—a simple way to keep your generation and export payments all under one roof.
Not sure who your FiT provider is? Email fitownership@ofgem.gov.uk for assistance.