ISO 15118-20 from 2027: What Changes in Running Your Charging Sites

Key facts

• New and renovated chargers must support ISO 15118-20 from 1 January 2027. This applies to public chargers and to private AC and DC chargers, such as those in workplace car parks and depots.
• Every ISO 15118-20 charger needs its own digital certificate, which has to be renewed.
• Full ISO 15118-20 support in back-office software arrives with OCPP 2.1.
• Existing public fast chargers (50 kW or more) on major EU routes need a card or contactless terminal by the same date.

_{Sources: EUR-Lex, Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/656; Open Charge Alliance, Open Charge Point Protocol; Noerr, A new mandatory legal framework for charging infrastructure in Europe}

What do AFIR and ISO 15118-20 Require?

AFIR is the EU regulation for public charging infrastructure. It already requires public chargers to be connected, capable of smart charging, clear on price and open to payment without a subscription. ISO 15118-20 adds a common, secure language between car and charger. It supports Plug & Charge, smarter power control and, later, two-way charging. From 1 January 2027 it becomes mandatory for all new or renovated chargers, public and private.

Want the full background and timeline? Read our AFIR & ISO 15118-20 explainer.

Why Does Every Charger Need a Digital Certificate?

ISO 15118-20 makes encryption mandatory, and the car and charger must verify each other before charging starts. To do that, every charger needs its own digital certificate, a kind of ID card, issued through a trusted certificate chain.

Certificates expire and must be renewed, so they become part of routine operations. Someone needs to issue them, track expiry dates and renew them, ideally automatically through the back office. If a site host owns the chargers and a CPO runs them, agree in the contract who takes care of this.

Is OCPP 1.6 Still Enough?

Not if you want to use what ISO 15118-20 offers. OCPP is the protocol between charger and back office. OCPP 1.6, still widely used, predates ISO 15118 support. OCPP 2.0.1 adds it, and OCPP 2.1 adds full ISO 15118-20 support, including two-way charging.

OCPP 1.6 and 2.x aren’t compatible, so switching is a migration project, not a simple update. Plan it together with your 2027 hardware choices.

_{Sources: European Commission, Questions and answers on the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation; EUR-Lex, Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/656; Open Charge Alliance, Open Charge Point Protocol}

What Does Card Payment Mean for Day-to-Day Operations?

Installing a terminal is the easy part. Running it adds work:

• Card holds: most card payments at chargers start by reserving funds. Some banks take up to seven days to release them, so explain this on screen.
• Receipts: drivers need proof of payment, and business drivers need VAT invoices.
• Clear screens: the charger display and card reader must show the same session and price.
• Shared terminals: one terminal can serve several chargers, as long as drivers can easily select the right one.
• Pricing rules: on fast chargers, charge per kWh. A per-minute fee for overstaying is allowed, a transaction fee isn’t.

_{Sources: MobilityPlaza, Solving the problem with EV payments; Parking.net, AFIR 2027: Is Your EV Charging Network Ready for the 1st of January Deadline?; European Commission, Questions and answers on the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation}

How Does Smart Charging Change with ISO 15118-20?

The car can now take part in deciding how it charges. ISO 15118-20 offers two control modes:

• Scheduled control: the car and charger agree a charging plan based on how much energy the car needs and when the driver leaves. This suits public and semi-public sites like hotels, shops and car parks.
• Dynamic control: your energy management system sets the limit and makes sure each vehicle is ready on time. This suits depots, where one system plans all vehicles.

In both cases, the site still needs a limit for the whole building. Otherwise every car can agree its own plan, and together they exceed the grid connection.

What About Cars That Don’t Support ISO 15118-20?

They’ll keep coming for years, so every site must serve two generations of cars. Keep RFID cards, apps and payment terminals available, and make sure load management works for older cars too. Train your helpdesk to spot communication problems between car and charger, not just hardware faults.

_{Sources: CharIN, Position paper clarifying ISO 15118 implementation under AFIR}

What Should you do Before 1 January 2027?

1. List every charging project that goes live after 31 December 2026.
2. Check that each charger model supports ISO 15118-20, or has a written software update path.
3. Ask your operator which OCPP version they run, and when they’ll move to 2.x.
4. Agree who manages certificates, payments, refunds and driver support.
5. Identify existing fast chargers that still need a payment terminal.
6. Set a site-wide power limit that every charging session respects.

Note: industry body CharIN has asked for the deadline to move to 2028, but no change has been adopted.

_{Sources: CharIN, CharIN Responds to European Commission Review of AFIR}

Frequently Asked Questions

Does ISO 15118-20 apply to my existing chargers?

No, it applies to chargers installed or renovated from 1 January 2027. Existing chargers only need to comply if their equipment is largely or completely replaced.

Do private workplace chargers need ISO 15118-20?

Yes, if they’re installed or renovated from 1 January 2027 and use a fixed AC or DC charger. Portable charging cables are exempt.

Does ISO 15118-20 mean my chargers will do vehicle-to-grid?

Not automatically: the standard supports two-way charging, but you also need compatible cars, hardware and back-office software such as OCPP 2.1.

Can Plug & Charge replace a payment terminal?

No, Plug & Charge needs a contract, so it doesn’t count as payment without a subscription under AFIR.

_{Sources: EUR-Lex, Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/656; Open Charge Alliance, Open Charge Point Protocol; European Commission, Questions and answers on the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation}