Changes to the apprenticeship funding system
We’re making changes to the way apprenticeship funding works, including:
- introducing the apprenticeship levy
- introducing the apprenticeship service – this is an online service that allows employers to choose and pay for apprenticeship training more easily
- introducing a new ‘co-investment’ rate to support employers who don’t pay the levy(‘co-investment’ is when employers and government share the cost of training and assessing apprentices)
Apprenticeships are a devolved policy. This means that authorities in each of the UK nations manage their own apprenticeship programmes, including how funding is spent on apprenticeship training.
Pay the apprenticeship levy
If you’re an employer with a pay bill over £3 million each year, you must pay the apprenticeship levy from 6 April 2017. Read guidance on how to pay the apprenticeship levy.
You will report and pay your levy to HMRC through the PAYE process.
The levy will not affect the way you fund training for apprentices who started an apprenticeship programme before 1 May 2017. You’ll need to carry on funding training for these apprentices under the terms and conditions that were in place at the time the apprenticeship started.
Changes for employers who don’t pay the levy
Support with apprenticeship costs
Non-levy paying employers will share the cost of training and assessing their apprentices with government – this is called ‘co-investment’.
From April 2019, you will pay 5% towards the cost of apprenticeship training and the government will pay the rest (95%), up to the funding band maximum.
Manage your apprenticeship training and assessment
If you do not pay the levy, you won’t be able to use the apprenticeship service to pay for apprenticeship training and assessment until at least 2018.
Instead, you’ll need to agree a payment schedule with the provider and pay them directly for the training. The provider must prove that you have paid your contributions as a condition of government paying its contribution.
There are 2 different types of apprenticeships to choose from:
- apprenticeship standards – each standard covers a specific occupation and sets out the core skills, knowledge and behaviours an apprentice will need; they are developed by employer groups known as ‘trailblazers’
- apprenticeship frameworks – a series of work-related vocational and professional qualifications, with workplace- and classroom-based training
To choose training:
Simply use the contact us page with your requests