As a levy-paying organisation, you already have access to funds to help you develop and grow your workforce. Here’s everything you need to know about how much it’ll cost…

   How much Apprenticeship training can I get for my levy funds?

This depends on the amount of funds you have in your levy ‘pot’, and the Apprenticeship you’re considering. Each Apprenticeship has a maximum ‘funding band’ which outlines the cost of each Apprenticeship.

For example, the maximum funding for the following is:

• Level 2 Adult Carer Apprenticeship is £3,000
• Level 3 Business Administrator Apprenticeship is £5,000
• Level 5 Operations or Departmental Manager is £7,000.

You can find the full list on the Education & Skills Funding Agency website:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/apprenticeship-funding-bands

   What can I use my levy fund for?

Your levy funds can only be used to pay for apprenticeship training and assessment up to the funding band maximum. If the cost of training and assessment go over the funding band maximum, you will need to pay the difference with other funds from your own budget.

You can’t use funds in your account to pay for other costs associated with your apprentices such as wages, licenses to practise, travel and subsidiary costs, work placement programmes, or the setting up of an apprenticeship programme.

   How do I pay for an Apprenticeship using my levy fund?

You’ll report and pay your levy to HMRC through the PAYE process. You’ll need to set up an account on the Apprenticeship service to receive levy funds and pay your provider.

You will see funds entering your account each month after you have declared the levy to HMRC, and funds leaving the account each month as you pay for training.

   What if I don’t have enough funds?

If you don’t have enough funds in your account to pay for training in a particular month, you’ll be required to share the remaining cost of training and assessing your apprentices for that month with the government.

During this period, you will enter into ‘co-investment’ with the Government and will be required to pay 5% towards the outstanding balance for that month, and the government will pay the remaining 95%, up to the funding band maximum.

   Is there any additional financial support available?

Employers may also receive an incentive payment from the Government for recruiting an Apprentice.

• £1,000 for each apprentice recruited that is 16–18 years old
• £1,000 for each apprentice recruited that is 19–24 and has an Education, Health & Care Plan
• Employers with fewer than 50 employees that recruit a 16–18 year old will not only receive the £1,000 incentive, but their 5% training costs are waived
• Employers are exempt from paying NI contributions for all apprentices under the age of 25 as long as their earnings are below the higher tax rate

   Are the costs the same as for non Levy-payers?

Non-levy paying employers will share the cost of training and assessing their apprentices with the government. This is called ‘co-investment’.

In practical terms, this means that the employer will pay 5% towards the cost of Apprenticeship training, and the Government will pay the rest (95%), up to the funding band maximum.