What happens if my payroll is less than £3 million?

This means you do not have to pay the Levy but you will be required to co-invest a small proportion of funding towards the cost of your apprenticeship training. This will be 10% with the Government contributing 90% of the costs.

If you employ fewer than 50 staff and recruit a 16-18-year-old apprentice, the Government will pay 100% of the apprenticeship training costs. You will also receive an additional payment of £1000 which will be paid in two instalments – 3 and 12 months – and will be paid to you by your training provider.

If you do not pay the Levy you will not need to set up a digital apprenticeship service account to pay your training provider in April 2017. You will agree on a price and pay your contribution towards the costs of the training and assessment to the training provider directly. This will give you more time to prepare for the new system.

What happens if I already employ apprentices?

Apprentices who have been accepted on to an apprenticeship before May 2017 will be funded for the full duration of the apprenticeship under the conditions that were in place at the time their apprenticeship started i.e. the current funding system.

If you are liable to pay the Levy you will not be able to use the funds in your levy account to pay for these apprenticeships.

If my business has to pay the levy, how will it be paid?

You will calculate, report and pay your Levy to HMRC through the Pay as You Earn (PAYE) process alongside income tax and National Insurance.

For single employers with multiple PAYE schemes, you will only have one allowance.

For employers that are connected in ownership or control, you will share one allowance between employers.

You will be able to see funds appear in your digital account monthly, a few working days after you have confirmed your pay bill and levy contribution to HRMC for the previous month. This means that the first time you will see any funds in your digital account will be after 22 May 2017.

You will be able to purchase training through the new digital system from the very start of May as the earliest payments for training will leave your account in the following month. This is because the new system will pay providers 1 month in arrears for training they report has been delivered.

The levy allowance will operate monthly and will accumulate throughout the year. Any unused allowance will be carried from one month to the next.

Levy funds will expire 24 months after they enter your account unless you spend them on apprenticeship training. This will also apply to any top-ups in your account. Levy funds which have expired will be reallocated to committed employers through the top-up to their accounts.

Will I still be affected by the levy and grant if I already pay into a levy scheme?

The relevant Industry Training Boards are working with the Government on how existing arrangements will be affected by the introduction of the Levy and whether any changes are required.

What if I don’t employ apprentices but have to pay into the levy?

Our advice is to make sure you get a return on your Levy payment!! If your payroll bill exceeds £3m you have to pay the Levy so why pay something, then miss out on the benefits?

We can work with you every step of the way to ensure you maximise your return – from recruiting the right apprentice, re-skilling existing employees through apprenticeships, choosing the right training and helping grow your business.

The funds can be used for apprenticeship training and assessment for new apprentices to your business or with existing staff through re-skilling. The funds cannot be used for items such as wages, travel, managerial costs, the costs of setting up an apprenticeship programme.

How much will Apprenticeship training cost?

The cost of the training will cover the cost of the apprentice training, assessment, and certification against an approved apprenticeship standard or framework.

Funding bands have been set by the Government which limits a number of levy funds you can spend on training for an individual apprentice. The band will vary according to the level and type of apprenticeships.

If you have not contributed to the levy or if you have used all of your funds in your digital apprenticeship account you will be required to co-invest a small proportion of funding towards the cost of your apprenticeship training. This is proposed to be 10% with the Government contributing 90% of the costs.

If you recruit a 16-18-year-old apprentice, you will receive an additional payment of £1000 which will be paid in two instalments – 3 and 12 months – and will be paid to you by your training provider.

What are the benefits to employing an Apprentice?

Recruiting an apprentice is an opportunity to discover fresh new talent, with 96% of employers reporting benefits to their business including increased productivity and output.

We are highly experienced in sourcing young people for the workplace and by partnering with us to recruit your apprentice, we can take away the headache and cost associated with the recruitment process to find the right young person for your business.

We pre-screen applicants, carry out diagnostic skills checks and pre-apprenticeship training sessions to ensure that learners are work-ready prior to starting an apprenticeship – ensuring a smooth fit with your business meaning they can start making a difference from day one.