Growth and skills levy (apprenticeship levy)

Copyright © 2026 LexisNexis
Produced by a Tolley Employment Tax expert
Employment Tax
Guidance

Growth and skills levy (apprenticeship levy)

Copyright © 2026 LexisNexis
Produced by a Tolley Employment Tax expert
Employment Tax
Guidance
imgtext

Introduction

The apprenticeship levy was introduced in Finance Act 2016 and applies as from 6 April 2017. The rate of levy is 0.5 % of paybill, offset by a £15,000 ‘levy allowance’. This means that, in effect, it applies only to employers who have an annual paybill of £3 million or more a year.

The Apprenticeship Levy was in turn renamed as the Growth and Skills Levy, in April 2025. The changes introduced under the Growth and Skills Levy relate, primarily,.to the types of training courses which may be funded by the Levy, with the employer payments required towards the Levy remaining unchanged.

The Growth and Skills Levy (formerly known as the apprenticeship levy) payment regime is run by the by the Department for Education. However the employer payments side of the Levy is administered by HMRC as part of the RTI system, alongside PAYE tax and NIC.

The money raised by the levy goes into a special training fund which is topped up by government with the aim that it can be accessed by

Continue reading the full document
To gain access to additional expert tax guidance, workflow tools, generative tax AI, and tax research, register for a free trial of Tolley+™
TAKE A FREE TRIAL NOW
Powered by Tolley+™
  • 24 Oct 2025 13:10

Home/ Tolley Tax Guidance/ Employment Tax / PAYE for employees

Popular Articles

Value Added Tax

Exemption ― burial and cremation

Exemption ― burial and cremationThis guidance note provides an overview of the VAT treatment of services that are provided in connection with the burial or cremation of human remains.VAT treatmentThe following services are exempt from VAT:•the disposal of the remains of the dead•making arrangements

14 Jul 2020 11:38 | Produced by Tolley Read more Read more
Value Added Tax

Reverse charge ― buying in services from outside the UK

Reverse charge ― buying in services from outside the UKThis guidance note covers the reverse charge that applies to services that have been bought in from outside the UK. For an overview of VAT and international services more broadly, see the International services ― overview guidance note. For

15 Dec 2020 14:02 | Produced by Tolley Read more Read more
Employment Tax

Payroll record keeping

Payroll record keepingUnder SI 2003/2682, reg 97, “...an employer must keep, for not less than 3 years after the end of the tax year to which they relate, all PAYE records which are not required to be sent to [HMRC]...”. Reasons for keeping the records include:•being able to calculate tax and

14 Jul 2020 12:52 | Produced by Tolley in association with Ian Holloway Read more Read more