There are many, many benefits to taking on an apprentice, but for an employer's financial standpoint, there's one fantastic point you need to know about.
Employers don't pay National Insurance for apprentices under the age of 25!*
*subject to the below criteria
How Does it Work?
If you took on a regular employee at work, you normally have to pay Class 1 National Insurance contributions on that employees' earnings.
Current government legislation makes apprentices under the age of 25 exempt from this usual ruling, provided they are:
- Currently on an approved apprenticeship scheme (like the ones we offer here at EDC, for example!)
- They must earn below the Upper Secondary Threshold. At the time of writing (May 2025), that's less than £50,270 per year (up to £967 per week)
The employee would still pay their own national insurance contributions as they would normally. The exemption only applies to you, the employer, who will not need to pay the Class 1 National Insurance contribution.
How Much Could I Save?
If an employee is over the current National Insurance threshold, employers are currently expected to pay 15% on National Insurance Contributions (rose in April 2025 as a result of the October 2024 budget).
The threshold for which employee contributions start at was also recently decreased from £9100 to £5000 per year.
With an apprentice in place, you're ultimately saving that 15% on your wage bills. With even one apprentice at your business you could save £1000+ per year, and businesses with multiple apprentices could save even more.
As an example:
Your apprentice earns £20000 per year. Under the current threshold of 15%, you'd be expected to pay £2,250 towards Class I National Insurance.
With this exemption, you'll pay absolutely NOTHING.
Taking on an Apprentice
As you can see above, there are real savings just waiting to be had by increasing your workforce with apprenticeships.
At East Durham College, our dedicated apprenticeship team are on-hand to help with absolutely all of your requirements.
We can help with:
- Recruitment, matching you with the right candidate(s)
- Funding and financial support, including the Apprenticeship Levy and National Insurance exemptions like we talked about on this page
- Apprentice development, with visits to your premises as well as day-release training provided by highly experienced EDC lecturing staff
Ultimately, we provide a fully-managed apprenticeship service, ensuring you get the people you need, without all the difficult parts!
If you'd like to learn more about working with EDC and how we can benefit you as an employer, we'd love to have a chat! You can email business@eastdurham.ac.uk or alternatively use our contact form below to get in touch with the team!