For the full learner eligibility requirements, see the Youth Guarantee funding conditions for the relevant year. 

Learners must not be simultaneously enrolled in school and a YG funded programme.

Learners must not be enrolled in a YG funded programme and another TEC-funded programme at the same time, eg, Intensive Literacy and Numeracy (ILN), Delivery at Levels 1 and 2 on the New Zealand Qualifications and Credentials Framework (DQ1-2), New Zealand Apprenticeship or Gateway.

A learner who is eligible for ILN-funded programmes is not considered to have the necessary literacy and numeracy skills to be successful in a YG programme.

Limit on prior qualification achievement

The Youth Guarantee (YG) Fund provides fees-free tertiary education for learners aged 16–24 years who have no, or low, prior qualification achievement. It provides a pathway for young learners to achieve the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) and qualifications that will enable them to progress to higher-level education or employment.  

YG funding is prioritised for delivery to learners with no, or low, prior qualifications achieved before enrolling, or learners who are progressing from NCEA Levels 1 and 2 completed under YG funding to a Level 3 qualification (under the same fund and within their individual equivalent full-time student [EFTS] limit). Learner eligibility requirements for YG are set out in the funding mechanism issued by the Minister for Vocational Education.

To meet the requirement in the funding mechanism, we must ensure that YG funding is only allocated to tertiary education organisations (TEOs) for provision of NCEA Levels 1 and 2 (when aligned to specified vocational pathways), NCEA Level 3,* or any other qualification listed at Levels 1, 2 or 3 on the New Zealand Qualifications and Credentials Framework (NZQCF).

* Funding for Level 3 qualifications is subject to further conditions. For more detail, check the funding conditions catalogue for the relevant year. 

Funding condition: Prior achieved qualifications and 10% limit

One of the conditions for YG funding restricts funding for learners who already hold a qualification at Level 1 or 2 or above. The funding condition is expressed in two parts:

1. Restrictions on claiming funding for individual learners

Generally, you cannot claim YG funding for a learner who already holds a qualification at Level 1 or 2 (or higher) on the NZQCF.

However, this eligibility depends on what level of qualification they have already achieved, and the level of qualification they are enrolling in. If they are enrolling for a qualification at a higher level than one they already hold, they will be eligible for funded provision, as shown in this table:

There are additional requirements for individual learners in the Youth Guarantee funding conditions for the relevant year. Ensure your learner meets these also.  

2. A maximum limit that applies across your organisation

You are permitted to enrol a maximum of 10% of learners with higher-level qualifications. No more than 10% of learners enrolled across programmes for which you receive YG funding can hold a prior achieved qualification at Level 1 or 2 on the NZQCF.

This means you can decide to enrol a learner with a higher-level qualification, but you must ensure you stay under the 10% overall limit allowed for your organisation under the funding condition.

Practical guidance to stay under the 10% limit

All TEOs (and secondary schools) are given 90 days to upload credits and qualification completions to the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA).

This can create a time delay between a learner’s previous provider updating a learner’s NZQA Record of Achievement (NZRoA), and them enrolling with you. It is possible the learner may have achieved a qualification which is not yet showing on their NZRoA.

You can assess a learner’s eligibility for funded provision based on the information showing on their NZRoA on the date you accept their application. You must retain dated evidence for audit purposes. You should also ask the learner about their immediate prior study, to assess if they may have achieved a qualification before enrolling with you.

We suggest you retain a dated pdf or printed copy of a learner’s NZRoA, showing there were no prior qualifications listed at the time you accepted their application, and that you made reasonable enquiries with them about their immediate past study. Evidence of a reasonable enquiry may be a dated file note with a statement such as “Asked learner about past study – confirmed no quals in addition to what is shown on NZRoA”.

Evidence should be kept on the learner’s file. In the event of a TEC audit, where there is satisfactory evidence to show there was no prior qualification showing on the NZRoA and you made reasonable enquiries with the learner, we will exclude that learner from your organisation’s 10% limit.

Organisational level checks

You need to monitor your enrolments to ensure you do not exceed your 10% limit. How you do this is up to you, but you may want to consider the following guidance:  

• It may be useful to pre-calculate the maximum number of learners allowed, based on your anticipated enrolments. You would need to adjust this frequently based on your actual enrolment figures as individual learners are enrolled. We recommend you take a conservative approach.
• Closely monitor learners who enrol with you but hold a prior achieved qualification at Level 1 or 2 (or above). From this total, you may exclude learners who are not counted because they are progressing from a Level 1 to a Level 2 qualification. This exclusion will reduce the total enrolments contributing towards your 10% limit, but again, will need to be frequently monitored, especially during peak enrolment periods.

If you discover significant numbers of your learners fall into a cohort or category that impacts on your 10% limit, we encourage you to collect relevant data and information to discuss with us. 

If your TEO is found to have exceeded the 10% limit

We undertake monitoring across TEOs regularly and will contact you if your organisation has exceeded the 10% limit. We may take steps to enforce the funding condition through funding recovery.

Level 3 programmes

To meet the learner eligibility requirements you must:

• not enrol a learner in a YG programme if the learner has already achieved a qualification at Level 3 or above on the NZQCF, and
• prioritise enrolments in YG programmes that lead to award of a Level 3 qualification on the NZQCF for:
  • learners who enrolled in YG with low prior achievement (no qualification or a Level 1 qualification), and
  • learners who have completed a Level 1 or 2 qualification funded through YG.

Age limit for learners

Learners may be re-enrolled in YG, as long as they continue to meet the learner eligibility conditions, including enrolling in no more than 1.5 EFTS provision per calendar year.

Some learners may turn 25 years old during a programme they are enrolled in. These learners remain eligible for YG for the courses required to complete their programme.

YG funding is not available for learners who have already turned 25 to re-enrol in courses they did not successfully complete. Keep this in mind when you enrol a learner who is close to turning 25, as any re-enrolments in programmes or courses will need to be self-funded by the learner or from DQ1-2/Delivery at Levels 3-7 (non-degree) on the New Zealand Qualifications and Credentials Framework and all industry training (DQ3-7) Funds funding.