CAPE - Fee-free Traineeship

Fee-free* Traineeships

Get a job in a career you love with a fee-free* Traineeship

With the NSW Government committing to paying the course cost for 70,000 new traineeships, there's never been a better time to enrol at TAFE NSW in a government funded traineeship course.

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Traineeships combine on-the-job training with formal study to give you the skills and experience employers are looking for. Generally taking around 1-2 years to complete, traineeships offer you the opportunity to earn a salary while you learn.

TAFE NSW offers a range of traineeship courses covering many industries including early childhood, health and allied services, business, IT, hospitality and warehouse operations.

Traineeships are a proven pathway to well-paid jobs in a diverse range of careers. In NSW, traineeships are also fee-free*.

Am I eligible?

Fee-free* traineeships are available to NSW trainees – including school-based trainees whose training:

  • is funded under the NSW Government's Smart and Skilled Program
  • commenced on or after 1 January 2020.

If you’ve previously commenced your Smart and Skilled traineeship training before 1 January 2020 and are returning to a traineeship after 1 January 2020, you will be eligible for fee-free* for the remainder of your training if your traineeship course or your employer has changed.

Each student is limited to a maximum of commencing three fee-free* traineeships under this initiative.

More fee-free* training:

Employers

Under its fee-free* traineeship initiative, the NSW Government will pay the student fee for 70,000 new trainees who commence their training under Smart and Skilled from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2023. If the employer normally pays the student fee on behalf of the trainee, they will no longer have to pay a cent in student fees for trainees who start their Smart and Skilled funded traineeship course on or after 1 January 2020.

This initiative will help to ensure that your business has the skilled staff it needs to succeed.
The NSW Government will pay the up-to-$1000 student fee direct to the Smart and Skilled training provider.

Sourced from https://vet.nsw.gov.au/choosing-vet/fee-free-apprenticeships

* Subject to availability

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Fee-free Traineeships - FAQs

Traineeship FAQs

To be eligible, you must be a NSW trainee or NSW school-based trainee, and have commenced your Smart and Skilled traineeship training after 1 January 2020. 

If you have previously commenced your Smart and Skilled traineeship training before 1 January 2020 and are returning to a traineeship after 1 January 2020, you will be eligible for fee-free* for the remainder of your training if your traineeship course or your employer has changed. 

If you've started training with your training provider after 1 January 2020, you do not have to pay a fee. If you started training before this date, the student fee must still be paid.

If you have previously commenced your Smart and Skilled traineeship training before 1 January 2020 and are returning to a traineeship after 1 January 2020 you will be eligible for fee-free* for the remainder of your training if your traineeship course or your employer has changed.

If you've started your course before 1 January 2020 you are not eligible for a refund.

Smart and Skilled provides fee exemptions to students with a disability, which means you will not have to pay a fee.

You may also be entitled to financial support to help you complete a traineeship. There are employment agencies that specialise in providing assistance tailored to your individual circumstances.

Your employer may be eligible for financial help when they employ a person with disability. This can include assistance to modify or adjust your workplace through the Employment Assistance Fund.

Smart and Skilled provides fee exemptions to Aboriginal students which means you will not have to pay a fee.