Guidance

Guidance on removal of additional qualifications approved for public funding: post-16 level 2 and 3

Updated 27 May 2026

Applies to England

Background  

We will introduce the first tranche of new V levels and reformed level 2 qualifications from 1 August 2027. From this date, public funding approval for 16 to 19 year olds will be withdrawn from legacy vocational and technical qualifications with fewer than 1080 guided learning hours in the following areas:

• level 3 digital
• level 3 accounting and finance
• levels 2 and 3 child development and well-being, teaching and lecturing, and direct learning support sectors

This is in addition to the qualifications with 1080 and above guided learning hours in T level areas that were published in March 2026 and will have funding approval removed from 1 August 2027.

We will not remove hospitality and catering qualifications from public funding approval in 2027 to 2028. This is because the new level 2 qualifications in hospitality and catering are being introduced in different tranches. The occupational certificate will be available in 2027 to 2028. The foundation certificate is planned for development in 2029 to 2030.  

Funding for adult qualifications is not affected by this process. 

What this guidance covers

This guidance sets out:  

• how we have identified qualifications for funding removal 
• the criteria against which you can notify us that a qualification should not have funding approval removed from 1 August 2027 
• the process, evidence requirements and timescales for you to notify us 
• how to submit an appeal and notify us if you believe a qualification meets the criteria set out in the guidance

This guidance is for awarding organisations and will expire on 31 July 2026.

Scope for funding removal for tranche 1 

We define a qualification to be one that is listed on the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation’s (Ofqual) Register of Regulated Qualifications with a unique qualification number (QAN) and Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA) regulated. 

Qualifications are in scope to be considered for funding removal from 1 August 2027 as part of this process:

• if they were approved for funding for 16 to 19 year olds for all or some of the academic year 2026 to 2027
• are at levels 1 and 2, 2 or 3 and cover all qualification types except T level qualifications
• are GCSE qualifications and A and AS level qualifications

Qualifications are out of scope of this process if they:

• are at levels 1 and below or 4 and above
• have been withdrawn by awarding organisations
• are only funded for adult learners
• are the 33 qualifications with 1080 guided learning hours and above where funding will be removed from 1 August 2027

Criteria for funding removal 

To identify qualifications for removal of funding for ‘new starts’ for 16 to 19 learners from 1  August 2027 we mapped the routes that will be reformed in 2027 to 2028 (except for hospitality and catering) against sector subject areas (SSAs). This analysis is based on Skills England’s mapping of SSA codes to apprenticeships (snapshot taken 1 February 2026). 

Where foundation certificates and occupational certificates at level 2 are split across multiple tranches of the reforms, as in the case of hospitality and catering, these routes will have funding removed once both types of qualification are developed at level 2. 

Education and early years are mapped at level 2 and 3 to:

• 13.1 teaching and lecturing 

• 13.2 direct learning support 

• 1.5 child development and well-being 

To maintain a clear and consistent qualifications landscape at level 2, all qualifications which are listed by the Department for Education (DfE) as full and relevant for early years ratios in the Early years qualifications list have been considered in the education and early years route, regardless of their SSA assignment.  

Digital at level 3 is mapped to 

• 6.1 digital technology (practitioner) 

• 6.2 digital technology (users) 

Accounting and finance at level 3 is mapped to 

• 15.1 accounting and finance 

We excluded a number of subject areas from funding removal in 2027 due to the need for further consideration. This includes: 

• enrichment qualifications, for example, information advice and guidance, paediatric first aid 
• youth work and youth support work  
• additional specialist qualifications, for example special educational needs, specific learning difficulties and dyslexia awareness 

Criteria for notifications 

You can submit a notification for qualifications which are due to have funding approval removed from 1 August 2027 as a result of this process.  

If your qualification has not had funding extended for another reason, for instance because it is no longer operational or following funding removal published in March 2026, we will not accept notifications as part of this process.  

You can submit a notification, if one or more of the following criteria are met. The criteria are that:

• we have made a technical error by identifying your qualification is in an incorrect SSA (and not recognised as full and relevant in the case of early years) or at the wrong level or because your qualification more closely maps to an occupational route out of scope for funding removal from 1 August 2027  
• your qualification is niche based on the criteria set out in the Notifying us of a niche qualification section

This section explains these criteria and the evidence required to support your notification. 

Please make sure that any evidence submitted is specific to the qualification and which criteria you are notifying us against where funding approval for the qualification should not be removed. 

Notifying us of a technical error  

You can notify us if: 

• an incorrect qualification type or level has been used to assess your qualification 

• an incorrect sector subject area assignment has been used to assess your qualification, with the exception of early years qualifications which are deemed by DfE as full and relevant and which have had funding removed regardless of SSA assignment
• the sector subject area used was correct, but your qualification aligns more closely to a different occupational route to the ones in scope of funding removal from 1 August 2027 

What you need to do 

If you want to notify us of an incorrect qualification type, level or SSA you must demonstrate that the qualification was regulated on Ofqual’s Register of Regulated Qualifications or QAA regulated at a different Level, SSA or qualification type to the one assessed on 27 February 2026. 

If you want to notify us of your qualification aligning to a route that is not in scope of having funding removal in 2027, you must send us as a minimum: 

• the current qualification specification for your qualification 

• mapping of your qualification content against the route in which the qualification was removed from funding 

• mapping of your qualification content against the occupational route you consider to be most appropriate for your qualification  

This evidence should show conclusively that your qualification aligns with the route not in scope for funding removal from 1 August 2027, rather than the route to which we have assigned your qualification.

Notifying us of a niche qualification  

You can notify us if your qualification addresses a niche skills need at an appropriate level, is suitable for 16 to 19 learners, and is not covered by an apprenticeship or any reformed qualification(s). 

What you need to do 

If you want to notify us of a niche qualification, you must send us clear evidence that shows the content of your qualification against all the criteria set out below. The niche qualification:

• provides service to support a specific local or national skills pipeline. (This should be evidenced through confirmation from an external sector body of skills body)

• will not be covered through any qualifications which will be available in the academic year 2027 to 2028, such as T levels, V levels, occupational certificates or foundation certificates 

• is not covered by an apprenticeship 

• is not covered by an occupational standard at a different level to the level of the qualification 

The content should also be suitable for 16 to 19 learners.

You should also include a current specification of your qualification. 

Submitting an appeal 

You must notify us by 5pm on 22 June 2026, if you believe a qualification meets the criteria set out in the guidance.  

We will be accepting notifications through the new Qualification Funding and Approval Service Tool (QFAST). If you have not used the system before you may have to take additional steps to set up access. Please ensure you take these steps early in the process.  

Information on this can be found under Apply for funding for a regulated qualification. If you have issues using the system, please contact us on qualifications.approval@education.gov.uk. 

We will not:

• accept late submission of forms, evidence or other supporting information 
• consider notifications that do not have all the required supporting evidence

Once we have received your notification, we will tell you if we require any further clarification. 

Assessing notifications  

We will review the notifications you submit against the criteria set out in this guidance. If the qualification(s) meet the criteria, your qualification will be retained in 2027 to 2028. 

As part of the assessment of the notifications, we may also seek further external advice regarding qualifications, if we need to. This could be from an external body. We will notify you of the outcome in July 2026.  

Contact us  

If you have any queries about the removal of funding approval from qualifications, or about the notification process, please send them to qualifications.approval@education.gov.uk.