What is the Skills Advancement Grant?
Up to £15,000 for staff training for Invest NI customers to cover external training, travel and accommodation. The Skills Advancement Grant is available to smaller companies who are already customers of Invest NI. Support is available for external training, travel and accommodation costs at 50% grant up to a maximum of £15,000 grant. The grant is available for 18 months only with no option to extend the offer. It does not cover mandatory training and VAT is excluded.
We will help you improve your skills so your company grows. We offer financial support for training activities to Invest NI customers who are SMEs. The scheme supports trainee wages, internal trainer, external trainer and travel and accommodation costs. Grant support is variable up to a maximum of 50% of eligible costs. Mandatory training, induction training and repeat training are not eligible and VAT is excluded.
Eligibility criteria:
This support is available to Invest Northern Ireland customers. If your business can show that it intends to sell outside Northern Ireland, is actively pursuing growth plans and will contribute to increasing productivity and innovation in Northern Ireland, you could become a customer with Invest NI.
The criteria for Invest NI customers is as follows:
- actual turnover >= £250,000
- actual external sales >= 25 per cent or £250,000 per annum
- growth potential
Growth potential is defined by Invest NI as:
- potential employment growth >= 20 per cent or >= 20 jobs within three years; or
- potential external sales growth >=20 per cent or >= £500,000 within three years; or
- potential increase in GVA / employee >= 20 per cent within three years
