Evidence requirements for Apprenticeship Wage Subsidies 043-23011707

To be acceptable, wage evidence must be legible and the following details must match those supplied in the claim:

• Apprentice name
• Business name
• ABN
• Date range
• Gross amount of wages (If the wage evidence does not show 'gross income' amount, add the net pay to the tax amount to calculate the gross taxable income)

It is not a requirement for a business address on the wage evidence to match the business address on the claim.

Wage evidence may be supplied in a variety of formats, depending on the accountancy software used by the employer. Wage evidence can be accepted, provided it contains the above information. If there are concerns about the legitimacy of the document, the claim should be escalated to a Local Peer Support (LPS).

If the name does not match exactly, evidence can be accepted if it is clearly for the same apprentice (for example Ben and Benjamin). Where there is doubt, request new evidence.

When a business name is:

• not displayed in the wage evidence, evidence is acceptable if it contains an ABN exactly matching the ABN in the claim
• displayed, but does not exactly match the claim, evidence is acceptable when:
• there is a clear connection between the names (for example, ACME Pty Ltd and ACME), or
• the evidence contains an ABN exactly matching the ABN in the claim

When there is doubt, contact LPS who will phone AWSE to conduct a search. If LPS or AWSE are not available, request new evidence.

If the employer advises they cannot provide wage evidence matching the claim or meeting the above conditions, escalate the claim to LPS to create an AWSE referral.

An ABN must be displayed on all wage evidence except a payroll summary or wage report.

If the ABN does not match and the employer advises this is due to a Trust or other entity arrangement, the wage evidence can be accepted if the employer uploads evidence confirming this arrangement.

For example, a:

• statement or letter on letterhead
• print from ABN look-up, or
• Statutory Declaration

Employers claiming an AWS need to lodge claims for each individual claiming period. An employer may claim for wages paid to the apprentice, spanning the entire 3-month claiming period, or only part of the claiming period.

If the apprentice has started an apprenticeship within the claiming period, and the:

• 'date from' declared does not match the evidence start date, and
• apprenticeship started during the claim period, and
• 'date from' declared matches the apprenticeship start date

The evidence is acceptable.

If the apprentice has ceased an apprenticeship within the claiming period, and the:

• 'date to' declared does not match the evidence end date, and
• apprenticeship ceased during the claim period, and
• 'date to' declared matches the apprenticeship end date

The evidence is acceptable.

Wage evidence supplied needs to show payment periods, or at least show the:

• first payment period start date and end date
• final payment period start and end date

This will show the payment frequency, for example, weekly, fortnightly or monthly. Wage evidence with only payment dates is not acceptable, unless the Service Officer can determine the pay period dates align with the dates advised in the claim.

Payroll summaries will show the total wages paid for a large period. It will not show individual pay periods. These can be accepted where the dates align with the dates the employer has declared in the claim.

Service Officers should accept wage evidence dates, if the date range on the evidence provided matches the dates declared by the employer, in the claim form.

If the wage evidence provided has different dates to those recorded in the claim by the employer it cannot be accepted.

Note: although employers can declare any wage evidence dates they wish, they should be encouraged, during contacts, to:

• declare dates that best relate to their circumstances, and
• provide matching wage evidence. See Resources for Date Range examples

The amount shown in the claim must match:

• the total gross wages displayed in a payslip, where payslips are attached individually, or
• the sum of all gross wages displayed in in a payroll summary or wage report, or where multiple payslips are provided in a single attachment

If the wage evidence does not show a gross income amount, add the net pay to the tax amount, to calculate the gross taxable income.

If an employer declares the apprentice's net wage amount (rather than gross) in the wage evidence section of the claim, return the claim to enable the declared amount to be corrected.

Where the employer uploads:

• a single wage evidence document and has rounded the amount of gross wages up or down to the nearest dollar in the claim, evidence is acceptable.
  For example, wage evidence is $999.99; either $999 or $1,000 is an acceptable claim response
• multiple payslips as individual attachments, the gross amount declared must match the wage evidence. Rounded amounts are not acceptable. Return the claim to enable the declared amount/s to be corrected

Gross wages include:

• allowances
• overtime
• penalty rates
• bonuses
• salary sacrifice arrangements
• accrued annual leave entitlements paid out on termination of employment, including where it is paid out after the termination or apprenticeship end date. The amounts need to be included in the gross amount declared by the employer, if leave payments:
• are paid after the apprenticeship end date, and
• were accrued during the apprenticeship, and
• appear on a payslip dated after the apprenticeship end date
• any other amount, before any deductions are made

Wage evidence is acceptable only where the gross amount declared by the employer is the sum of the apprentice's gross wages plus any of the above, if applicable.

Gross wages do not include:

• superannuation contributions paid by the employer
• re-imbursements
• gifts or tips
• other funding (deemed as 'not equivalent') attracted by the apprentice or trainee, which is paid through the employer

Employers are not required to attach training evidence if:

• they confirm it has previously been provided, or
• the apprentice's workplace (shown within the claim) is within the following exempt states and territories:
• ACT
• NSW
• SA
• TAS

If an employer has uploaded Training Evidence, and the Workplace Address in the claim is in an exempt state or territory, the evidence can be treated as acceptable. There is no need to review the evidence document.

To be acceptable, training evidence must be legible and the following details must match those supplied in the claim:

• Apprentice name
• Business name
• Signatures of all parties

Acceptable evidence can include:

• a copy of the Training Plan or a state/territory equivalent document
• written advice from the RTO naming the apprentice, employer and RTO and showing the date it was signed
• a completed RTO Declaration for Australian Government Australian Apprenticeships Employer Incentives form 1237, stating that a Training Plan has been signed, or
• evidence from the relevant State Training Authority that a Training Plan has been signed

Training contracts are not an acceptable document.

Note: there is no requirement to have a commencement date within the training plan.

If the name does not match exactly, evidence can be accepted if it is clearly for the same apprentice (for example Ben and Benjamin). When there is doubt, request new evidence.

Where a business name does not match exactly, evidence is acceptable where there is a clear connection between the names. For example, ACME Pty Ltd and ACME.

Where an entity name is supplied instead of the trading business name, evidence is acceptable if there is an ABN that matches the claim.

Where there is doubt, request new evidence.

Note: if the employer cannot provide training evidence matching the claim or meeting the above conditions, use the AWS LPS Referral form to escalate the claim to Local Peer Support (LPS), to create an Apprenticeships Wage Subsidy Escalation (AWSE) referral.

Evidence is acceptable only where it is signed by the apprentice, employer and the registered training organisation (RTO).

Where the evidence is digitally signed, contains an eSignature or indicates electronic agreement has occurred by any of the parties, the evidence is acceptable.

The date the document was signed is not relevant.

It is not a requirement for the person specified as the employer contact in the claim to have signed the training evidence.