Employer enquiries about Apprenticeship Wage Subsidies (AWS) 043-22032123

Answer calls to the line with 'Apprenticeship Wage Subsidy line'. If asked, staff can identify themselves as Services Australia employees, providing services on behalf of DEWR.

Apply the agency's telephone standards to calls.

For enquiries about claims for wages paid from 5 October 2020 to 31 December 2021, advise the employer to contact their Apprentice Connect Australia Provider. Procedure ends here.

For general enquiries, unrelated to a specific AWS claim, go to Step 11.

Note: where an employer challenges their ineligibility, direct them to their Apprentice Connect Australia Provider to request a waiver.

Log on to the Apprenticeship Data Management System (ADMS). Ask the employer for their claim application ID number.

Search for the claim in ADMS:

• From the home page, select:
• Process Claim Applications
• In the Search field enter any of the following:
• Claim application ID
• Business name (will display all claims for an employer), or
• Apprentice name (will display all claims for the apprentice)
• Select Search

Note: if you accidently access the record of a person with whom you have perceived conflict of interest, declare the access by following the standard agency procedure and completing the Inadvertent Access form (also known as 'OOPS' register). See the Resources page for a link to the Inadvertent Access form.

Does the claim appear in the search results?

• Yes, select the claim application to go to the Claim Details page, go to Step 2
• No, tell the employer that the claim cannot be identified and they need to contact their Apprentice Connect Australia Provider to follow up. Procedure ends here

To confirm the caller is authorised to discuss the AWS claim, ask them to provide:

• Claim application ID and either:
• Business name
• Workplace address, or
• Apprentice name

Confirm these details against the Employer Details in the claim.

Do not access any other Services Australia system or record to confirm caller's authority.

Can the employer's identity be validated?

• Yes, go to Step 3
• No, advise the caller no information can be released and to call back when they have additional details that confirm their authority. Procedure ends here

Review the Service Notes in ADMS before taking action to assist the employer with their enquiry.

Record a Note every time an:

• outbound contact is made or attempted, after a claim is allocated to a Service Officer for evidence verification, or
• inbound enquiry is received from an employer
• claim is escalated to via the DEWR AWSE line or the DEWR AWSE line Contact Card

To review the notes, select Service Notes from the right-hand side bar.

Employers may contact to discuss the submission, progress or outcome of AWS claims. Employers can view the status of their claims in ADMS.

For enquiries from employers contacting:

• because their rate of subsidy is less than expected (including $0 claims), or they have been overpaid, go to Step 1 in Table 2
• to withdraw their claim, go to Step 13
• because they have accidently withdrawn their claim, go to Step 14
• because they have received an invitation to claim an AWS, but no claim can be found by the employer or Services Australia staff, refer the employer to their Apprentice Connect Australia Provider

Otherwise, if the claim status in ADMS is:

• Assessment, go to Step 5
• Returned, go to Step 8
• Verified, Approved or Rejected, go to Step 9
• Ready or Draft, go to Step 10
• Expired, go to Step 15

A status of Assessment means the claim:

• has been submitted, or resubmitted by the employer following a request for additional information, and
• requires verification

An AWS claim is referred to Services Australia for verification of uploaded evidence if:

• automation cannot verify the wage evidence attached by the employer, and/or
• training evidence requires verification

Generally, claims have Assessment status with comments while awaiting allocation to a Service Officer.

If the employer is contacting to:

• change the bank account details shown on the claim, go to Step 6
• request the claim be returned to them because they have provided incorrect evidence or claim responses, go to Step 7

For enquiries about the progress of their claim, check the claim status and Service Notes in ADMS. The claim may be awaiting Local Peer Support (LPS) or DEWR AWSE Line intervention before it can progress.

If the Service Notes indicate the claim has been referred to LPS or AWSE, advise the employer the claim:

• has been escalated for investigation, and
• will be progressed as soon as possible after resolution

If the claim has an Assessment status, and there is no indication in the Service Notes that claim has been referred to LPS for support or escalation:

• tell the employer that the claim will be allocated to a Service Officer to verify the evidence, and they will be contacted if any further information or evidence is required.
• do not indicate the reason that the claim has not progressed

Procedure ends here.

Details of all bank accounts held in ADMS for an employer are listed on the claim application. When completing the application, employers select their preferred bank account from the list of known accounts.

Advise employers to contact their Apprentice Connect Australia Provider before claim submission if no bank account details are listed or they need to add a new bank account.

If a claim has a status of Assessment and the employer is requesting to change the preferred account, return the claim for the employer to make the change. The employer then needs to refresh and resubmit the claim.

In ADMS:

• go to the Claim Eligibility section
• select Requires more information
• select the Employer Bank Account checkbox in the Changes for Employer section
• copy and paste the following text into the Comments for Employer field, changing only the date:

You have requested your claim application be returned to update your bank account details.

Please select your preferred bank account details for this payment and resubmit.

If you would like to add a new bank account please contact your Apprentice Connect Australia Provider.

Once the Apprentice Connect Australia Provider has updated your employer record, the claim application can be refreshed to allow the new bank account details to be visible and selected.

Please resubmit your claim as soon as possible.

Advise the employer to:

• contact their Apprentice Connect Australia Provider, if their preferred bank account is not listed
• update their preferred account, and
• resubmit the claim as soon as possible

Record a Service Note in ADMS for the inbound contact:

• select Service Notes from the right-hand side bar
• select the Incoming radio button
• record notes in the text box to reflect the actions taken and/or employer conversation
• select the Post button

Procedure ends here.

Employers are unable to make changes to their claim applications with a status of Assessment.

The employer may advise they have provided incorrect evidence or claim response and request the claim to be returned.

If the employer contacts because they attached incorrect evidence or entered incorrect information, return the claim, do not leave these claims to be allocated and returned at a later date.

In ADMS:

• go to the Claim Eligibility section
• select Requires more information
• select the appropriate checkbox in the Changes for Employer section
• text entered into the Comments for employer field appears in the email to the employer. Copy and paste the following text into the Comments for Employer field, changing only the date and text in brackets:

You have requested your claim application be returned to update your claim evidence and/or claim responses (select text option applicable to employer).

Please attach the new evidence and/or update your responses (select text option applicable to employer), and resubmit.

Please resubmit your claim as soon as possible.

Advise the employer to resubmit their claim.

Record a Service Note in ADMS for the inbound contact:

• select Service Notes from the right-hand side bar
• select the Incoming radio button
• record notes in the text box to reflect the actions taken and/or employer conversation
• select the Post button

Procedure ends here.

A status of Returned means the evidence could not be verified and the claim has been returned for additional information.

When determining claim progress check the Service Notes in ADMS. The claim may be awaiting Local Peer Support (LPS) or DEWR AWSE Line intervention before it can progress.

If the employer contacts to discuss a claim that has been Returned:

• check the Service Notes in ADMS
• review comments in the Action section in ADMS
• advise employer of:
• the required evidence, and
• any relevant details within the Comments

Where the employer believes the claim has been returned incorrectly, review the information requested in the Comments and the relevant evidence and/or claim responses.

For information on training and wage evidence, see Claim review table in Verifying evidence for Apprenticeship Wage Subsidy (AWS) claims.

If it is determined that the claim has been returned incorrectly:

• apologise to the employer for the inconvenience
• ask they resubmit the claim without making any changes
• document the discussion in the Service Notes

If the employer resubmits the claim (and uploads the requested evidence), and it cannot be verified through the automation process, the claim status will change to Assessment. The verification process will start again.

Procedure ends here.

Claims with a status of:

• Approved, have been assessed by ADMS to be eligible. Once this status is set, payment of wage subsidies are made to the employer's nominated bank account
• Rejected, have been assessed as ineligible. This status is only applied by Local Peer Support (LPS), when directed to by the DEWR AWSE Helpdesk. An employer cannot lodge another claim for the same apprentice and claim period, if the claim has been rejected
• Verified, have been marked as eligible (either through automation or by a Service Officer), pending completion of the DEWR delegation approval process. The status will change from Verified to Approved within one business day

Verified, Approved and Rejected are finalised claim statuses which indicate no further action is required for the claim.

Tell the employer to contact their Apprentice Connect Australia Provider, if:

• they are contacting about a subsidy other than BAC/CAC
• their bank details require updating
• they are requesting a review of decision of a BAC/CAC claim for wages paid before 1 January 2022

Escalate the enquiry to LPS, who will refer to the AWSE line if:

• The employer is contacting because they have not received payment for a Verified or Approved BAC/CAC claim, and
• at least 10 business days have passed since the claim was finalised, and
• the employer bank account details in the claim are correct

LPS actioning escalations, see the Escalations to Local Peer Support (LPS) and Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) Apprenticeships Wage Subsidy Escalation (AWSE) line table in Verifying evidence for Apprenticeship Wage Subsidy (AWS) claims.

If the employer is contacting because they have not received payment for a Verified or Approved BAC/CAC claim, and

• at least 10 business days have passed since the claim was finalised, and
• the employer bank account details in the claim are incorrect, then
• escalate the claim via the Contact card web form, to create an AWSE referral.

If the employer requests a review of a decision, go to Step 11.

Claims with a Ready or Draft status have not been submitted by the employer. Employers will be referred to their Apprentice Connect Australia Provider for most enquiries about Ready or Draft claims. See ADMS claim status table in Apprenticeships Data Management System (ADMS) for explanation of statuses.

Subsidy Amount

Advise the employer of factors that may impact a calculation and/or payment they have received or are estimated to receive, go to Step 1 in Table 2.

Pre-populated claim information

• Apprentice details
• Employer details
• Bank account (employer select account details from a pre-populated list)
• Commencement date
• Cancellation/Completion date (where the Apprentice Connect Australia Provider has recorded this prior to the claim being created)

Employers contacting because these details are incorrect or have changed can continue with and submit their claims. Employers can add a cessation date, if this has not already been added. For all other pre-populated information, they should contact their Apprentice Connect Australia Provider to update their employer record. Updated details will appear on claims in the next claim period.

Evidence requirements

Evidence must meet certain requirements. For information on training and wage evidence, see Claim review table in Verifying evidence for Apprenticeship Wage Subsidy (AWS) claims.

Bank accounts

Details of all bank accounts held in ADMS for an employer are listed on the claim application. Employers can select the preferred bank account for their claim.

Employers should contact their Apprentice Connect Australia Provider prior to claim submission if no bank account details are listed or they wish to add a new bank account.

Employer unable to submit a claim

Employers who are experiencing system issues with ADMS, or unable to submit their Boosting Apprenticeship Commencements (BAC) and Completing Apprenticeship Commencements (CAC) claim should contact the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) Student enquiry line (option 3).

Do not provide advice on eligibility.

Refer employers to their Apprentice Connect Australia Provider for enquiries about:

• eligibility for an AWS
• advice on the AWS registration process
• general AWS information
• claims for wages paid from 5 October 2020 to 31 December 2021
• questions about grandfathering arrangements for the Australian Apprenticeship Incentive Program (including BAC and CAC)
• enquiries about other apprentice wage subsidies (for example, PWS or Hiring Incentive)

Refer employers in the first instance to the Australian Apprenticeships website for enquires about:

• myGov/myGov ID registration and accessing ADMS
• assistance with claim navigation in ADMS
• general advice about subsidy payments and calculations

Where employers indicate they would prefer telephony assistance or their enquiry relates to a BAC or CAC appeal, reassessment or complaint, they can be referred to the DEWR Student enquiry line (option 3).

Otherwise, if the employer requests a review, escalate the claim via the Contact card web form, to create an AWSE referral.

For enquiries about:

• when a claim will be available, or employers unable to find a BAC/CAC claim, go to Step 12
• time limits to submit a claim, see Boosting Apprenticeship Commencements (BAC) and Completing Apprenticeship Commencements (CAC) wage subsidies
• the rate of subsidy relating to a specific claim, advise employers of factors that may impact a calculation and/or payment they have received or are estimated to receive. Go to Step 1 in Table 2

Escalate enquiries that cannot be answered using the information displayed in ADMS to LPS.

LPS actioning escalations, see the Escalations to Local Peer Support (LPS) and Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) Apprenticeships Wage Subsidy Escalation (AWSE) line table in Verifying evidence for Apprenticeship Wage Subsidy (AWS) claims.

Procedure ends here.

If the employer is querying when an AWS claim will be made available for submission, see Boosting Apprenticeship Commencements (BAC) and Completing Apprenticeship Commencements (CAC) wage subsidies.

Confirm whether the employer has received an email from DEWR, advising an AWS claim has been created for the apprentice.

If the employer has not received notification, tell them:

• the claim may be created up to 15 days after the wage period ends (the effect date)
• they will receive a notification email from DEWR once the claim application is created, and
• they should contact their Apprentice Connect Australia Provider to discuss further, or to update their email address

Note: if the apprentice's training contract was not approved before the end of the wage period (for example it was approved and backdated), the employer must speak with their Apprentice Connect Australia Provider about their eligibility and when a claim will become available.

If the employer has received notification:

• Ask the employer to confirm the information contained in the email
• Perform a thorough search of ADMS using:
• Claim application ID
• Business name
• ABN, or
• Apprentice name

If a claim is:

• found, guide the employer
• not found, escalate enquiries to LPS, for referral to the DEWR AWSE line

LPS actioning escalations, see the Escalations to Local Peer Support (LPS) and Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) Apprenticeships Wage Subsidy Escalation (AWSE) line table in Verifying evidence for Apprenticeship Wage Subsidy (AWS) claims.

Procedure ends here.

Employers invited to claim the AWS may contact to request their claim is rejected or withdrawn. Examples of reasons employers may not want to proceed with their claim may include (but are not limited to):

• apprentice may no longer work for them, or did not work for them in the claiming period, or
• employer did not pay the apprentice during the claimed wage period, for example the apprentice was on leave without pay

An employer can withdraw their claim themselves by entering the claim and selecting the Withdraw button and accepting the warning. The Withdraw button can be found on the right hand side where the Status, Claim Period and Comments are found, if the claim status is:

• Draft
• Ready
• Returned
• Assessment

Tell the employer:

• they may receive notifications from DEWR about the withdraw claim, and
• to speak with their Apprentice Connect Australia Provider if they don’t want to claim any further wage subsidies for the apprentice

No action is required for claims with a status of Verified, Approved or Rejected as these are finalised statuses.

For claims with a status of Submitted, a claim can’t be withdrawn while it is in a Submitted status. Tell the employer they can withdraw the claim when the status changes to Assessment.

Procedure ends here.

If the employer advises they have accidently withdrawn their BAC/CAC claim:

• they can reinstate the claim by selecting the Reinstate button (on the right hand side, next to Status, Claim Period and Comments)
• the claim will return to the previous status (Ready or Assessed)

Procedure ends here.

Claims in a Ready or Draft status will eventually expire, once the claiming time limit for that wage period expires. See Resources page in Boosting Apprenticeship Commencements (BAC) and Completing Apprenticeship Commencements (CAC) wage subsidies for time limits

If an employer contacts about their BAC/CAC claim expiring:

• Tell the employer their claim has expired as it was not submitted within the claiming time limit
• Employer advises there were extenuating circumstances which impacted their ability to submit the claim before the expiry date. Tell the employer to contact their Apprentice Connect Australia Provider
• The Australian Apprenticeship Incentives Program Guidelines state that waivers can only be requested within 3 months of the claim expiring. If the Apprentice Connect Australia Provider has denied a waiver and the employer advises they wish to appeal the status, refer the claim to AWSE via the Contact card

Procedure ends here.

Employers contacting the Apprenticeship Wage Subsidy (AWS) line may enquire about:

• a lower rate of subsidy than expected
• $0 subsidy, displayed in ADMS

Factors that may affect the amount of subsidy the employer receives include the:

• Differing percentage rates of BAC and CAC wage subsidies
• quarterly and/or yearly caps
• commencement date within the claim period (for BAC/CAC)
• cancellation/completion or withdrawal date within the claim period
• whether the subsidy percentage reduced within the claim period (such as from BAC to CAC)
• periods of receipt of other wage subsidies within the claim period

It is possible for a single or multiple factors to affect the amount of subsidy.

Review the claim, considering all impacts. Take action or advise the employer, based on the impact/s and claim status.

Escalate the claim via the Contact card web form, to create an AWSE referral for enquiries that cannot be answered using the information displayed in ADMS, or where the employer requests a review.

Record a new Service Note, detailing actions taken and the discussion with the employer, when all actions are complete.

For LPS actioning escalations, see the Escalations to Local Peer Support (LPS) and Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) Apprenticeships Wage Subsidy Escalation (AWSE) line table in Verifying evidence for Apprenticeship Wage Subsidy (AWS) claims.

The amount of wage subsidy is based on the gross employment income paid within the claiming period.

BAC and CAC have set claim (wage) periods of 3 month duration, see Boosting Apprenticeship Commencements (BAC) and Completing Apprenticeship Commencements (CAC) wage subsidies.

Take note of the Claim Period displayed in ADMS.

Check if:

• the employer entered the correct dates in the Date from and Date to fields in the claim
• the date entered in the Date from field in the claim matches the beginning of the first payslip or payroll summary
• the date entered in the Date to field in the claim matches the end date of the last payslip or payroll summary

If the employer provides a payroll summary as wage evidence, the payroll summary dates must align with the full claim period.

If the apprenticeship was not in place for the entire claim period (for example, the Apprentice commenced or completed/cancelled during the claim period), the payroll summary to and from dates should reflect the dates that the Apprenticeship was in place.

If an employer provides payslips and/or enters a date range in the claim for wages paid outside of the claiming period, ADMS will not include these wages when determining the subsidy to be paid. ADMS will only consider the wages paid for dates within the claim period when calculating the subsidy.

For example:

• Claim period 1 January 2022 – 31 March 2022
• Employer declares a:
• date range in the claim of 1 October 2021 – 31 March 2022, and
• gross amount of $6,000 wages paid

In this case, ADMS will only consider the wages paid for the period 1 January to 31 March 2022. To calculate the subsidy to be paid, ADMS will disregard wages paid for the period 1 October to 31 December 2021. This means only a proportion of the gross amount of $6,000 declared by the employer will be used to calculate the subsidy.

If the employer has entered a date range and/or wage evidence that starts or finishes outside of the claim period.

Advise the employer:

• wages paid to the apprentice outside the claim period are excluded from the subsidy calculation for that claim period
• subject to eligibility, any subsidy for these wages can be claimed in the next claiming period (or were claimed for in the previous claiming period)

If the employer disagrees with the subsidy calculation or wants to appeal, for BAC/CAC, escalate the claim via the Contact card web form, to create an AWSE referral. Procedure ends here.

If an employer has entered incorrect dates or provided payslips with incorrect information, the following action is required, depending on the claim status in ADMS:

• Ready, Draft or Returned:
• Advise the employer to correct the date range in their claim responses and/or upload evidence with the correct dates
• Submitted:
• Advise the employer to wait until the claim status changes and then contact the AWS line again
• Assessment:
• Return the claim to the employer. Insert the approved text to request they correct the date range in their claim responses and/or upload evidence with the correct dates
• Advise the employer they will receive an email confirming the claim has been returned and the action they need to take
• Verified, Approved or Rejected:
• Advise the employer the claim has already been finalised and that it needs to be escalated for review
• Escalate the claim via the Contact card web form, to create an AWSE referral

Confirm whether other factors have impacted the rate of subsidy. Go to Step 3.

The amount of subsidy is based on the gross employment income paid within the claiming period.

Check if:

• the employer entered net wages instead of gross wages
• the amount declared by the employer equals the total amount of gross wages paid, when adding all payslips together

Where an employer has entered incorrect wage information or provided payslips with incorrect wage information, the following action is required, depending on the ADMS status:

• Ready, Draft or Returned:
• Advise the employer to correct the gross wage amount in their claim responses and/or upload evidence with the correct gross wage amount
• Submitted:
• Advise the employer to wait until the claim status changes and then contact the AWS line again
• Assessment:
• Return the claim to the employer. Insert the approved text to request they correct the gross wage amount in their claim responses and/or upload evidence with the correct gross wage amount
• Advise the employer they will receive an email confirming the claim has been returned and the action they need to take
• Verified, Approved or Rejected:
• Advise the employer the claim has already been finalised and that it needs to be escalated for review
• Escalate the claim via the Contact card web form, to create an AWSE referral

Confirm whether other factors have impacted the rate of subsidy. Go to Step 4.

The amount of AWS is based on the gross employment income paid within the claiming period, while the apprenticeship is current. An apprentice may cease (suspend, complete or cancel) or recommence (following suspension or cancellation) their apprenticeship during the claim period.

An apprentice may also commence their apprenticeship during the claim period. That is because the claim periods have set start and end dates, see Boosting Apprenticeship Commencements (BAC) and Completing Apprenticeship Commencements (CAC).

Gross wages are not included in the calculation of the AWS if they were paid during the claim period, but:

• before the apprenticeship commenced,
• during a period of suspension or cancellation (prior to recommencement), or
• after cancellation or completion of the apprenticeship

Check if:

• the apprenticeship commenced during through the claim period (if applicable)
• the apprentice recommenced, completed or cancelled their apprenticeship during t the claim period
• the employer entered the correct date of commencement, completion or cancellation of the apprenticeship in the claim

For example:

• Claim period 1 January 2023 – 31 March 2023
• Employer declares a:
• date range in the claim of 1 January – 31 March 2023
• gross amount of $6,000 wages paid
• The apprentice commenced their apprenticeship on 1 July 2022
• The apprentice ceased their apprenticeship on 28 February 2023

In this example, ADMS will calculate the subsidy based on the gross wages paid during the period 1 January to 28 February 2023, the date the apprenticeship ceased If the employer has provided incorrect information on the commencement, completion or cancellation of an apprenticeship, the following action is required, depending on the ADMS status:

• Ready, Draft or Returned:
• Advise the employer to correct the apprenticeship completion/cancellation date in their claim, or
• contact their Apprentice Connect Australia Provider if the commencement date is incorrect
• Submitted:
• Advise the employer to wait until the claim status changes and then contact the AWS line again
• Assessment:
• Return the claim to the employer. Insert the following approved text in the Comments for Employer field:
• If apprenticeship completion / cancellation date is incorrect: you have requested your claim application be returned because the date the apprenticeship was cancelled, withdrawn or completed is incorrect (select text option applicable to employer) please correct your claim responses and resubmit your claim by <dd mm yyyy - todays date +20 business days>
• If apprenticeship commencement date is incorrect: you have requested your claim application be returned because the apprenticeship commencement date is wrong this information is maintained by your Apprentice Connect Australia Provider. Please contact your Apprentice Connect Australia Provider to resolve this and resubmit your claim by <dd mm yyyy - todays date +20 business days>
• Tell the employer they will receive an email confirming the claim has been returned and the action they need to take
• Verified, Approved or Rejected:
• Advise employer the claim has already been finalised and that it needs to be escalated for review
• Escalate the enquiry to LPS, who will create a referral to the AWSE line

Confirm whether other factors have impacted the rate of subsidy. Go to Step 5.

BAC and CAC subsidies are payable up to a capped amount per quarter for wages paid in the 12-month period from the date the apprenticeship starts. To identify the capped amount, see Boosting Apprenticeship Commencements (BAC) and Completing Apprenticeship Commencements (CAC) wage subsidies.

Check if:

• the amount of subsidy paid equals to the quarterly cap
• the employer has received the maximum payment for that quarter

See the Resources page for AWS quarterly cap examples table. If the employer has received the maximum amount, (the quarterly cap). advise them:

• the amount of subsidy paid meets the quarterly cap threshold
• they cannot receive more than the capped amount per claiming period

If the employer disagrees with the subsidy calculation or wants to appeal, or the amount of the subsidy has not reached the cap and there are no other factors affecting the subsidy calculation, escalate the claim via the Contact card web form, to create an AWSE referral.

Procedure ends here.