Live in Wales or Scotland, work in England?
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Live in Wales or Scotland, work in England?
Your address does not decide this. Where you work does.
The funded apprenticeship is an England scheme, so most people outside England cannot use it. Cross-border workers are the exception, and the rule is specific enough to check in a minute.
Check if you qualify Two minutes. Nothing to pay to find out.The short answer. You can be funded from a Welsh or Scottish address if at least half your working hours fall in England across the apprenticeship. Residency is judged UK-wide, so living outside England is not itself a bar. Working from home in Wales or Scotland for an English employer normally fails the test, because the hours are counted where you physically are.
The rule that actually decides it
Two separate tests get confused constantly, and only one of them mentions England.
Residency is UK-wide. The rules give a UK national eligible status after three years ordinarily resident in the UK and Islands. Not England. So a lifelong Cardiff or Glasgow resident passes this test without difficulty.
Working hours are the England test. You must spend at least half your working hours in England over the duration of the apprenticeship. The rules state plainly that this also applies to remote and hybrid workers. That single sentence is what catches people out.
The practical consequence is blunt. A Welsh commuter into England often qualifies. A Welsh home worker for an English company usually does not, even on an English contract and English payroll.
Source: Apprenticeship funding rules 2026 to 2027, paragraphs 30.5 and 358, and Annex A. Read the rules on GOV.UK. GOV.UK's short overview page says "living in England"; the detailed funding rules providers must follow set the test out as above, and eligibility is confirmed case by case before enrolment.
Seven situations, and what happens in each
| Your situation | Funded in England? | What decides it |
|---|---|---|
| You live in Wrexham and travel to a Chester workplace | Yes, if that is at least half your hours | Your employer confirms the split before you enrol |
| You live in Newport and commute to Bristol four days a week | Yes | Four of five days in England clears the half-hours test |
| You live in Cardiff and work in Cardiff | No | Apply through the Welsh system instead, nothing is lost by asking |
| You live in Glasgow and work in Glasgow | No | Apply through the Scottish system instead |
| You live in Wales and work from home for an English employer | Usually not | Hours count where your body is, not where the payroll sits |
| You split the week between a Welsh site and an English site | Only if England takes half or more | Measured across the whole apprenticeship, not one week |
| You would be in the English office but work from home for a disability | Yes, by exemption | Added 1 August 2026, your employer records the adjustment |
Half is measured across the whole apprenticeship, not week by week. A quiet fortnight at home does not remove you.
The disability exemption, added 1 August 2026
There is one route back in for home workers, and it is new. If you would meet the half-in-England test, but your employer has put home working in place as a reasonable adjustment for a disability, you remain fundable.
It is worth raising early. The adjustment has to be a genuine employer arrangement, recorded as such, not an informal habit.
What to have ready
Your employer confirms where you work. That is a written statement, and where the business operates beyond England, a roster for a typical month.
Getting that in advance is the difference between enrolling this month and next. Providers cannot start you without it.
If the answer is no
Wales and Scotland fund apprenticeships through their own systems, with their own providers and standards. English funding cannot be moved across, so there is nothing to appeal.
Start at gov.wales/apprenticeships if you are in Wales, or apprenticeships.scot if you are in Scotland. Applying to the right system first saves weeks.
Questions people ask
Can I do an England-funded apprenticeship if I live in Wales?
Yes, if at least half your working hours are in England. The funding rules test where you work, not where you live. UK residency of three years qualifies you on residency, and that means the UK as a whole, not England.
Can I do one if I live in Scotland?
The same rule applies. Half your working hours must fall in England across the whole apprenticeship. A Scottish address on its own does not disqualify you.
I work from home in Cardiff for a London employer. Do I qualify?
Usually not. The rules count where you physically work, and they say the test applies to remote and hybrid workers. Working from a Welsh address means those hours are not in England, whoever pays you.
What if I work from home because of a disability?
There is an exemption added on 1 August 2026. If you would meet the half-in-England test but your employer has agreed home working as a reasonable adjustment for a disability, you can still be funded.
What evidence will I be asked for?
Your employer confirms your working locations. Where the business operates beyond England, that can mean a roster for a typical month plus a written statement. Have it ready and enrolment moves faster.
What if I do not meet the rule?
Wales and Scotland fund their own apprenticeships. Start at gov.wales/apprenticeships or apprenticeships.scot. The English funding cannot be transferred across, so applying to the right system first saves weeks.
Not sure which side of the line you fall?
Tell us where you work rather than where you live. We confirm eligibility and funding before anything goes ahead, and it costs nothing to ask.
Check if you qualify