How is the levy calculated?

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The industry asks CITB-ConstructionSkills to collect an annual levy from all liable employers. Grants are then given to employers who train. This is seen by our industry as the best way to support training.

As a general rule, it is the smaller firms who train most new entrants. The larger companies can then benefit by hiring these skilled workers later in their career. Without CITB-ConstructionSkills Grant, the small firms would simply not be able to afford to train any operatives and the industry as a whole would suffer.

If your wage bill is less than £76,000, you don't have to pay a CITB-ConstructionSkills Levy at all, but you still qualify for grants, advice and support. In fact, in 2006, firms who paid no CITB-ConstructionSkills Levy employed over 10,800 New Entrant Trainees and received £26.7 million in training support. In 2006, over £113 million was distributed in training grants.

If you do pay some CITB-ConstructionSkills Levy, but choose not to get directly involved in training, you are still helping to maintain the industry's training and recruitment levels, as well as other activities. This will ultimately benefit you, albeit indirectly, by there being enough trained staff in the workforce.

For more information on the CITB-ConstructionSkills Levy, including details of how to register and how to benefit, use the following links. Alternatively, please download the Sharing Investment of Training booklet (182kb PDF file).

How is the levy calculated?

Every April, each construction employer on our register is asked to complete a CITB-ConstructionSkills Levy Return. You give information on your workforce (and wage bill) for the fiscal year so that a levy assessment can be made.

If your wage bill (including payments to labour-only sub-contractors) is £76,000 or more per annum, you will be required to pay a levy.

The CITB-ConstructionSkills Levy rates and threshold are submitted to Parliament for formal approval early each year. Once the levy order has been signed, each employer will receive a CITB-ConstructionSkills Levy assessment.

For example, an employer who submitted a 2007 CITB-ConstructionSkills Levy Return between April 2007 and February 2008 received a levy assessment based on that return in the first quarter of 2008. The CITB-ConstructionSkills Levy rates are 0.5% of the wage bill for direct employees and 1.5% of the value of any payments on labour-only sub-contractors.

CITB-ConstructionSkills Levy rates

The rates shown below are applicable to the Levy Assessment year indicated. The Levy Return applicable to the assessment year is shown in the 'Levy Return Period' column.

Assessment
Year

Return
Period

Direct
Employment
(PAYE)

Labour-only
Sub-contractor
(LOSC)

2007

06/04/06 – 05/04/07

0.5%

1.5%

2006

06/04/05 – 05/04/06

0.5%

1.5%

2005

06/04/04 – 05/04/05

0.5%

1.5%

2004

06/04/03 – 05/05/04

0.5%

1.5%

2003

06/04/02 – 05/04/03

0.5%

1.5%

2002

06/04/01 – 05/04/02

0.5%

1.5%