CBTM07020 | Prescribed conditions for a child or qualifying young person: Education and training condition

Child Benefit General (Regulations) 2006, regulation 3

From 1st September 2025

A person under the age of 20 is a qualifying young person if they meet the following conditions:

They are undertaking a course of full-time education (see CBTM07022) that:

Is not advanced education (see CBTM07021),

Is not provided by virtue of employment or any office held.

Note:

A person aged 19 qualifies only if they began, were accepted, or enrolled on the course before turning 19.

Before 1st September 2025

A person under the age of 20 is a qualifying young person if they are:

Undertaking a course of full-time non-advanced education that:

Is not provided by virtue of employment or office held,

Is provided:

At a school or college, or

Elsewhere, but approved by the Commissioners,

· As part of a Study Programme in England (from September 2013).

Undertaking approved training (see CBTM07024) that:

Is not provided under a contract of employment.

Having completed one of the above, and is accepted or enrolled to undertake a further qualifying course.

Additional Notes:

A person aged 19 qualifies only if they began or were accepted/enrolled on the course before turning 19.

A person does not qualify if:

They undertake full-time non-advanced education elsewhere, unless:

They received such education as a child, or

They began home education after age 16, have a statement of special educational needs, and the local authority has assessed the home education programme as suitable.

Studying Both Non-Advanced and Advanced Education

A young person may still qualify as a qualifying young person if they are undertaking both non-advanced and advanced education, provided the non-advanced education meets the required conditions.

This includes situations where the young person is enrolled on two separate courses—for example:

A full-time non-advanced course such as A Levels, and

A separate advanced course such as a degree programme at university.

Key condition:

To remain a qualifying young person, the non-advanced education must be full-time, which typically means more than 12 hours of supervised study per week.

Example:

A young person is studying A Levels at a sixth form college (non-advanced, full-time) and is also enrolled in a part-time university degree course (advanced). As long as the A Level course meets the full-time criteria and is not provided by virtue of employment or office held, they continue to meet the qualifying conditions for Child Benefit purposes.

Working While Studying

A young person may work while studying, provided:

They continue full-time non-advanced education,

The education is not provided by virtue of employment or any office held.

Example:

A student working 25 hours/week in the evenings still qualifies if their education meets the above conditions.