ELCAS Explained: How Service Leavers Can Use Enhanced Learning Credits for Health and Safety Qualifications

ELCAS is the Enhanced Learning Credits Administration Service, which runs the Ministry of Defence’s Enhanced Learning Credits (ELC) scheme. ELC pays up to 80% of the fees for a course at Level 3 or above with an approved provider, for eligible serving personnel and service leavers. Acadame is an ELCAS approved provider, so you can use your credits on our NEBOSH courses and higher level health and safety NVQs.

What does ELCAS stand for?

The Enhanced Learning Credits Administration Service. The credits themselves are Enhanced Learning Credits. They are part of the MOD’s resettlement and education support, and you can use them while you are still serving or after you leave.

How does the scheme work?

• Membership: if you have served at any time since 1 April 2016 and completed Phase 1 training, you are a member of the scheme. People who left earlier needed to have registered before that date.
• Tiers: the lower tier usually needs at least six years of qualifying service (four years if you had already completed four years by 1 April 2017). The higher tier needs at least eight years and pays a larger amount.
• Number of claims: up to three claims in total, and no more than one in any financial year. Lower tier members can instead combine their three claims into a single larger claim, once.
• Course level: the course must be at Level 3 or above on the national framework in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, or Level 6 or above on the Scottish framework.
• Provider: the course must be with an ELCAS approved learning provider.
• Your share: the scheme pays up to 80% of the tuition fees and you pay at least 20% from your own funds.

The value of each tier is set by the MOD and can change, so check the current figures in your ELCAS account before you choose a course rather than relying on any provider’s website, including ours.

How long after leaving can you claim?

If you left on or after 1 April 2016, your course must start within five years of your last day of service. If you left before 1 April 2016, the limit is ten years. Some people medically discharged on or after 1 April 2011 who receive a disablement pension or guaranteed income payment also have ten years. The key detail is that the course has to start before the limit, not just be booked.

Why health and safety suits service leavers

Many people leaving the forces have spent years running risk assessments, briefings, safe systems of work and incident reports, often without calling it health and safety. Civilian employers in construction, logistics, facilities and manufacturing need exactly that, backed by a recognised qualification. What is usually missing is the civilian legal framework, which is what a NEBOSH certificate supplies. Our health and safety career path guide sets out how the qualifications fit together.

Which of our courses can you use it for?

Our NEBOSH course pages state that Acadame is ELCAS approved, and our health and safety NVQ pages show ELCAS funding as an option. Awareness courses and most short courses sit below Level 3, so they cannot be funded through ELC.

How to claim, step by step

1. Check your eligibility, tier and time limit in your ELCAS account.
2. Choose a course at Level 3 or above and tell us you want to use ELCAS when you enquire.
3. We give you our course details and provider information for your claim.
4. You submit the claim through ELCAS. MOD guidance says to do this at least 25 clear working days before the course starts. ELCAS then issues a Claim Authorisation Note, which must be in place before the course begins.
5. You pay your personal contribution before the course starts, we book you on, and we invoice ELCAS for the balance once the course has started.

A good first route

If you are not sure where to start, the NEBOSH General Certificate is the broadest choice, and our guide on how a NEBOSH General Certificate changes the jobs you can apply for explains why. Pair it with a Level 3 NVQ once you are working, and you have both the knowledge and the proof you can do the job. Because you can only make one claim per financial year, it is worth planning the order of your courses before you leave.

Frequently asked questions

What is ELCAS?

The Enhanced Learning Credits Administration Service, which runs the MOD’s Enhanced Learning Credits scheme. The scheme pays up to 80% of the fees for a Level 3 or above course with an approved provider, for eligible serving personnel and service leavers.

Is Acadame ELCAS approved?

Yes. Acadame is an ELCAS approved provider, and our NEBOSH qualifications and higher level health and safety NVQs can be funded with Enhanced Learning Credits.

Can I use ELCAS for NEBOSH?

Yes. NEBOSH certificates such as the General, Construction and Fire certificates are at Level 3, which meets the scheme’s minimum level. Tell us at enquiry and we will help with the paperwork.

How many ELCAS claims can I make?

Up to three in total, and only one in any financial year. Lower tier members can instead combine their three claims into one larger claim, once.

Do I pay anything myself?

Yes. The scheme pays up to 80% of the tuition fees and you pay at least 20% yourself, before the course starts. Your ELCAS account shows your tier and what you can claim.

Read the source

Facts are based on the Ministry of Defence’s Enhanced Learning Credits guidance on Discover My Benefits, the Armed Forces (Enhanced Learning Credit Scheme and Further and Higher Education Commitment Scheme) Order 2012 as amended in 2016 and 2021 (legislation.gov.uk), the MOD’s March 2021 gov.uk announcement on extended time limits, and Acadame’s own ELCAS and course pages. Facts checked on 6 November 2026.