- 2022Implementation
- 2023Implementation
- 2024Implementation
Background
One of the Portuguese Government's goals is to define and implement measures to modernise active employment policies to improve the adjustment between supply and demand in the labour market, providing financial support and facilitating access to training for individual workers. The VET Agreement established the training voucher (cheque formação) as a relevant measure for improving the country's productivity and economy.
Objectives
The Training voucher aims to reinforce the quality of active employment measures, particularly as regards professional qualifications, seeking to:
- contribute to improving the productivity and competitiveness of companies by reinforcing the professional qualification of their workers, especially those with lower qualifications;
- boost the demand for training among the unemployed and active employees;
- encourage lifelong learning pathways as well as the personal development of the active employed and the unemployed;
- make employers, the employed and unemployed people jointly responsible in the search for training responses that promote the improvement of professional performances;
- help adjust training supply and demand, bringing a new dynamic to training operators.
Description
Training voucher is a direct financial support for vocational training to be granted to employees and the unemployed as a way of providing individual access to training.
It is addressed to employees aged 16 or over, regardless of their qualification level, and unemployed individuals, aged 16 or over, registered in PES for at least 90 consecutive days, with qualification levels 3 to 6. For the unemployed, to receive financial support, the training must correspond to that defined in the personal qualification plan (PPQ), obtained following a recognition, validation and certification (RVCC) process.
Each beneficiary, unemployed or employed, can benefit from the support for a period of 2 years. Unemployed people who attend training courses with a maximum duration of 150 hours of training are entitled to financial support corresponding to the total value of the training course, proven to have been paid, up to a maximum amount of EUR 500; this is in addition to the training grant, meal allowance and transport costs.
Employees are entitled to support up to 50 hours of training. The maximum amount that can be granted is EUR 175, and the support to be awarded cannot exceed 90% of the total value of the training, proven to have been paid.
The training should preferably be based on short-term training units and must be provided by a training entity certified by the Directorate-General for Employment and Industrial Relations.
The training...
Training voucher is a direct financial support for vocational training to be granted to employees and the unemployed as a way of providing individual access to training.
It is addressed to employees aged 16 or over, regardless of their qualification level, and unemployed individuals, aged 16 or over, registered in PES for at least 90 consecutive days, with qualification levels 3 to 6. For the unemployed, to receive financial support, the training must correspond to that defined in the personal qualification plan (PPQ), obtained following a recognition, validation and certification (RVCC) process.
Each beneficiary, unemployed or employed, can benefit from the support for a period of 2 years. Unemployed people who attend training courses with a maximum duration of 150 hours of training are entitled to financial support corresponding to the total value of the training course, proven to have been paid, up to a maximum amount of EUR 500; this is in addition to the training grant, meal allowance and transport costs.
Employees are entitled to support up to 50 hours of training. The maximum amount that can be granted is EUR 175, and the support to be awarded cannot exceed 90% of the total value of the training, proven to have been paid.
The training should preferably be based on short-term training units and must be provided by a training entity certified by the Directorate-General for Employment and Industrial Relations.
The training voucher has an open application regime and the applications can be submitted by the employees or employers in Iefponline portal. The IEFP is responsible for analysing the applications and paying the financial support.
This measure is part of the NIP under the package Flexibility and diversification. During 2022, 18 300 employed people were involved.
During 2023, 24 411 employed people benefited from the training voucher, with a budget allocation of EUR 1 422 712.
More than half of the beneficiaries have less than upper secondary education (53.8 %), and 31.9% have upper secondary. With a bachelor's degree are 10.9%. Regarding age, most of them are in the age group 40-50 (28.7%) and 30-40 (25.5%).
Until August, 24 074 employed people benefited from this support, with a budget allocation of EUR 1 387 337. The profile of the beneficiaries is similar to that of 2023.
Bodies responsible
- Institute for Employment and Vocational Training (IEFP)
Target groups
Learners
- Young people (15-29 years old)
- Older workers and employees (55 - 64 years old)
- Unemployed and jobseekers
- Persons in employment, including those at risk of unemployment
- Low-skilled/qualified persons
Thematic categories
Transparency and portability of VET skills and qualifications
European principles and tools, such as EQF, ESCO, ECTS, Europass and ECVET, provide a strong basis for transparency and portability of national and sectoral qualifications across Europe, including the issuing of digital diplomas and certificates.
This thematic category looks at how individuals are supported in transferring, accumulating, and validating skills and competences acquired in formal, non-formal and informal settings – including learning on the job – and in having their learning recognised towards a qualification at any point of their lives. This is only possible if qualifications are transparent and comparable and are part of comprehensive national qualifications frameworks. Availability of qualifications smaller than full and acquirable in shorter periods of time is necessary; some countries have recently worked on developing partial qualifications, microcredentials, etc.
This thematic sub-category refers to the development and implementation of qualifications that are smaller than full qualifications (alternative credentials) or are acquired in a shorter learning experience. It includes microcredentials, partial qualifications, units of learning outcomes (ECVET principle), digital badges, etc. These are owned by learners and can be combined or not to get a full qualification.
Supporting lifelong learning culture and increasing participation
Lifelong learning refers to all learning (formal, non-formal or informal) taking place at all stages in life and resulting in an improvement or update in knowledge, skills, competences and attitudes or in participation in society from a personal, civic, cultural, social or employment-related perspective (Erasmus+, Glossary of terms, https://erasmus-plus.ec.europa.eu/programme-guide/part-d/glossary-common-terms). A systemic approach to CVET is crucial to ensure adaptability to evolving demands.
This broad thematic category looks at ways of creating opportunities and ensuring access to re-skilling and upskilling pathways, allowing individuals to progress smoothly in their learning throughout their lives with better permeability between general and vocational education and training, and better integration and compatibility between initial and continuing VET and with higher education. Individuals should be supported in acquiring and updating their skills and competences and navigating easily through education and training systems. Strategies and campaigns that promote VET and LLL as an attractive and high-quality pathway, providing quality lifelong guidance and tailored support to design learning and career paths, and various incentives (financial and non-financial) to attract and support participation in VET and LLL fall into this thematic category as well.
This thematic category also includes many initiatives on making VET inclusive and ensuring equal education and training opportunities for various groups of learners, regardless of their personal and economic background and place of residence – especially those at risk of disadvantage or exclusion, such as persons with disabilities, the low-skilled and low-qualified, minorities, migrants, refugees and others.
This thematic sub-category refers to all kinds of incentives that encourage learners to take part in VET and lifelong learning; VET providers to improve, broaden and update their offer; companies to provide places for apprenticeship and work-based learning, and to stimulate and support learning of their employees. It also includes measures addressing specific challenges of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) willing to create work-based learning opportunities in different sectors. Incentives can be financial (e.g. grants, allowances, tax incentives, levy/grant mechanisms, vouchers, training credits, individual learning accounts) and non-financial (e.g. information/advice on funding opportunities, technical support, mentoring).
This thematic sub-category refers to providing the possibility for individuals who are already in the labour market/in employment to reskill and/or acquire higher levels of skills, and to ensuring targeted information resources on the benefits of CVET and lifelong learning. It also covers the availability of CVET programmes adaptable to labour market, sectoral or individual up- and reskilling needs. The sub-category includes working with respective stakeholders to develop digital learning solutions supporting access to CVET opportunities and awarding CVET credentials and certificates.
This thematic sub-category refers to making VET pathways and programmes inclusive and accessible for all. It concerns measures and targeted actions to increase access and participation in VET and lifelong learning for learners from all vulnerable groups, and to support their school/training-to-work transitions. It includes measures to prevent early leaving from education and training. The thematic sub-category covers measures promoting gender balance in traditionally ‘male’ and ‘female’ professions and addressing gender-related and other stereotypes. The vulnerable groups are, but not limited to: persons with disabilities; the low-qualified/-skilled; minorities; persons of migrant background, including refugees; people with fewer opportunities due to their geographical location and/or their socioeconomically disadvantaged circumstances.
European priorities in VET
VET Recommendation
- Flexibility and progression opportunities at the core of VET
- VET promoting equality of opportunities
Osnabrück Declaration
- Establishing a new lifelong learning culture - relevance of continuing VET and digitalisation
Subsystem
Further reading
Country
Type of development
Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2025). Training voucher: Portugal. In Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2025). Timeline of VET policies in Europe (2024 update) [Online tool].
https://www.cedefop.europa.eu/en/tools/timeline-vet-policies-europe/search/43335