Paid weekly into your bank account, the £30 a week means-tested stipend known as Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) If you are studying in Northern Ireland, Scotland, or Wales, you might be entitled to receive Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA).
Education Maintenance Allowance
Paid monthly right into your bank account, the £30 weekly payment known as the Money to Learn Education Maintenance Allowance, EMA, you should be qualified from August 2024, the application will simply be backdated to the 21st of August 2024 should we get it before September 30, 2024.
The EMA will begin otherwise from the day the application is received. You should be eligible starting January 2025, the application will only be backdated to January 2025 should we get it before February 28, 2025. The EMA will begin otherwise from the day the application is received.
Every academic year you must complete a new application. Applications for the academic year now in progress cannot be made beyond March 31, 2025.
Education Maintenance Allowance Amount
Paid for a week in arrears, EMA is a weekly payment of £30. Direct payments are deposited into the young person’s bank account; You should lack a bank account, you will have to acquire one. For one dependent kid, the income limit is £24,421; for homes with two or more dependent children, it is £26,884.
From low income households, 16–19 year olds who carry on in full time, non-advanced education beyond their statutory school leaving date get financial help under the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) system. To be qualified for EMA, total family income has to be under the specified levels below.
| Total household income | No. of Dependent Children in the Household | Award |
| £0 – £24,421 | 1 | £30 |
| £0 – £26,884 | 2+ | £30 |
Young persons enrolled in full-time study or participating in Learning Agreements after they reach the statutory school-leaving age of 16 years may be eligible for EMA. EMA rewards are based on your household’s total taxable income.
How to claim for the Education Maintenance Allowance?
The step-by-step guide to claim the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) is available below.
- Make sure you satisfy the requirements, which include being 16–19 years old, enrolled in a full-time training or education program, and from a home whose income falls short of the needed level.
- Visit the page of your local school district, college, or university to get the EMA application form.
- Fill out the application form with correct information about yourself, your finances, and your schooling.
- Bring the appropriate paperwork, such as proof that you are enrolled in school, your ID, and proof of your family’s wealth.
- Send the form and papers to the right people, which is usually your school or local education department.
- Your application will be looked upon after submission. Should accepted, you will get a letter verifying your eligibility and payment amount.
- Make sure you satisfy attendance and behavior standards specified by your institution or university if you want payments ongoing.
Eligibility Criteria for the Education Maintenance Allowance
Applying for an EMA requires you to be a student continuing your education beyond the age of sixteen. In case you are:
- 16 years of age or over before September 30, 2024, you might be qualified from the start of the August school year for an EMA.
- 16 years of age on or after the 1st October 2024 and on or before 28th February 2025 might qualify you for an EMA starting January 2025.
- You must attend an Aberdeenshire school and have a bank account under your own name if you want paid EMA from the council. Students have to be generally British citizens. Usually, this corresponds to the qualifying date and the three years just prior. Young persons enrolled in any government sponsored training programs or on the New Deal education option are not eligible for EMA.
How does the EMA work?
Checkout the listed points to know about the EMA working criteria.
- Students get EMA straight into their personal bank account.
- Only paid for full weeks inside term-time, the EMA is a weekly payment limited to 42 weeks, in any one academic year. It is paid only when the terms of the learning agreement are satisfied.
- Short term breaks like the October week, Christmas and Spring break do not coincide with EMA payments.
- Every student’s Learning Agreement will be tracked by the school, which will thereafter notify the Council should the requirements of the agreement not be fulfilled.
- Should a student go on vacation during term, they will not get EMA during that period.
- A student has to stick to the terms of their signed Learning Agreement with their university.