IEFP training voucher for machine-operator courses: who can apply, how much it pays and how it works (2026)

In short: the IEFP Cheque-Formação (training voucher) pays €4 per training hour, up to €175 per worker, for courses of up to 50 hours in any two-year period, capped at 90% of the cost actually paid. It covers operator courses for forklifts, aerial platforms, telehandlers and earth-moving machines, as long as the training provider is DGERT-certified; the modules of the National Qualifications Catalogue (UFCD 0420, 8387, 8388, 3919 and others) are exactly 50 hours and fit the cap. Companies can apply for their employees, employees can apply on their own, and unemployed people registered for more than 90 days get a different support (100% of the cost up to €500). Applications are made on iefponline, the IEFP decides within 30 working days and pays 50% right after the acceptance form and the rest after the certificate. The measure is open in October 2026, with the 2015 amounts and subject to the annual budget.

What the Cheque-Formação is

It is an IEFP measure created by Ordinance 229/2015 of 3 August, in force since 4 August 2015, which co-funds short training chosen by the company or the worker. It was designed to help companies meet the training duty of the Labour Code (articles 130 to 134) and, unlike the modular training in IEFP centres, lets you choose the provider, the course and the dates. On 30 October 2026 the ordinance had not been amended and the IEFP page still showed the 2015 amounts; applications are in "open application regime", but approvals depend on each year's budget, so apply early in the year.

Do not confuse it with the Cheque-Formação + Digital (Ordinance 246/2022, republished by Ordinance 8/2024), worth €750 per 12 months, which only funded digital skills and whose execution deadline ended on 30 June 2026. In April 2026 the IEFP president announced a new training voucher extended to other sectors, but as of this guide's publication no legal text, amount or calendar had been published.

Who can apply

• Companies (legal or natural persons, for profit or not) for their employees. Several workers can go in one application; the ordinance sets no company-size limit and no cap on workers per year.
• Employees aged 16 or over, on their own initiative, whatever their qualification level.
• Unemployed people registered with the IEFP for at least 90 consecutive days, with qualification level 3 to 6 and a personal qualification plan set at a Centro Qualifica.

The applicant company must be properly constituted, have its tax and social security contributions up to date, meet the legal requirements for its activity, owe nothing on previous IEFP support, keep organised accounts, have no wages in arrears and have no conviction for misuse of public funds or, in the last two years, for discrimination at work (article 5). Companies in PER or SIREVE recovery proceedings may apply. The requirements are checked on the application date.

How much it pays

Whatever exceeds €175 or 10% of the cost is paid by the company or the worker. There is no obligation to keep the worker employed for a period after the training: the ordinance only provides for repayment of the support, in full or in part and with interest, if the grant conditions are breached, and a one-year ban from IEFP measures for anyone who fails to repay (article 9). The voucher cannot be combined with training already co-funded by public money and cannot be used for training required by another public support (article 14), and training started before the application is not funded.

Which machine courses fit the voucher

The ordinance prefers modules of the National Qualifications Catalogue (UFCD) from level 2 or 4 qualifications, but accepts training outside the catalogue when justified by employability or requalification (article 11). Machine-operator modules are 25 or 50 hours, which makes them easy to fit:

The short 8 to 16 hour courses of private centres, described in our forklift licence guide, are also eligible if the provider is DGERT-certified: the support is then €4 per course hour, that is €32 to €64, and the 90% cap rarely bites. For earth-moving machines see the excavator operator guide; for the IPAF card, which is training outside the catalogue but justifiable, see the IPAF PAL card guide.

Step by step on iefponline

1. Register the company (or the worker) at iefponline.iefp.pt with the tax or social security number.
2. Choose a training provider certified by DGERT (Ordinance 851/2010, republished by Ordinance 208/2013) or legally exempt from certification. Applications with uncertified providers are rejected (article 10). The list is at certifica.dgert.gov.pt.
3. Under "Apoios e incentivos", open "Candidaturas a programas e medidas" and then "Medida Cheque-Formação"; add each worker; you can save and resume.
4. Describe the training: preferably level 2 or 4 UFCDs; training outside the catalogue is accepted if justified; UFCDs from several qualifications in the same education and training area can be combined.
5. The IEFP decides within 30 working days, a period suspended once if documents are requested. The application window is always open, within the year's budget.
6. Sign the acceptance form and upload proof of payment to the provider: the IEFP pays 50% within 5 working days.
7. Within two months of the end of the course, upload proof of attendance and the certificate issued in SIGO (a qualifications certificate for UFCDs): the IEFP pays the balance within 10 working days. Missing the two months means repaying the support. Payments are made by transfer to the applicant's account.

Two details the public documentation leaves open and worth confirming with the IEFP: whether the initial 50% is calculated on the approved support or on the invoice paid, and whether VAT counts towards the eligible cost.

Example: a construction SME with 10 workers

In the first scenario the company receives €262.50 within five working days of the acceptance form and proof of payment, and the other €262.50 within ten working days of uploading the certificates. Those three workers can only use the voucher again two years after the application date.

Alternatives and complements

• Certified Modular Training (Ordinance 66/2022, amended by Ordinance 333/2023): catalogue UFCDs for adults aged 18 or over, up to 600 hours, 90% attendance. Free when delivered in IEFP centres or under Portugal 2030 calls, which in 2024 to 2026 mainly targeted the unemployed. It is the best route for a free course; we explain where to look in our guide to free forklift training.
• Vida Ativa (Ordinance 203/2013): unemployed people only, in UFCDs, funded by Portugal 2030 in the North, Centre, Alentejo and Algarve regions.
• Cheque-Formação + Digital: closed to new training since 30 June 2026 and in any case limited to digital skills; it did not cover machine courses.
• The employer's training duty: every worker is entitled to at least 40 hours of continuous training a year and the company must train at least 10% of its staff each year (Labour Code, article 131). A 50-hour UFCD paid with the voucher meets that worker's 40 hours.
• The "Acelerador Qualifica" (Ordinance 61/2022) is a bonus for adults completing RVCC skills recognition, not training funding for companies.

What changed in 2026

The amounts and rules of the Cheque-Formação are those of 2015. PRR recovery-plan funding for the Emprego + Digital programme ends in 2026 and the IEFP said in April that continuation would be decided after evaluation. The new training voucher "beyond digital" announced at the Annual Labour Conference on 21 April 2026 had no ordinance on 30 October. If you are planning training for 2027, apply to the measure that exists today and watch the official gazette.

Where Trapézio de Prismas comes in

We do not provide training or handle IEFP applications. We are the JLG dealer in Portugal and we carry out the periodic checks under Decree-Law 50/2005 on aerial platforms, telehandlers and construction machines, the same law that requires qualified operators. When a customer buys a machine we tell them which UFCD matches the operator training and can make the machine and its manual available for the practical part of the course. If you need to know which course to ask for with the machine you have, tell us the model.