I have lately come across some SkillsFuture Credit-approved training providers, especially in the information technology sector, advertising their courses through e-mail in a less than transparent way.

The providers make the courses out to be free courses, saying we don't need to pay any money and just need to provide our identity card details and complete some paperwork. They do not reveal the course fees and ignore attempts to find out the fees.

Each citizen is given SkillsFuture credits by the Government to use for courses, which are paid to the course providers.

If one training provider charges the full amount of the credits given - without the participant knowing how much the fee is before he signs up - then the whole amount is used up for just one course.

Not all training providers get approval to provide SkillsFuture Credit-claimable courses, and those that do are at an advantage since courses are attractive as they are free or subsidised for the trainees. But they also should be more open with the applicants, whose credits are being used to pay for the courses.

Ramesh Kumar