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Helpsheet and Conditions for the Basic Payment Scheme 2021
From Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine
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This is the helpsheet and conditions of the 2021 Basic Payment Scheme, Greening and other area based schemes. The Basic Payment Scheme is an income supplement paid to farmers.
You are paid per hectare of land used for farming. The payment is not related to the output of the farm - it is just based on the hectares of land used by the farmer. Farmers must apply for the payment once each year.
Helpsheet and Terms and Conditions for the Basic Payment Scheme
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Guide to 2021 Basic Payment Scheme
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Terms of the Basic Payment Scheme 2020
These are the terms and conditions of the Basic Payment Scheme, Greening and other area based schemes for 2020.
DownloadThe Terms and Conditions should be read in conjunction with the following:
These are not the terms and conditions for the above schemes, full terms and conditions are available above.
This Helpsheet should be read in conjunction with the Terms and Conditions of the 2021 Basic Payment Scheme (BPS)/ Greening and other Area Based Schemes, and before submitting your Application Form online.
Familiarise yourself fully with the Terms and Conditions of the Scheme before completing your Application Form, as the onus will be on you the applicant(s) to comply fully with them, in order to qualify for payment. Terms and Conditions can be downloaded above.
The Terms and Conditions of the scheme are also available in hard copy by contacting: directpaymentscorrespondence@agriculture.gov.ie or by phoning 0761 064 420.
A dedicated Lo-call number has been allocated to deal with specific queries from farmers in relation to the Scheme. You should contact the Direct Payments Helpdesk at 0761 064 420 for any further queries.
A dedicated email address has also been allocated to enable farmers submit queries, and replies will be made on an ongoing basis. It is DirectPaymentsCorrespondence@agriculture.gov.ie
- closing date for application – 17 May 2021
- closing date for transfer for entitlements – 17 May 2021
- land must be held – 1 January to 1 June OR 31 May to 31 December 2021
- preliminary check letters will issue from – 10th June 2021 (giving the opportunity to rectify errors without penalty)
- advance payments commence issuing to clear cases from – 16 October 2021
- balancing payments commence issuing to clear cases from – 1 December 2021
Applications must be submitted online, by midnight on Monday, 17 May 2021
In order to draw down payment under the Basic Payment Scheme, an applicant must have entitlements, 1 entitlement per hectare claimed. Entitlements are subject to usage rules. Further details can be found in the “Basic Payment Scheme Entitlements” section of the Terms and Conditions.
Entitlements can be transferred from an applicant to another applicant using one of the following criteria: Inheritance; gift; lease; sale; division of an unregistered partnership; merger (forming an unregistered partnership) change of legal entity; or change of registration details. The transfer must be completed online and be completed by the closing date for application – that is, 17 May 2021. Full details of the conditions for a transfer of entitlement can be found in the “Transfer of Entitlements” section of the Terms and Conditions.
Land eligibility is checked systematically by the department. 5% of applicants will be selected for inspection under all schemes covered by the BPS application. Full details of the land eligibility criteria are available in the “Eligible Land” section of the Terms and Conditions.
Applicants should ensure all ineligible features/areas are marked out on their maps, that all parcels are included and that boundaries are correct. These amendments should be effected through the online system. For further information on this please refer to the “Applications/Preliminary Checks/ Amendments” section of the Terms and Conditions.
An applicant can declare afforested land on their application, subject to certain conditions and criteria. Newly declared forestry land must be declared as Forestry 2021. Details of those conditions and criteria can be found in the “Afforestation Measures” section of the Terms and conditions.
If an applicant fails to comply with the various terms and conditions of the scheme, they could be subject to reduction or penalties on their payment. Details of reductions and penalties which may be applied to cases are outlined in the “Payments, Reductions and Penalties” section of the Terms and Conditions.
Requests for appeal can arise for many reasons. Details of these procedures and what’s open to applicants are available in the “Review and Appeal Procedure” section of the Terms and Conditions.
Applicants for Basic Payment Scheme may also be included in the Greening Scheme. Details of the obligations and benefits of that scheme can be found in the “Greening” section of the Terms and Conditions.
The department also operates a Young Farmers Scheme, which provides an additional payment to certain categories of applicants, provided they meet the criteria. Details of this scheme are available in the “Young Farmers Scheme” section of the Terms and Conditions.
An applicant may apply to be included in the Protein Aid Scheme designed for nitrogen fixing crops. Please be aware that in 2021 the Protein Aid Scheme will be subject to Checks by Monitoring. Full details of this Aid Scheme can be found in the “Protein Aid” section of the Terms and Conditions.
Applicants may apply to join a Registered Farm Partnership where 2 or more applicants come together to operate a farm business as a single entity. Applications for the registration of a new partnership must be submitted to the Farm Partnership Registration Unit by close of business on Wednesday 30th of March. Full details regarding partnerships can be found in the “Registered Farm Partnerships” section of the terms and conditions.
Details of additional measures that are available to applicants, for example GLAS/ Organic/ BEEF schemes can be found in the “Other Schemes/ Measures” section of the Terms and Conditions.
The department collects and processes the personal data of applicants to the BPS/ANC and ancillary schemes. This data is held and processed in accordance with the regulations as laid out under GDPR. Full details of your rights and our obligations under those regulations is laid out in the “Data Protection Notice” section of the Terms and Conditions.
Section 40 of the Wildlife Act 1976 prohibits the burning of vegetation between 1 March and 31 August. Details of sanctions and penalties regarding this practice is available in the “Burning of Growing Vegetation” section of the terms and conditions.
In submitting a BPS application, farmers agree to permit officials or agents of the department to carry out on-farm inspections, with or without prior notice and where notified at a reasonable time(s). To facilitate checks and on-farm inspections, farmers shall fully co-operate with department staff, and reply fully to all queries providing any documentary evidence that may be requested in relation to their application. If an on-farm inspection cannot be carried out through the fault or the action of the farmer or his/her representative, the application shall be rejected resulting in no payment.
In carrying out agricultural activities, farmers must comply with the requirements of Cross Compliance and Good Agricultural and Environmental Condition on their “holding” for the entire calendar year and a percentage of applicants will be selected for inspection. Full details on Cross Compliance are available in the “Cross Compliance (including Good Agricultural and Environmental Condition)” section of the Terms and Conditions.
