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Basic Payment Scheme (BPS)

ploughing
The Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) replaced the Single Payment Scheme (SPS) in 2015. This direct payment now take the form of four distinct schemes and the payment that a farmer receives is a combination payment under the four following schemes:
· Basic Payment Scheme;
 
· Greening Payment;
· Young Farmers Scheme;
· Aid for Protein Crops (lupins, peas, beans).
 
All farmers eligible for payment under BPS are subject to Greening. The payment will be a top-up of the BPS and will account for approximately 30pc of the farmer’s total payment.
 
The vast majority of dairy farmers will qualify automatically for the Greening payment because of the nature of Irish farms.

Payments

The BPS is paid in two tranches.
  • An advance payment of up to 50pc may be made from mid-October, with the balancing payment in December. All EU scheme payments to farmers can only be made to a bank account. All applications must be made online. If you are not already registered for the departments online services you should register now on www.agfood.ie. Should you experience any difficulty registering please contact our helpdesk for assistance.
  • Alternatively, you can authorise an agricultural consultant or Teagasc advisor to apply on your behalf. To access the relevant authorisation forms please go to this link or contact your local consultant or advisor.
The maximum payment that will be granted to any one farmer under the BPS (excluding the Greening Payment) in any one scheme year is capped at €150,000. The minimum payment is €100.

Application Deadlines

Applicants must ensure that their completed 2019 BPS/Greening and other area-based schemes application must be submitted online to the Department no later than midnight on Wednesday, May 15, 2019. A 2019 BPS application that is completed and submitted online to the Department by a farmer or his/her authorised Agent will be accepted as a valid application provided that all other conditions of the BPS are met.

Your pre-printed statement of land and maps are correct at the time of printing. The online application system will provide the most up-to-date land details and maps. It is the farmer’s responsibility to ensure all his/her land is included in the application.

Late Application Deductions

Late applications will be accepted up to and including Sunday, June 9, 2019.
 
The payment on late applications will be subject to a penalty of 1pc per each working day the application is submitted after the May 15 deadline, in respect of payments under both the BPS and Greening Scheme, Areas of Natural Constraints Scheme (ANC), GLAS, BDGP and OFS.
 
No payment will be made on applications submitted after June 9, 2019, except in force majeure cases.
 
It is worth noting that even though a payment won’t be made on applications lodged after June 9, there is always circumstances where one might need to submit a BPS application in order to satisfy payment regulations for another scheme (i.e. GLAS). So even if a farmer fails to meet these BPS deadlines, he/ she should still lodge their application.

The Land Availability Rule

To claim the direct payment under the 2019 BPS, all of the hectares of land declared by you to support your claim (owned, rented-in and leased-in) must be subject to an agricultural activity for a period from the beginning of the year until after May 31, 2019 or for a period before May 31, 2019 to December 31, 2019.

In the case of the ANC scheme, the land must be available to the applicant for the entire calendar year. An 11-month conacre agreement will be deemed to also be eligible but the applicant may be deemed responsible for breaches of the cross compliance requirements for the entire calendar year.

Land Leases/Letting Agreements

If, in keeping with your standard farming practice, you enter into leases or letting agreements for any of the lands declared on your 2019 BPS application you must be in a position to provide verifiable evidence that the land is available to you for the required period as set out under the ‘Land Availability Rule’.

Eligible Land

In order to draw down payment in respect of your BPS entitlements, you must have an ‘eligible hectare’ to accompany each entitlement. In this context, an ‘eligible hectare’ is land that is used for an agricultural activity and includes land used to grow cereals, oilseeds, short rotation coppice, miscanthus sinensis, protein crops, sugar beet, maize, fodder beet, turnips, mangolds, kale, vegetables, potatoes, grass for silage or hay or grazing. It also includes maintaining an agricultural area in a state suitable for grazing or cultivation.
 
Areas under Wild Bird Cover and Riparian Zones are also eligible for BPS provided you are in AEOS or GLAS and undertaking the relevant actions in that scheme.
 
In determining the eligibility of land applied upon which to draw down payment, a number of particular conditions have to be complied with, namely:
· The land must be managed by the applicant. If the applicant is not the owner of the land, he/she must be in a position to provide verifiable evidence that the land is available to him/her for the required period as set out in the ‘Land Availability Rule’;
· There must be independent and suitable access for animals and/or machinery for the farming enterprise being conducted. Independent access means access by public or private roadway or by a defined right of way. Access over adjoining landowners land, or over land which is subject to a lease or rental agreement to another person, is not acceptable;
 
· There must be appropriate fencing for the farming enterprise being conducted;
 
· There must be defined external boundaries except in the case of commonage;
· If at inspection the applicant claims to be farming the land with animals then the type of animals must be appropriate to the land and there must be appropriate handling facilities available on the lands to meet the animals’ welfare requirements.
Full terms and conditions are below:

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    ICMSA Head Office
    John Feely House
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