Single Farm Payment (General Questions)

If you cannot find the answer to your query here, then contact the SFP Helpline, Telephone 028 71 319900 or email us on gspd.sfps@dardni.gov.uk

To claim Single Farm Payment, you must be a farmer undertaking agricultural activity, hold Single Farm Payment entitlements on 15 May in any scheme year and have eligible agricultural land at your disposal on 15 May of the year of the claim.

Payment entitlements were allocated to farmers in 2005.  If you did not establish entitlements in 2005, you will have to obtain entitlements by transfer from another farm business.  This transfer could be sale with or without land, by lease with leased land or through inheritance. You will also need to be registered and approved by us as a farm business before you can claim Single Farm Payment.

Yes providing you meet the relevant requirements of the EU Regulations and are registered and approved by us as a farm business. You will need to tell us of your intention to buy or sell the entitlements by completing a transfer form TE1. Further information is available from Transfer of entitlements guidance booklet or from Trading /Entitlements Section, Orchard House Tel: 028 7131 9900.

You will need to be registered and approved by us as a farm business and you will need to tell us about the transfer of the entitlements by completing a transfer form TE1. Further information is available from Transfer of entitlements guidance booklet or from Trading /Entitlements Section, Orchard House Tel: 028 7131 9900.

If you want to claim payment on entitlements in any scheme year, you normally need to tell us on or before 2 April in the scheme year concerned. For example, if you want to claim entitlements in 2011, you need to tell us on or before 4 April 2011. You are advised to tell us as early as possible and well in advance of the deadline. Further information is available from Transfer of entitlements guidance booklet or from Trading /Entitlements Section, Orchard House, telephone: 028 7131 9900.

You need to contact your local DARD office to obtain advice and a new farm business application form (FB1). You should note that it will take time to process your application so you should ensure that you submit your application as early as possible. Further information is available from Your Local DARD Office.

It is possible that if you do not activate entitlements in accordance with EU legislation, we will take them from you and put them in the National Reserve

However, unless you write and tell us otherwise, we will activate first any entitlements which you would lose if they are not activated in the current year providing you have declared sufficient eligible land on your Single Application form. This would be any entitlements which are subject to National Reserve usage rules; and any entitlements which have not been activated in the previous two years.

We will activate first those with the highest value entitlements to the limit supported by your eligible land. If entitlements are of equal value, we will give priority to those which were not activated in the previous year.

Under EU legislation the payment of SFP must be made during the period 1 December 2011 to 30 June 2012.  We will start making payments of the full amount of SFP due for 2011 on 1 December 2011. We anticipate completing up to 80% of payments by 31 January. We will continue to make payments on an ongoing basis as soon as we complete all validation checks on individual claims.

Check if you have received any letters from us about the detail of your 2010 claim and if so reply immediately. If you have recently replied to a letter from us or had an on-farm inspection, we may not yet have completed the assessment of your claim. In these circumstances, we will issue a payment as soon as your claim has been assessed. You should receive a payment within 10 working days of your claim being authorised for payment.

If you have a query or wish to discuss any detail of your application contact us on the SFP Helpline, Telephone 028 71 319900 or email us on gsps.sfps@dardni.gov.uk.

For 2010, the exchange rate is 0.85995. The rate to be used to convert payments from Euro to Sterling is set by the EU in September of each scheme year.

Yes, providing there is no outstanding debt or penalty to be recovered in respect of previous applications.  You must have a separate United Kingdom Euro bank account. You need to tell us by ticking the appropriate box on the Single Application Form. Once you make a request to be paid in Euro, you cannot revert to payment in Sterling for that scheme year. You should contact Systems Management Section, Orchard House on 028 7129 0074 for a UK Euro BACS form.

Yes.  The European Commission requires all subsidy payments to be made electronically by the Bankers Automated Clearing System (BACS) to a UK bank account.

To receive payment by BACS you should contact Systems Management Section, Orchard House on 028 7129 9074 for the appropriate form

The European Commission has recognised that in return for receipt of direct agricultural support (including Single Farm Payment), you have important responsibilities towards the protection of the environment, animal health and welfare, and public health. You are therefore required to observe certain conditions in these areas in return for receipt of direct agricultural support. This is known as Cross-Compliance. Further details on cross compliance can be found at Cross Compliance FAQ – Cross Compliance booklets

From 01^st January 2007 the Nitrates & Phosphorus Regulations come into force & all related measures become effective. Required storage capacity must be in place by 31^st December 2008 but farmers may spread slurry throughout the year (subject to the Measures) up until that date. From 01^st January 2009 closed spreading periods will apply. Any breach of these regulations will constitute a cross compliance breach. . Further details on cross compliance can be found at Cross Compliance FAQ – Cross Compliance booklets

As a general rule, for breaches of land related Cross-Compliance requirements, it is the person claiming Single Farm Payment against the land that will be held responsible for any breach that occurs. Therefore if the landowner is claiming Single Farm Payment and allows a tenant to farm the land it will be the land owner that will be held responsible for any land related breaches that occur.

For animal related breaches it will be the registered keeper of the animal who will be held responsible.  

Further details on cross compliance can be found at Cross Compliance FAQ – Cross Compliance booklets

Yes.  From 2008, horticultural authorisations have been removed from SFP entitlements.  This means that, from 2008, land used to grow fruit, vegetables and potatoes is eligible to claim SFP on the same basis as any other eligible land use. This includes land used for top fruit orchards, such as apples and pears, or used for hardy nursery stock production.

Application packs containing 2011 Single Application forms and notes for guidance issued towards the end of March 2011 to all farm businesses who claimed SFP in 2010. Further information will be given nearer that time. If you are a new farm business you will need to register and be approved by us. You should contact Your Local DARD Office to obtain advice and new farm business application form (FB1).

Your entitlements will be detailed in your 2010 Single Application form. We will not issue a revised entitlement statement unless your entitlements change or you request a copy