SFP deadline looms larger

The deadline for submitting applications to transfer Single Farm Payment (SFP) entitlements for 2013 is fast approaching.
By The Newsroom
Published 24th Feb 2013, 13:15 BST

The closing date for the receipt of applications to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) is Tuesday 2 April 2013. As this is Easter Tuesday, the last day for delivering applications in person to DARD offices is Friday, 29 March 2013. Postal applications received when DARD offices open on 3 April 2013 will be accepted. Applications delivered in person on the 3 April 2013 to DARD offices will not be accepted.

Farm businesses wishing to receive payment in the 2013 SFP Scheme, for entitlements they intend to transfer or trade, are urged to submit transfer applications well in advance of the 2 April deadline. This will help any related queries to be resolved more quickly and, if necessary, allow time for a revised transfer application to be submitted before the deadline. An early request to transfer SFP entitlements should reduce the risk of any complications in the completion of 2013 Single Application Forms.

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It is important that farmers who have inherited SFP entitlements make sure that, as soon as probate has been cleared, the Executor or Personal Representative for the deceased’s estate submits an application to the Department to transfer the entitlements to the beneficiary.

Applicants need to be registered and approved by DARD as a Category 1

Farm Business before they can receive SFP entitlements by transfer. Those wishing to transfer entitlements but who are not already registered with the Department as a farm business should contact their local DARD Office for advice in the first instance. Where appropriate, an application (Form FB1) to register as a farm business should be completed and submitted to the Department.

If the value of the SFP entitlements held by a business is less than €100, the business may choose to buy or lease additional entitlements to increase the total value of entitlements it could activate in 2013 to above €100. Farmers will also need to ensure they have sufficient land, for example owned or taken in conacre, to activate these additional entitlements. If a farm business doesn’t have enough land to activate all its entitlements, it may choose to sell or lease their entitlements to another farmer.

Completed applications to transfer SFP entitlements for the 2013 scheme should be returned to SFP Branch, Trading/Entitlements Section, Orchard House, 40 Foyle Street, Derry /Londonderry BT48 6AT.