DAERA is to change land eligibility rules from 2026, meaning that the new Farm Sustainability Payment can be claimed on all types of land.

A spokesperson for the Department confirmed to the Irish Farmers Journal that the rule change is “planned for 2026”.

It is expected to result in an increase in the total eligible area in NI of 4%, or around 40,000ha.

However, entitlements will not be re-calculated across all eligible land, as was the case when the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) was rolled out in 2015. It means that farmers will need extra entitlements to claim payment on land that used to be ineligible. The rule change will allow all types of land, except hard features such as laneways and farmyards, to be eligible for the new area-based Farm Sustainability Payment.

It aims to remove the need for farmers to clear away scrub and bushes, or manage heavy covers of rushes and heather, to keep land eligible for payment.

Activity

Last week, DAERA confirmed that landowners who had no farming activity in 2020 or 2021 will not be eligible to claim payments from 2025.

These landowners will need to sell their BPS entitlements before the end of the trading window in May 2025, or else their entitlements will be lost.

It remains unclear how many landowners are impacted by this rule change and how many entitlements are likely to come on the market next year.

Another change coming in 2025 is the minimum claim size for the Farm Sustainability Payment will increase from 3ha to 5ha.