A surge of applications in recent weeks saw 123,705 farmers apply before the 15 May 2025 deadline for the Basic Income Support for Sustainability (BISS) and other area-based schemes. The figure is slightly lower than the 124,274 applications submitted in the 2024 scheme year.

The figure also includes 2,792 temporary reference number applications. The Department explains these are applications where no BISS entitlements are held (if applicable) and applications without any claimed area. As such, they will be subject to administrative checks to determine eligibility.

Table 1 details the number of applications submitted under the Complementary Redistributive Income Support for Sustainability (CRISS), the Eco Scheme and the Areas of Natural Constraint (ANC). BISS and CRISS applications are unchanged to 2024 figures but Eco-Scheme and ANC applications are running at a lower level.

It is also worth noting that the figures are preliminary figures and are subject to change as applications are processed.

The BISS application system was also the 2025 application route for schemes including the Complementary Income Support for Young Farmers (CIS-YF), Protein Aid, Straw Incorporation Measure (SIM), Multi Species Sward Measure (MSSM) and Red Clover Silage Measure (RCSM)and the annual claims for Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES) and the Organic Farming Scheme (OFS).

Transfer of entitlements

There were 33,951 applications received to transfer payment entitlements. This equates to an increase of in excess of 600 applications on 2024 levels.

The deadline for the transfer of entitlements was 15 May 2025 but the Department highlights that “if a change made to a BISS online application leads to a farmer having insufficient land to use all of their entitlements, they will have the opportunity to submit a transfer of entitlements application up until midnight on 31 May 2025”.

This facility is only available to farmers who can show that they have made a change to their BISS application by 31 May 2025 and that change has directly led to the need to transfer entitlements.

There is a facility for late BISS applications but these are subject to a 1% per day penalty per working day.

This raises the importance of submitting applications as soon as possible. The facility is only available for 25 calendar days, with the final date for applications being 9 June (subject to 16% penalty).

As covered in detail in last week’s Farm Schemes and Finance page, farmers can make amendments to their BISS application without penalty via the agfood.ie online portal until midnight on Saturday 31 May.

Massive effort

In announcing the submission figures Minister for Agriculture Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon acknowledged the hard work of everyone involved.

“This figure reflects the massive effort made by farmers, FAS advisers and by my Department in assisting farmers with these schemes and their various requirements,” he said.

“I want to particularly acknowledge the advisory services again this year, who have worked extremely hard with their client farmers to meet a range of application deadlines in recent months.”

The minister concluded: “To support farmers, my Department held 16 one-to-one clinics around the country. Almost 1,441 farmers were assisted at these events with a further 338 receiving direct help at the public office in Portlaoise.

The Direct Payments Helpdesk of my Department made and received over 10,110 calls to farmers since 1 April to help them with their applications and queries.

“I want every eligible farmer to maximise their payments because I and everyone in my Department knows how crucial they are to farm families,” he said.

Scheme applications

The 15 May deadline was also the deadline for the 2025 National Sheep Welfare Scheme (NSWS), the CSP Dairy Beef Welfare Scheme and the National Dairy Beef Welfare Scheme (NDBWS). There were 17,011 applications received under the NSWS.

This is broadly in line with the figure of 17,167 applications in 2024. The scheme offers payment of up to €13 per ewe.

There were 16,366 farmers paid €15.2m up to 16 May. The Department recently told the Irish Farmers Journal that balancing payments and any outstanding core payments would be paid to applicants at the end of May.

Meanwhile, there was a great response to applications for the NDBWS with 18,104 applications submitted. The scheme did not operate in 2024 but received 14,383 applications in 2023.

The scheme offers payment of €20 per eligible calf up to 50 head or a maximum payment of €1,000 per herd. Funding of €5.3m was paid to 8,402 applicants in 2023. As well as that, there were 1,947 applications to year two of the CSP Dairy Beef Welfare Scheme.

This follows on from 13,155 applications to year one of the scheme in 2024. Not all applicants who applied in 2024 were eligible for payment with €4.73m paid to-date to 7,612 participants.

Farmers who applied in year one are automatically rolled over to year two unless they are removed or seek to withdraw from the scheme.

For the three applications there is a 25-calendar-day period after the 15 May 2025 closing date for the acceptance of late applications. Late applications attract a penalty of 1% per working day.

Applications after the 25-day period are ineligible.