I’m a 36-year-old suckler farmer who took over from my father in early 2012. I have completed my green cert, have 30 sucklers and am trying to increase numbers. I currently have 24 entitlements worth €19 each as my father was a dairy farmer during the reference period. I have off-farm income of €26,000. What would I be entitled to under the new system?

You are under 40, you started farming on your own right in the last five years, you have the agricultural qualification and also your off farm income is below €40,000.

Based on all these, you would be eligible to apply for the National Reserve in 2015. If successful, you could get a top-up on your existing entitlement to the national average of around €174/ha (€250/ha when greening is included). You are eligible for a top-up of 25% (€62.50) for the two years 2015 and 2016 under the Young Farmers Scheme (YFS). You are also eligible for the 60% grant under TAMS.

I am 38, with a full-time job paying €42,000. I have 10ha of good grazing land in my name for the last four years. I am living on this land, but the main problem is that there are no animal facilities whatsoever. Due to this, I have let out the land for grazing. I want to get going on my own and thought the Young Farmers Scheme might be an opportunity. However, reading your article last week I doubt it. I have the agri qualifications, but my off-farm income is over €40,000. I presume they are talking gross? Does this rule me out of entitlements? Also does this rule me out of the 60% farm capital grants which will be available?

Yes, the off-farm income cap of €40,000 is gross, not net after tax. You can choose 2013 or 2014 as your year for establishing eligibility. Was your gross income from 2013 below €40,000? If not, it does rule you out of the national reserve, both as a young farmer and new entrant.

There is no income cap on the Young Farmers Scheme, but the payment is a top-up on the number of entitlements you activate. As you do not have any entitlements for the first year, you will not be eligible for the 25% YFS top-up of €62.50 in 2015. You could buy or lease entitlements in 2016 to qualify. You would qualify for the 60% farm capital grant as a young farmer as again there is no income cap.

I started farming in 2008 on 5ha with my own herd number and only had five entitlements for my Single Farm Payment. In 2013, I purchased more land with a further 10 entitlements. Because the sale was slow going through, neither the seller or I used these entitlements in 2013, but I have received payment this year. I got paid €1,350 in 2014, leaving me with an average of €90/ha. I am now wondering what will happen with my payment next year. My sheep grassland payment should be around €400 this year.

The fact that you got paid on the entitlements in 2014 means the value will be in your pot of money. The reason is you owned the entitlements in 2014. Your grassland sheep payment of €400 will be added to that pot. This increases your pot to €1,750.

The bigger question is did you submit the 10 hectares you purchased on your 2013 SFP application? If you did, it means you can establish 15 entitlements with a basic payment value of €76.62/ha, well below the national average of €174/ha. Inputting these figures into the SFP calculator (www.farmersjournal.ie/sfp) shows your payment increases only slightly in 2015 to €1,787, but rises to €2,250 by 2019. If you did not include the land in your 2013 SFP application, you will be limited to establishing just five entitlements with a basic payment value of €230/ha. As they are above the national average, you would get cut to €1,634 in 2015 and fall to €1,478 by 2019. A big difference.

I was trying to follow your example to calculate my new SFP, but couldn’t get to grips with it. My present payment is €7,910 on 53ha (same in 2013 and 2015). If you get a chance, you might be able to reply with an estimate of new payment.

I put your figures into the SFP calculator. You will see a slight reduction in 2015 to €7,848 due to a cut in the National Reserve and Young Farmers Scheme.

From 2016, your payment will increase by about €300 a year, so by 2019 you get a payment of just over €9,000. I’m assuming you did not hold more entitlements than land or got a Grassland Sheep Scheme payment in 2014, as either of these possibilities would increase your pot of money to start with.

I am going into a partnership with a dairy farmer and tick all the boxes for the YFS. The other farmer is over 40. Will I qualify for the young farmer top-up?

Yes, you will. However, the important criteria is that you must have effective control over the business in terms of decisions related to management, benefits and financial risks. If you stop having control, the payment will cease.

I started farming on my own for the first time in 2013 on 60ha. I am under 40 and have ag qualifications. I bought some low-value entitlement worth €100 this year. Does this rule me out of the YFS and the National Reserve?

No. As you had started farming in the previous five years, you are still eligible. If you are successful in the National Reserve, your entitlements will be topped up to the national average of around €250/ha including greening. You will also get a 25% top-up of around €62.50/ha, but only on 50ha, which is the maximum the top-up is paid on. As you started farming in 2013, you will just get this for three years.