Vital information included
Applying for BPS online has a range of benefits for farmers. It helps you avoid certain simple mistakes that are commonly seen on paper applications. Every year, the Department receives paper forms missing vital information such as the parcel usage (eg grassland) or the claimed area (number of hectares). A significant number of forms are also received each year without a signature. These errors can lead to a delay in processing of paper-based applications.
The online application system will automatically tell you when such errors are on the application, and they can then be rectified on the spot without the need for the Department to follow up with an error letter.
The most common cause of a penalty for farmers is an over-claim on a land parcel. Again, the online system will flag any such issues to you at the time so the issue can be fixed in advance of submitting your application. For example, if you put in a claimed area greater than the maximum eligible area, the system will show a warning that you are about to over-claim and give you the chance to change your claim if you wish. For those with a Greening Requirement, the system will also automatically tell you your Greening eligibility status.
Preliminary checks
Perhaps the biggest benefit of all is the availability of preliminary checks, which are available only to those who submit online. The Department introduced preliminary checks for the first time in 2016. Preliminary checks allow the Department to run a series of pre-checks for online BPS applications and to notify applicants of any non-compliance in the areas of over-claims, dual claims, and overlaps. A specified time frame is then available to BPS online applicants to rectify any such issues in advance of any possible penalty applying. In 2016, some 5,000 applicants gained the benefit of a preliminary check, and the advantages of these checks for farmers will increase as more applicants move to online.
A good example of the benefits of preliminary checks is dual claims, which can lead to penalties. One of the biggest causes of a dual claim is forgetting to delete a parcel you no longer have available to you – this might be because your lease ran out or you can’t rent it this year.
If such a dual claim is included in your online application, a preliminary check will be notified to you and in responding you can delete this dual claimed parcel without penalty within specified time frames. Similarly, you can rectify overclaims or overlaps identified in the time frame allowed.
Preliminary checks can thus help farmers to avoid certain errors and to avoid penalties on their BPS payment which may otherwise have arisen.
Online mapping
The online system has electronic mapping which will show you the latest available map of your parcel. You can accurately measure your areas to work out the eligible area of your parcel on the system. You can also identify features such as buildings, scrub, roadways, etc, and deduct these ineligible features to get an accurate claimed area.
Any other documents you might want to send by post, eg commonage evidence, lease agreement, etc, can be scanned up with your online application for faster processing.
Track back
All correspondence between you and the Department is available to view online, as well as your current entitlements. From 2017, you can also transfer entitlements online. When it comes to payment time, you can see a full breakdown of your payments online. You can also reply directly to certain correspondence from the Department, or amend your application after submission. The application process is secure, quick and easy, allowing you to get back to what you really want to be doing – farming.
Transferring entitlements
Online facility to Transfer Basic Payment Scheme Entitlements in 2017. The Department has launched an online transfer of entitlement application facility for the 2017 scheme year. By using the online transfer of entitlements facility, farmers or their agents can apply to transfer Basic Payment Scheme entitlements through the farmer’s www.agfood.ie account.
As the www.agfood.ie account contains all details in relation to the farmer’s entitlements, the online transfer facility provides a more streamlined and efficient method of transferring entitlements compared with the former paper application process.
This online application is designed with a view to preventing the typical errors that recur on the paper applications each year. Certain mandatory fields that the online farmer must complete help eliminate processing delays as a result of incomplete details.
Farmers who wish to transfer entitlements during the 2017 scheme year may do so using the following transfer methods:
Lease.Sale.Gift.Inheritance.Scission.Registered farm partnership.Merger (unregistered partnership).Change of legal entity.Change of registration details.The closing date for transferring entitlements under the 2017 Basic Payment Scheme year is 15 May 2017.
Farmers should note that any change to the registration details of a herd number (eg the addition or removal of a family member) requires a parallel change to the registration details of entitlements and a Transfer of Entitlement application should be submitted. Similarly, a transfer application should be submitted where a farm partnership has been formed or dissolved.
Built-in warnings which will help to avoid certain errors in the application. The availability of preliminary checks to help avoid potential penalties.Online videos and helpdesk assistance for completing the transfer application.Online replies to query letters.Option to view previous applications/entitlements and correspondence.Option to view entitlement position from 2015 to 2019.Accurate online mapping. Read more
Special focus: BPS online applications
Vital information included
Applying for BPS online has a range of benefits for farmers. It helps you avoid certain simple mistakes that are commonly seen on paper applications. Every year, the Department receives paper forms missing vital information such as the parcel usage (eg grassland) or the claimed area (number of hectares). A significant number of forms are also received each year without a signature. These errors can lead to a delay in processing of paper-based applications.
The online application system will automatically tell you when such errors are on the application, and they can then be rectified on the spot without the need for the Department to follow up with an error letter.
The most common cause of a penalty for farmers is an over-claim on a land parcel. Again, the online system will flag any such issues to you at the time so the issue can be fixed in advance of submitting your application. For example, if you put in a claimed area greater than the maximum eligible area, the system will show a warning that you are about to over-claim and give you the chance to change your claim if you wish. For those with a Greening Requirement, the system will also automatically tell you your Greening eligibility status.
Preliminary checks
Perhaps the biggest benefit of all is the availability of preliminary checks, which are available only to those who submit online. The Department introduced preliminary checks for the first time in 2016. Preliminary checks allow the Department to run a series of pre-checks for online BPS applications and to notify applicants of any non-compliance in the areas of over-claims, dual claims, and overlaps. A specified time frame is then available to BPS online applicants to rectify any such issues in advance of any possible penalty applying. In 2016, some 5,000 applicants gained the benefit of a preliminary check, and the advantages of these checks for farmers will increase as more applicants move to online.
A good example of the benefits of preliminary checks is dual claims, which can lead to penalties. One of the biggest causes of a dual claim is forgetting to delete a parcel you no longer have available to you – this might be because your lease ran out or you can’t rent it this year.
If such a dual claim is included in your online application, a preliminary check will be notified to you and in responding you can delete this dual claimed parcel without penalty within specified time frames. Similarly, you can rectify overclaims or overlaps identified in the time frame allowed.
Preliminary checks can thus help farmers to avoid certain errors and to avoid penalties on their BPS payment which may otherwise have arisen.
Online mapping
The online system has electronic mapping which will show you the latest available map of your parcel. You can accurately measure your areas to work out the eligible area of your parcel on the system. You can also identify features such as buildings, scrub, roadways, etc, and deduct these ineligible features to get an accurate claimed area.
Any other documents you might want to send by post, eg commonage evidence, lease agreement, etc, can be scanned up with your online application for faster processing.
Track back
All correspondence between you and the Department is available to view online, as well as your current entitlements. From 2017, you can also transfer entitlements online. When it comes to payment time, you can see a full breakdown of your payments online. You can also reply directly to certain correspondence from the Department, or amend your application after submission. The application process is secure, quick and easy, allowing you to get back to what you really want to be doing – farming.
Transferring entitlements
Online facility to Transfer Basic Payment Scheme Entitlements in 2017. The Department has launched an online transfer of entitlement application facility for the 2017 scheme year. By using the online transfer of entitlements facility, farmers or their agents can apply to transfer Basic Payment Scheme entitlements through the farmer’s www.agfood.ie account.
As the www.agfood.ie account contains all details in relation to the farmer’s entitlements, the online transfer facility provides a more streamlined and efficient method of transferring entitlements compared with the former paper application process.
This online application is designed with a view to preventing the typical errors that recur on the paper applications each year. Certain mandatory fields that the online farmer must complete help eliminate processing delays as a result of incomplete details.
Farmers who wish to transfer entitlements during the 2017 scheme year may do so using the following transfer methods:
Lease.Sale.Gift.Inheritance.Scission.Registered farm partnership.Merger (unregistered partnership).Change of legal entity.Change of registration details.The closing date for transferring entitlements under the 2017 Basic Payment Scheme year is 15 May 2017.
Farmers should note that any change to the registration details of a herd number (eg the addition or removal of a family member) requires a parallel change to the registration details of entitlements and a Transfer of Entitlement application should be submitted. Similarly, a transfer application should be submitted where a farm partnership has been formed or dissolved.
Built-in warnings which will help to avoid certain errors in the application. The availability of preliminary checks to help avoid potential penalties.Online videos and helpdesk assistance for completing the transfer application.Online replies to query letters.Option to view previous applications/entitlements and correspondence.Option to view entitlement position from 2015 to 2019.Accurate online mapping. Read more
Special focus: BPS online applications
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