Farmers are reporting some confusion around entitlements, eco scheme payments and bare land. More detail has recently emerged in relation to these matters.

Firstly, the new entitlement will be for the Basic Income Support for Sustainability (BISS) payment which replaces the basic payment. Your BISS will be about 40% back on your old basic payment (greening included). If you have BPS entitlements worth €300 with greening in 2021, your new BISS will be €180/ha.

Secondly, there is the CRISS front loading payment. It is worth about €44/ha for each hectare you have an entitlement for, but only on a maximum of 30ha. Your maximum payment is thus €1,320.

The final element is eco schemes. This will be paid on every eligible hectare you hold, whether you have an entitlement for it or not. Some previously ineligible land under scrub will now be eligible.

So, if you have 35 entitlements but 37ha of land, your eco scheme payment will be 37 x €63, amounting to €2,331. This would be added to your CRISS (max 30 x €44 = €1,320) and your BISS (35 x €180 = €6,300) giving a total of €9,951.

The Department will not be issuing new entitlements for bare land the way they did in 2015. If the farmer above wants to recieve a BISS payment on the two eligible hectares they don’t have entitlements for, they will have to buy or lease them in.

Young trained farmers or new entrants can apply to the national reserve.