Ahead of the submission of the single application form (SAF) on 15 May 2017, claimants have been reminded by DAERA that it is their responsibility to ensure that all the land they claim is eligible.

Farm maps that accompany each application indicate the maximum eligible area (MEA) in each field, but farmers should not assume that this MEA is correct. Some ineligible features such as smaller areas of scrub might not have been captured in the MEA and they should all be removed. It is only if the total ineligible area of a field does not exceed 0.01ha (100m2) that no deduction is required.

The other issue emphasised by DAERA is that it is often difficult from a map to determine whether bog land and areas of heather are eligible and being managed.

As a result, these areas may not have been removed from the MEA by DAERA. Instead, it is the responsibility of the claimant to ensure that agricultural activity is undertaken over the entire area being claimed.

According to DAERA, placing small numbers of animals on large areas of bogland or heather is unlikely to make these areas eligible. If evidence of agricultural activity is only present on part of a field, then the remainder of the field may be ruled ineligible. Also, wildfires or burning more than 20% of the heather area is not considered controlled burning and therefore is not agricultural activity. A ‘‘Guide to Land Eligibility 2017’’ booklet is available on the DAERA website.

Applications

To date, more than 1,400 farmers have submitted their 2017 SAF online. With the Department keen to ensure that everyone uses the online service this year, one-to-one support is available at a local DAERA Direct Office (phone 0300 200 7848), and workshops are available for first-time users at CAFRE (phone 028 71319955).