Legislation for a new system of farm support payments in NI from next year was approved by MLAs at Stormont on Tuesday.

The new law takes effect for the 2026 scheme year and centres around the new Farm Sustainability Payment (FSP) becoming the main support scheme for NI farmers.

Agriculture Minister Andrew Muir said approximately 22,000 farm businesses in NI are expected to apply for the area-based scheme which will be based on existing entitlements.

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“The FSP will act as a balance between providing a safety net that will help a farm business to withstand shocks that are beyond its ability to manage effectively, and encouraging farm businesses to become more environmentally sustainable, efficient and resilient,” he said.

Under the new historic years rule, around 2,000 landowners who had no agricultural activity in 2020 and 2021 will not be eligible to claim FSP in 2026.

These landowners will either have to sell their FSP entitlements in 2026 to an eligible farm business, or else their entitlements will be lost.

Land eligibility

Another key change for 2026 is that land eligibility rules are being changed so that all land except for hard features, such as farmyards and laneways, will be eligible for claiming FSP.

There are no minimum stocking rate requirements and FSP claimants are only required to have “management control” of the land that they use to activate entitlements.

The minimum claim area for FSP remains at 3ha, although anyone claiming payment on less than 5ha must “carry out agricultural activity” on at least 2ha.

A new cap on payments will also apply from 2026, with deductions applying in steps on payments above £60,000.

The new rules mean the maximum FSP available next year will be £153,000 and from 2027 onwards it will be £116,000.

The longstanding rule that sees entitlements confiscated if they have not been activated in two years will remain under FSP.

That said, the non-activation rule will not apply next year, as FSP is effectively a new scheme and 2026 is its first year.

New conditions

The legislation passed by MLAs on Tuesday contains two new conditions for claiming FSP which will apply after the 2026 scheme year.

In 2027, FSP claimants will be required to have participated in the NI-wide Soil Nutrient Health Scheme.

Anyone who has not registered and completed scheme training in 2027 will have a 10% penalty applied to their FSP in 2027, with this rising to 15% in 2028 and subsequent years.

Similarly, FSP claimants that keep cattle will be required to be registered and have completed training under the new bovine genetic programme in 2028.

Again, a 10% penalty applies in the first year, increasing to a 15% deduction in 2029 and thereafter. The option to genotype cattle under the programme is to remain voluntary.

Minister Muir said that the plan is that a third condition will eventually be added to FSP where scheme claimants are required to complete a carbon foot printing exercise.

“That conditionality is not included in the regulations as the timeline for rollout of the [carbon foot printing] project has still to be set,” he said.

DUP vote against new payment regulations

A motion in the NI Assembly to approve new regulations for the new Farm Sustainability Payment (FSP) came down to a vote on Tuesday.

In total, 75 MLAs took part, and the motion was passed by 54 votes to 21. All DUP members voted against the motion, along with Timoty Gaston from the Traditional Unionist Voice.

In her remarks, Michelle McIlveen from the DUP said the party had “concerns about the proposals for progressive capping and conditionalities”.

“Will the proposed timescale for registration and training for the various schemes give businesses enough time, given everything else that they have to grapple with each day?” she said.