The Scottish Tenant Farmers Association (STFA) is warning all tenant farmers that the countdown to the amnesty deadline has begun in earnest; warning that with only one year to go tenants stand to lose a lifetime opportunity to safeguard the future of their tenancies unless they act immediately.

The amnesty is one of the provisions of the Land Reform Act (Scotland) 2016 and allows for certain past improvements carried out by the tenant to become eligible for waygo compensation despite missing notices or consents.

The amnesty applies to all types of leases and only lasts for a three-year period, during which a tenant may notify his landlord of the works carried out on the farm which he wishes to be registered as improvements.

The amnesty expires on 13 June 2020. STFA has stressed the importance of the amnesty as not only being essential for agreeing what will be eligible for compensation at waygo, but also essential for the new rent test and for clarifying who owns what for the benefit of future generations.