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Farmers have reported both good and bad experiences when applying for TAMS II.
However, it can be a substantial financial incentive when completing a project to a higher standard that is capable of standing the test of time.
With larger investments being made on many dairy farms throughout the country, calls have been made by farmers to increase the current maximum investment levels through TAMS.
The maximum grant aid available to a general applicant is €32,000 (or 40% of €80,000 investment). A young trained farmer can avail of a maximum grant of €48,000 (or 60% of the €80,000 investment).
If a young trained farmer is in a partnership with a general applicant, the maximum grant aid that they will be able to get is €80,000 of a €160,000 investment (40% of €80,000 for the general applicant plus 60% of €80,000 for the young farmer).
Table 1 shows some of the options which may interest dairy farmers under TAMS II and the Department reference costs which grant aid will be based on.
Along with these larger items, farmers can also get grant aid on bulk tanks or external milk silos, plate cooler, water heater and heat transfer unit, among other things.
In parlours, meal-feeding systems can also be installed through TAMS and could be an option for existing parlours.
Batch/multi-place meal feeders or individual cow meal feeders have reference costs of €353.20 per cow space and €621.20 per cow space respectively. Meal troughs are costed separately to the feeders at a reference cost of €233.40/cow.
It is important to note that farmers not qualifying under the Young Farmers Scheme in TAMS II are not able to claim the grant for the construction of the parlour structure.
These non-qualifying farmers will be able to apply through the Dairy Equipment Scheme for the milking equipment only.
Tight schedule to complete works
At the beginning of the scheme, farmers were given three years from the date of approval to complete work.
However, this was subsequently reviewed and reduced. Now all works must be completed and claims must be submitted within six months of approval in the case of certain equipment and 12 months in the case of structures and fixed equipment from the date of issue of approval.
In some cases, work will have commenced, but additional time will be needed to complete the works, then an application for an extension can be applied for.
The extension will be for a maximum of six months starting from the original completion date. This extension will only be available for structures and fixed investments where work has commenced.
It is important that payment claims are also made on time. Payment claims will be subject to a 1% reduction in aid for each working day received late up to a maximum of 25 days, after which no payment will occur.
The current tranche of TAMS II runs until 23 February. Once this tranche closes, another tranche will open the following day, with tranches generally running for three months.
Changes to deposits
In mid-December, it was announced that there would be a change to the rule when it comes to placing a deposit on an investment prior to getting approval for the project.
The new rule allows farmers who have applied for TAMS and put down a deposit for equipment before they were formally approved to claim the deposit as a legitimate expense in claiming grant aid.
Up to now, the rules said that farmers could lose the value of the deposit off the item for grant purposes if a deposit of up to 20% was paid.
If the deposit was between 20% and 50% of the approved value, then that work or item was not eligible for any grant aid. If the deposit was over 50% of the value, then the entire application, including any other investment items, was deemed ineligible.
This change is particularly relevant for farmers installing milking machines and bulk tanks, with many companies requiring a deposit before fabrication would begin.
Prior to Christmas, the Department admitted that the final details of the proposed change were being finalised and that they would be confirmed in due course.
Payment claims
There are several aspects that farmers must be conscious of when they are completing a project through TAMS.
Firstly, all claimed costs are exclusive of VAT and must be claimed in Euro. A common issue that the Department comes across is payment claims being made inclusive of VAT.
No investment is permitted to be made using a lease or hire purchase arrangement. However, this would be more of an issue for mobile investments as opposed to fixed structures.
Another vital point to remember is that receipts must be in the name of the applicant and marked paid.
Where a partnership is operating, it is mandatory to have both names on the receipt for it to be eligible and to also have the address included.
The use of non-approved materials such as fill or slats has also been highlighted. These are all issues which can incur a penalty or lead to delayed payments.
Before any work commences on farms, it is vital to plan.
Some advisers will advise farmers to give themselves a year of a lead-in time before they break ground to allow for the successful completion of planning permission and a TAMS application.
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