Basic Payment Scheme: guidance

25. Young Farmers Payment

If you qualify for the Basic Payment Scheme, you may also receive the Young Farmers Payment. You will receive this if you:

• submit a Single Application Form
• farm a minimum of three hectares in Scotland
• are a sole trader or head of the farm business
• less than 41 years of age on 31 December of the first year in which you apply for the Basic Payment Scheme.

The level of Young Farmers Payment for each eligible hectare is set at 25 per cent of the regional average value of Basic Payment Scheme entitlements. The maximum number of eligible hectares is set at 90 hectares. The eligibility criteria, for those situations where a Young Farmer is involved in a partnership and who is to be considered as head of the holding, are defined as follows:

• If the business is a partnership, the young farmer(s) must individually hold a minimum of 25 per cent of the capital of the business.
• If one or more young farmers is in partnership with other partners who do not qualify as young farmers, there must be a legal agreement which demonstrates that the young farmers have control of the business as regards day-to-day management, financial planning and long term business strategy.
• The legal agreement must specify that partners who are not young farmers cannot exercise control of the business against the wishes of the young farmers.
• Where the business is a company and the controlling majority is held by more than one Young Farmer, there must be a legal agreement that they will vote together to ensure they cannot be out-voted by other shareholders who do not qualify as young farmers.

The Young Farmers Payment is only payable for a maximum of five years from the date your business was established, subject to you being no more than 40 years of age by the end of the year in which you submitted your application.

If your business was set up before 2015, the payment will be made from 2015 only. For example, a business that was set up in 2013 could receive this payment for 2015, 2016 and 2017 only.

You can apply for the Young Farmers Payment on the Single Application Form, where you will be asked to provide evidence of your eligibility. Full details of how to apply for the payment will be included in the guidance notes issued with your Single Application Form.