single farm payment

[legal33]

If I lease land from a farmer and I collect my single farm payment cheque do I have to hand it over to the farmer. He says I do because he owns the land. I have already paid the rent of €150 per acre. Is handing over the single farm payment cheque normal?

thanks

 

[declanja]

As far as I know the single farm payment(SFP) is based on the livestock/cereal grants raised on that land averaged over the years 2000-2002 ( or could be 1999-2001, I'm not sure). This period is known as the referenced years.

Whatever farmer obtained the grants in each of the three referenced years has the right to one third of the SFP for that portion of land. Farmers who rented in land at that time and now don't, can continue to hold their entitlement as long as they continue to farm more than 50% of the declared acreage from the referenced years. If they don't the entitlements revert to the Dept of Agric and are divided amongst developing young farmers.

The owner of the land has no entitlement to SFP unless he/she farmed the land during the referenced years. If the land owner farmed this land the during the referenced years then the present renter has no entitlement.

Clear as mud!

 

[legal33]

yes it actually is clear....so what i need to do is find a farmer who had his land leased out during the reference period and then the SFP cheque is mine.....all mine

i suppose thats because you cant claim for 2 single farm payments on the same piece of land?

Many thanks