This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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2003 Sheep Annual Premium Scheme
24/10/2002
Sheep producers in Scotland are now able to notify
transfers and leases of quota to cover claims under the
2003 Sheep Annual Premium Scheme.
This will enable producers to obtain quota or dispose of
any surplus quota for the 2003 Sheep Annual Premium Scheme
(SAPS) which opens for premium applications on 4 December
2002.
Completed transfer and lease notification forms must
reach the Department by Tuesday 4 February 2003, the
deadline for submitting claims for Premium - any forms
received after that date must be rejected.
Producers are advised to make their quota trading
decisions and ensure that transactions are notified to
SEERAD as early as possible in the trading period.
In the 2003 Scheme year producers must again use at
least 70 per cent of their sheep quota or the unused part
will be withdrawn without compensation.
The trading period will give producers who cannot meet
the usage rules by claiming and receiving payment on a
sufficient number of sheep an opportunity to meet the usage
rule by disposing of surplus quota. To use quota in this
context means either to claim premium on it or to lease it
out.
Notification forms SAP-Transfer-2003 for notifying
transfers of quota and SAP-Lease-2003 for the temporary
leasing of quota and an Explanatory Leaflet are available
from Scottish Executive Environment and Rural Affairs
Department (SEERAD) local area offices.
Producers may not dispose of quota by transfer or lease
in the 2003 notification period if they received quota from
the national reserve with effect from the 2001 or 2002
Scheme years.
It is the responsibility of the producers selling or
leasing out quota to ensure that they have sufficient quota
at their disposal to allow the transaction to take
place.
If for example they have not used all their quota in
2002, they should satisfy themselves that they will not be
subject to a withdrawal of quota under the usage rules
affecting their 2003 quota position, as this could lead to
the transfer or lease being rejected.