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Arable Area Payment Scheme 2004
B. GENERAL RULES FOR AAPS PAYMENTS
12. If you are correctly claiming AAPS payments, we will pay you the rate relevant to the eligible crop you are growing. This section sets out the general rules for claiming on eligible arable crops. It sets out:
- which land is eligible and not eligible;
- which crops are eligible;
- what sowing dates apply;
- what husbandry standards must be met;
- the minimum claim and plot sizes; and
- the types of penalties.
LAND ELIGIBILITY
What is eligible for AAPS aid?
13. How the land was being used at 31 December 1991 will decide whether it is eligible for AAPS (for example, land that was in arable production or in temporary grass as part of an arable rotation). If you farm additional land you should check the AAPS eligibility. You may also need to get copies of relevant IACS documents (including maps, field numbers and areas, and cropping records) from the previous farmer. If you are not sure whether your land meets the eligibility rules, we strongly advise you to check with your local area office in writing.
14. Land which was in the five-year set-aside scheme in 1991/1992 is eligible, including land in the woodland and non-agricultural use options, as long as it meets the other AAPS conditions. Land which was in the temporary one-year set-aside scheme in 1991/1992 is also eligible.
15. Land on which area payments were legitimately claimed under the transitional 1992 EC Oilseeds Support Scheme is eligible.
16. Since 1996, land growing the following multi-annual crops on 31 December 1991 has been eligible - artichokes, asparagus, rhubarb, raspberries, blackberries, mulberries, loganberries, blackcurrants, whitecurrants, redcurrants, gooseberries, cranberries, bilberries and other fruits of the genus vaccinium. This eligibility is not backdated to 1995 and before for the purpose of AAPS payments
Special conditions for flax and hemp
17. To be eligible for AAPS, all crops must normally be grown on land meeting the eligibility rules outlined above. As an exception, you may claim aid for fibre flax and hemp (but no other crops) if these crops are grown on land on which fibre flax or hemp was grown and received payment under the Fibre Flax and Hemp Subsidy Schemes in 1998, 1999 or 2000.
What is not eligible for AAPS aid?
18. The eligibility restrictions, which apply throughout the EU, are specifically intended to prevent more land being used to produce crops which are funded. You can grow arable crops on ineligible land but you cannot claim AAPS aid, including set-aside, on that land. If you do claim on ineligible land, you may lose part or all of your AAPS payments.
19. Permanent grass includes all moorland, rough grazing, pasture and any areas which had been in grass for five years or more at 31 December 1991. Even if the grass was reseeded during that period, grazed or cut for hay or silage, it counts as permanent grass. However, temporary grass (that is, land sown with grass, not including direct reseeding, between 1 January 1987 and 31 December 1991) is eligible for AAPS.
20. Permanent crops are any crops which occupy the soil for a period of five years or more and produce crops over several years. This would normally include nursery crops, trees and bushes for producing fruit, berries, vines, hops and crops grown under glass or in polytunnels. It does not include strawberries.
21. Woodland includes all commercial and amenity woodland and rotational coppice.
22. Non-agricultural use includes all land used for purposes other than for agriculture, unless it was a condition of any planning permission that the land is returned to agricultural use and the land was previously in agricultural use other than permanent grass, permanent crops or woodland.
Exceptions to the definition of ineligible land
23. Exceptionally, if you can prove that land which falls within the normal definition of permanent grass or permanent crops formed part of a normal arable rotation as at 31 December 1991, that land may be eligible for AAPS. If you believe that you have land in this category, you should write to your local area office with full details of the land and documented evidence of your past cropping plans. Unless and until your area office tells you in writing that any land is eligible, you must not assume that it will be eligible or claim AAPS aid on it.
Ineligible land in linseed in 1992 or 1993
24. Ineligible land sown with linseed in 1992 or 1993 is still not eligible. If you plan to claim linseed aid in 2004, the land must meet the basic AAPS eligibility rules.
Switching eligible land for ineligible land
25. You may be allowed to switch eligible land for ineligible land for agronomic, plant health, environmental or compulsory purchase reasons, as long as there is no increase in eligible land as a result. However, certain conditions apply. You can get a separate leaflet (AAPL (2002)) and application form (IACS 21) from your local area office. Unless and until your area office tells you in writing that any land is eligible, you must not assume that it will be eligible or claim AAPS aid on it.
Field margins
26. We will pay AAPS aid on field margins if the distance from the centre of the boundary to the edge of the crop is no more than three metres. (This is because the European Commission has advised that we can use the derogation to extend the normal field margin width of two metres, as the areas concerned were used for fixing the historic reference yield (see Appendix 5)). Field margins can include traditional features such as hedges, ditches and dykes, as well as uncropped strips. If the width of any field margin found at inspection is more than three metres, or does not meet the conditions explained above, we will deduct that whole area from your claim and apply penalties as appropriate.
Internal features
27. Internal features can now be accepted as forming part of the agricultural parcel eligible to be claimed provided they are permanent features and their width is less than or equal to two metres.
ELIGIBLE CROPS
28. The following crops sown for harvest in 2004 are eligible for AAPS aid as long as you follow the scheme rules.
Cereals - any cereals.
Linseed - for oil production.
Oilseed rape - there are special requirements for oilseed rape (see appendix 4).
Proteins - peas (but not those intended for human consumption, that is vining), beans and sweet lupins.
Flax - grown for fibre.
Hemp - grown for fibre.
29. In general, AAPS crops are eligible for payment:
- whether they are grown for grain, seed or fodder;
- when grown for fodder, whether as a mixture or a single stand;
- at the appropriate rate when grown for fodder as a single stand;
- at the lower payment rate when grown as a mixture (for example, cereals and peas); and
- when grown for fodder as arable silage and undersown with grass when it is sown separately.
30. Arable silage mixtures made up of crops that are eligible and not eligible will not receive AAPS aid.
SOWING DATES
31. You must sow all crops by 31 May 2004, (apart from hemp and sweetcorn which you must sow by 15 June 2004). The EC Commission will only allow an extension beyond these sowing dates in exceptional circumstances.
32. If you claim AAPS aid on land which you are prevented from sowing by 31 May due to exceptional circumstances, you must write immediately to your local area office explaining the circumstances and applying for a written exemption that allows you to sow later. Exemptions from the sowing date can be granted only if:
- the circumstances which prevent you from sowing are exceptional and could not reasonably have been expected; and
- it is still possible to sow and grow the crop after 31 May in line with good agricultural practice.
33. If the exceptional circumstances continue to prevent you from establishing the crop in line with good agricultural practice locally, you may still be eligible to receive AAPS aid on the crop you would otherwise have sown. You must contact your local area office as soon as possible in these cases, confirming details in writing.
HUSBANDRY STANDARDS
Establishing and maintaining crops
34. Under the EU rules, you must sow all crops in line with locally recognised standards and maintain them until at least the beginning of flowering or at least the relevant date for the crop as set out in this paragraph (unless harvesting at full agricultural maturity takes place earlier). This means that you must prepare the land and sow seed in a way which could normally be expected to produce a crop.
Here are the relevant dates for each crop.
Cereals - until at least the beginning of flowering.
Oilseeds - 30 June or flowering (if this is later).
Protein crops - 30 June or flowering (if this is later).
Linseed - 30 June or flowering (if this is later).
Flax - 30 June or flowering (if this is later).
Hemp - you must maintain crops of hemp until at least 10 days after the end of flowering. However, you may harvest crops after flowering, as long as the crop has been sampled or you have been notified that the crop is not to be sampled. As a result, you must thus await notification before you can harvest the crop.
35. There is legislation that controls producing, certifying and marketing of certified seed and using farm-saved seed. It is illegal to buy seed that has not been certified. By law, you must also pay royalties when you sow farm-saved seed of eligible varieties. The British Society of Plant Breeders Ltd arranges collection of royalties for protected varieties from certified and farm-saved seed. If you have any issues about farm-saved or certified seed, you should first contact your local area office.
Crop failures
36. We can now pay for crop failures before flowering or 30 June (as appropriate for the crop) if we are satisfied that the failure is as a result of 'exceptional weather conditions' and that the crop was sown in line with good agricultural practice. In certain circumstances, we may also pay for crop failures resulting from pest damage. This will depend on the cause and the management system you use. In both cases, you should contact your local area office as soon as possible, confirming details in writing.
37. If a crop failure is the result of bad husbandry, we will reduce the claim without a penalty if you have told us the crop has failed. If you don't tell us the crop has failed, a penalty will apply. Bad husbandry is when you have not prepared a suitable seed bed or established and grown the crop in line with good agronomic practice and a locally recognised standard.
38. We strongly recommend you to keep seed invoices, contractors' bills and any other evidence that you have sown and maintained your crops in line with normal agricultural practice.
MINIMUM CLAIM SIZES
39. The minimum area on which you can apply for AAPS aid is 0.3 hectares.
MINIMUM PLOT SIZE
40. An application may be made up of more than one individual plot. The minimum crop plot size is 0.1 hectares - or 0.01 hectares in the case of seed production or research.
The minimum set-aside plot size is 0.3 hectares (or 0.1 hectares in the case of 10-metre strips next to watercourses) and the minimum crop plot size is 0.1 hectares (or 0.01 hectares in the case of seed production or research).
PENALTIES
41. If you overclaim, we will apply penalties to a claim on areas to which you are not entitled, or do not meet the EU rules of the scheme (for example, agricultural production on set-aside land, breaking non-food rules, silage mixtures that are not eligible, or lucrative use which is not allowed from using set-aside land). These penalties are regulatory requirements and will be set out in full in the 2004 IACS Explanatory Booklet.
42. There are separate penalties for breaking the national management rules for set-aside (for example, failing to establish a green cover where required, destroying a hedge, or failing to meet cutting requirements). In these cases, we will reduce your set-aside payment as follows:
- By 1 for each 0.01 hectare on which rules are broken, but a minimum of 100 applies.
- In the case of linear features, by 1 for each metre, but a minimum of 100 applies.
- In the case of environmental features, by 100 for each feature you damage, destroy or remove.
43. If you do not declare enough obligatory set-aside, we will reduce the claim either to:
- the cropped area supported by the eligible set-aside area in the claim; or
- the maximum area that a small producer can claim; whichever is greater.
44. Even a small shortfall in your set-aside area may involve a substantial reduction in the cropped area eligible for payment. So it is in your best interest to make sure that you have worked out your requirement correctly. Remember to round up your set-aside requirement - for example, if you work out that you need 4.011 hectares, you should set aside at least 4.02 hectares.
45. If you have included enough set-aside in a claim to support the cropped area, but we find that the set-aside is not in line with the AAPS rules (other than the management rules), the claim will not be eligible for payment.
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