Support can be paid even after partial completion in the AÖP

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In the AÖP launched this year, the farmer participates with his entire farm, and he is entitled to support for his entire agricultural area if he fulfills the conditions of the program. However, the first application and application processing experiences have shown that there may be room for payment even in the case of producers who can only partially fulfill the obligations undertaken in the program. Therefore, the Ministry of Agriculture decided to develop a band payment system for partial completions, which it managed to approve with the European Commission so that it can already be applied to applications submitted in 2023.

A lane system helps with payment

Despite the possibility of partial fulfillment, the AÖP is still a support scheme in which the full amount of support can be established and paid only on the basis of the undertaking and full fulfillment of the eligibility conditions at the plant level.

The now-introduced tiered payment system creates the possibility that a reduced subsidy amount can be paid if the conditions of the AÖP are partially met. As a result, the Ministry amended Regulation 15/2023. (IV. 19.) AM Decree “on the detailed rules for the use of support related to the Agro-ecology Program”, which includes a description of the reduced payments. The amendment to the decree creates a more favorable situation for all farmers who submit a unified application in 2023, there is nothing to be done in this regard, the Treasury will make support decisions according to the new conditions.

The payments applied in case of partial fulfillment are as follows:

1. The farmer completes all the selected practices in all land use categories relevant to his farm (arable, plantation and lawn) – 100% payment.
2. The agricultural producer does not complete the chosen exercise/exercises in only one land use category, but completes the exercises on at least 70% of the total area of the farm – 50% payment.
3. The agricultural producer does not complete the exercise/exercises in only one land use category, but completes the exercises on at least 50% of the total area of the farm – 30% payment.
4. The farmer does not fulfill the chosen practices in more than one land use category or on more than 50% of the total area of the farm – no payment.

AM