Farmers in Scotland will this week receive £5.7 million in reimbursement payments from the European Union.
Farmers who had a valid 2017 Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) claim worth more than €2,000 (£1,755) will shortly receive a reimbursement from the 2016 Financial Discipline Mechanism (FDM) fund.
Each year, the European Commission uses some of the BPS budget to create a ‘crisis reserve’ using a mechanism called ‘financial discipline’.
This is used to support the farming industry in times of crisis, such as disease outbreaks.
If the FDM funds have not been used they are reimbursed to eligible farmers in the subsequent scheme year.
The rate to use to calculate the reimbursement for 2017 is 1.31 % with payments starting from early October 2018. The payments will show as ‘FDM reimbursement’ on the remittance advice which is being sent after a payment is made.
Scotland's Rural Economy Secretary, Fergus Ewing said: “I am pleased to confirm that around 14,500 Scottish farmers and crofters will receive Financial Discipline Reimbursement payments totalling £5.7 million this week.
“The repayment varies in relation to the total value of Direct Payment they receive, so not every claimant gets the same amount, but it averages £277 and will be a small, but welcome boost to eligible farmers’ cash flow.”
