RPA sets out 2026 Capital Grants rules as farmers told to get ready

Farmers in England are being urged to prepare for the 2026 Capital Grants offer, with applications set to close once available funding has been allocated.

The Rural Payments Agency has confirmed it will accept one eligible Capital Grants application per calendar year for each Single Business Identifier managed by an applicant.

The latest guidance, published on 28 May, says funding is not guaranteed even where an application has been submitted and is eligible.

The offer will close when the available funding has been allocated, and any applications started but not submitted by that point will not be accepted.

Officials said updates will be shared through The Farming Blog once the scheme opens, with the government aiming to give “reasonable notice” before the offer closes.

Capital Grants can be used as standalone funding or alongside other environmental land management agreements, including the Sustainable Farming Incentive, Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier, CS Higher Tier agreements starting from 2025, and Environmental Stewardship Higher Level Stewardship agreements.

The scheme is open to land managers including owner occupiers, tenants, landlords and licensors, provided they have sufficient management control of the land and activities required under the agreement.

Land parcels must be entirely within England, and applicants must usually have management control for five years from the start of the agreement.

Tenants may need landlord agreement or a countersignature where they do not have control for the full five-year durability period.

Applicants must also make sure proposed works do not breach tenancy agreements, existing scheme rules or other legal obligations.

Land containing common land or shared grazing rights is not eligible. Developed land and hard standing, including permanent caravan sites and areas used for permanent storage, are also excluded.

There are 80 capital items available under the 2026 offer.

These are split across six groups: air quality, assessments, boundaries, trees and orchards, improvements, natural flood management and water quality.

Funding limits apply to four of the groups. Air quality, natural flood management and water quality items are each capped at £25,000.

Boundaries, trees and orchards items are capped at £35,000.

There is no funding limit for assessment or improvement items.

The grants cannot be used to pay for works carried out, or materials bought, before an agreement starts.

They also cannot cover planning application fees, agent fees, advisory fees, legal requirements, in-kind contributions or gifted materials where no cost has been incurred.

Applicants must also avoid double funding. Capital Grants cannot be used to pay for works already funded by public money, another grant scheme or a legally binding obligation.

The RPA says it will carry out checks to make sure capital works are not funded twice from public funds.

Farmers and land managers are being advised to prepare supporting documents before applying.

Evidence may include maps showing where capital works will take place, landlord countersignatures, Catchment Sensitive Farming support for certain items, and accountant letters for larger applications.

Where the total value of a capital application is more than £50,000, applicants must provide a statement from an accountant confirming the business has sufficient resources to complete the work.

Some capital items will require Catchment Sensitive Farming support before they can be approved.

The guidance says CSF area teams are not currently able to prioritise new advisory visit requests, but will offer visits later in the year.

Applicants who have received relevant CSF support within the last two years may be able to use that support when applying.

The RPA will remove any relevant capital items from an application if the required CSF support is not in place.

Applicants must also check whether consents, permissions or permits are needed before starting capital works.

This may include Natural England consent for sites of special scientific interest, Scheduled Monument Consent from Historic England, planning permission, Environment Agency permits, protected species licences or tree felling permissions.

The guidance makes clear that applicants “will not be paid” for capital works unless the necessary consents, permits and permissions are in place before work begins.

Applications should be made online through the Rural Payments service.

Farmers are being encouraged to check land parcel registrations, review item requirements and gather evidence before starting an application.