Scottish farmers and crofters are being urged to start their Single Application Form (SAF) ahead of the window closing on 15 May, as many forms are still to be started.
As Scotland transitions to a new agricultural policy and support arrangements from 2025 onwards, the SAF deadline is still seen as one of the most important dates in the Scottish farming calendar.
Latest figures provided to NFU Scotland by the Scottish government suggest that more than 14,200 forms have already been completed.
More than 3,000 forms have been started and are in ‘draft’ form, leaving approximately 1,200 forms still to be started with just days to go.
Completion of a SAF is required to access important support schemes such as the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) and Greening, and the Less Favoured Area Support Scheme.
NFU Scotland said the schemes available as part of SAF were "critical to the financial wellbeing of Scottish agriculture", as they inject over £500m to the industry annually.
NFU Scotland director of policy, Jonnie Hall said the support payments remain critically important to the viability of most Scottish farming and crofting businesses.
He said: "The importance of that support will be underlined this year and into next year as we continue to see the impact of unprecedented rises in input costs and unpredictable volatility in prices.
“It is encouraging just how many forms have been completed but there is a significant number of SAF forms still to be started.
"There is also concern about the 3,000 forms started but not completed and we urge those with forms in a draft state to go on and complete their application at the earliest opportunity and ensure that it is properly submitted.
“Farmers and crofters must prioritise these annual application forms in the next few days."
With only a few days left, the Scottish government has organised out of hours cover for IT related issues over the next three days and after office hours cover on Monday 15 May until midnight.
Farmers can contact the IT service desk on 0300 244 6202 or AREISDServiceDesk@gov.scot.
The Single Application Form (SAF) window closes at midnight on Monday 15 May.
