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The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) replaced the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) in England with delinked payments in 2024. The 2023 scheme year was the last year of听BPS.

You will not need:

• any land or entitlements to receive delinked payments

• to apply to receive delinked payments, in 2024 or later years

RPA听will pay delinked payments each year from 2024 to 2027. The amount you receive will decrease each year as we apply progressive reductions. This is explained in听鈥楬ow delinked payments are calculated鈥�. 2027 will be the last year of delinked payments.

Check if you鈥檙e eligible for delinked payments

To receive delinked payments, you must:

• be eligible - this means you must have claimed, and been eligible for,听BPS听payments in England in the 2023 scheme year (or inherited eligible land after 15 May 2023). Read the听BPS听rules for 2023听for information about eligibility for听BPS

• have a reference amount

驰辞耻谤听reference amount听will normally be your average听BPS听payment in the reference period, which is the听BPS听2020 to 2022 scheme years. If you did not claim听BPS听in the reference period, you will only have a reference amount if听BPS听reference data听has been transferred to you.

So long as you are eligible for delinked payments, the value of your payments for 2024 to 2027 will not be affected if:

• your farm size changes

• you change what the land is used for, after听BPS听2022 (the last year of the reference period).

You can receive delinked payments even if you choose to stop farming after the听BPS听2023 application deadline (15 May 2023).

You will not be eligible for delinked payments if you have received a payment under the听Lump Sum Exit Scheme.

How reference amounts are calculated

Your delinked payments will be based on a 鈥榬eference amount鈥�. We use your听BPS听2020, 2021 and 2022 payment information as the听reference data听to calculate your reference amount.

Your reference amount will be the average of the听BPS听payments made to your business for these scheme years, including any young farmer payment or greening payment.

We will add up your听BPS听payments for the 2020,听2021 and听2022 scheme years and divide by 3. We will divide by 3 even if no听BPS听payment was made to you in 1 or 2 of these 3 scheme years.

Your reference amount will be adjusted if:

• your听BPS听reference data is amended as a result of further听RPA听checks, such as following a听BPS听payment query or appeal you have submitted for any of the reference years, 2020, 2021 or 2022

• BPS听reference data has been transferred to or from your business

You are able to view your reference data balances and current reference amount in the Rural Payments service, in the 鈥榁iew and transfer reference data鈥� section of the relevant business.

The reference data will take account of any:

• manual payments for听BPS听2020, 2021 or 2022

• reductions applied for over-claiming land

The reference data will not take account of:

• over-claim penalties (which can be applied to听BPS听payments on top of over-claim reductions)

• reductions and penalties for not meeting the greening rules

• late application penalties

• penalties for not declaring all agricultural land parcels

• cross compliance penalties

• reductions to amounts above 鈧�150,000

• progressive reductions for听BPS听2021 and听BPS听2022

• amounts intercepted from your听BPS听2020, 2021 or 2022 payments due to overpayments for other scheme years or other schemes

If you also claimed听BPS听on entitlements in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, your reference amount will be based only on the part of your payment which relates to your English entitlements. Payment schemes in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland will operate under the rules set by the relevant UK administration.

Your delinked payments information statement

In November, or December, 2023 we sent a statement for you to check, showing your reference amount based on the reference data we held for you at that time. We will use your reference amount when we calculate your delinked payments each year, if you are eligible.

If you claimed听BPS听in any of the scheme years 2020, 2021 or 2022, but did not receive an information statement, please contact us to request one.

How delinked payments are calculated

We will apply progressive reductions when we calculate your delinked payments each year. This means the value of the delinked payments will become a smaller proportion of the reference amount each year.

Your delinked payment each year =

your reference amount - progressive reductions for that year

The progressive reductions work in payment bands, on a sliding scale, like income tax bands. This means higher reductions will be applied to amounts in higher payment bands.

For 2025, we will reduce delinked payments by the percentages in the following table.

Payment band	Reduction percentage applied to 2025 payment
拢30,000 or less	76
Amounts above 拢30,000	100

For example, a听reference amount of 拢40,000 would have a 76% reduction applied to the first 拢30,000 of the payment (a reduction of 拢22,800). A 100% reduction would be applied to the next 拢10,000 (a reduction of 拢10,000). The payment would be reduced by 拢32,800 to 拢7,200.

You can use the听听to see how progressive reductions were applied to your payment for the 2024 scheme year, and to see an estimate of the planned reductions for the 2025 scheme year. Defra announced the progressive reductions it plans to apply for 2026 and 2027 in their farming blog on 16 June 2025. RPA will write to delinked payment recipients with information about these changes in due course.

If听BPS听reference data was used to calculate a payment under the Lump Sum Exit Scheme, it cannot also be used to calculate a delinked payment.

Transferring land after the reference period

Your reference amount will not be affected if you transfer out some or all of your land after 16 May 2022 (the听BPS听2022 deadline). For example, where your tenancy comes to an end and the land goes back to the landlord. You will still need to have claimed, and been eligible for,听BPS听2023 to receive delinked payments.

If you transfer in land after 16 May 2022, this will not increase your reference amount.

Receiving delinked payments

You will not need to apply to receive delinked payments.

From 2025 we plan to make delinked payments to eligible customers as one payment from 1 August each year, rather than splitting it into 2 instalments.

You will receive remittance advice and a payment statement each year.

Remittance advice will be posted. Customers with a valid business email address will receive an email with a link to their statement. Those customers that we need to post statements to will receive printed copies.

Please contact听RPA听by email or post as soon as possible if you do not want to receive delinked payments.

Overpayments

If we need to recover overpayments from you, we may add interest to the amount recovered. This will be the Bank of England base rate plus 1%.

Tax treatment for delinked payments

Where a business receives delinked payments, these will be taxed as 鈥榠ncome鈥�.

Business changes since听BPS听2020

As there may have been changes to your business since you were paid听BPS听2020 (the first year of the reference period), we gave you the option to听transfer out some or all of your reference amount听to another business. For example, you might have wanted to do this if your business has merged, split or been given a new听SBI听since听BPS听2020. You could do this during a transfer period from 15 February to 10 May 2024.

The only circumstances in which you can now request to transfer a reference amount, is if you have inherited eligible land after 15 May 2023.

Business structure changes after 15 May 2023

If your business structure changes after 15 May 2023 (the听BPS听2023 application deadline), we will still make the delinked payments to the听SBI听which claimed听BPS听2023 (except for some听cases where land has been inherited after 15 May 2023).

You should complete an听IACS 26 or IACS 27 (Business Questionnaire) form听if you are claiming, or planning to claim, under听our other schemes. If听RPA听issue you with a new听SBI, that will be used for future payments under other schemes. The delinked payments will continue to be made to the bank account linked to the听SBI听which claimed听BPS听2023.

You can change the bank account we use to pay you at any time. For example, if a partnership ends or a limited company is wound up after it claimed听BPS听2023, you can change the bank account that is linked to that听SBI. We will then pay any delinked payments to that bank account. The bank account does not need to match the original trading name of the business.

To change your bank account, sign in to the Rural Payments service and select 鈥榲iew and amend bank details鈥� on the business overview page.

Inherited land

If you inherit eligible land in England after 15 May 2020 from a farmer who had a reference amount, you can ask us to transfer all or part of that amount to you. If a tenant has died and their beneficiary takes on their tenancy, we will treat this as an inheritance of eligible land. You will not be able to ask us to transfer any of the reference data until probate or letters of administration have been granted and the estate has been settled.

Eligible land means the same听as for听BPS.

If you are the sole inheritor of the land, you can ask us to transfer all the reference data. If land has been inherited by more than one person, each person can ask us to transfer some of the reference data. A separate Delinked Payments Transfer Request form will need to be submitted for each business. Where possible, you should all agree how you want the reference data to be split between you, before you make your transfer requests. The total sum of the reference data on the transfer requests cannot be more than the total reference data of the farmer who has died.

If you make a transfer request after we have made a delinked payment to the original business, we will take the request into account for any future delinked payments which are due.

You do not need to have claimed听BPS听in 2023, if you inherit eligible land:

• after 15 May 2023 (the听BPS听2023 application deadline)

• with a sitting tenant before 15 May 2023 and the land was still let to the tenant on 15 May 2023

If, before delinked payments end, a sole trader dies and an executor or administrator is appointed, this will be treated as the same business.听The executor or administrator, or their representative, will need to send us a grant of probate or letters of administration before we can pay any delinked payments due.

We will then continue to pay the business until the estate is settled. Once the estate is settled, the inheritors of the land can ask听RPA听to transfer reference data to their business. They will need to make this transfer request before 31 December 2027.

If someone who is eligible for delinked payments dies, but the beneficiaries of the estate do not inherit any eligible land, the Executors can ask us to keep the SBI听open. Once probate is granted, we will then continue to pay any further delinked payments to that听SBI.

Read information about听what to do if a customer registered with the Rural Payments service dies.

Transfer a reference amount to another business when you have inherited land

If you inherit eligible land in England after 15 May 2020 from a farmer who has a reference amount, you can ask us to transfer all or part of that amount to you.

We will process this by transferring reference data and you will need to tell us how much reference data you want to transfer.

The 鈥榬eference data鈥� is the听BPS听2020 to 2022 payments (before some reductions and penalties, as listed above). The 鈥榬eference amount鈥� is the sum of the reference data divided by 3.

How to make your transfer request

Complete a听Delinked Payments Transfer Request form. We will accept the request until 31 December 2027.

Invalid transfers

If reference data is transferred to you that should not have been, you will lose that reference data. For example, this could be the case if we find an error with the听BPS听2020, 2021 or 2022 reference data after the transfer has been made.

Applying for other schemes

You can also apply for any other scheme you are eligible for. If you鈥檙e a farmer, land manager or forester, read听Funding for farmers, growers and land managers听for information about opportunities to apply for money to improve the environment and your farm鈥檚 productivity. You can keep up to date with scheme news by reading the听Rural Payments Agency听website and the Defra听.

If you claim under our other land-based schemes, you should keep your land information up to date by checking your digital maps in the Rural Payments service. Not doing so could affect your payments under any existing schemes you are part of and future schemes you enter into.

Appeals

For information about how to appeal against a decision we make about your delinked payments, and the deadlines that apply, read our听Complaints procedure.

Prevent financial fraud against your business

You need to be aware of financial fraud and听take measures to prevent it.

Contact听RPA

Email:听ruralpayments@defra.gov.uk听and put 鈥楧elinked payments鈥� in the Subject heading.

Telephone: 03000 200 301