BPS 2016 Applications England

Although the 2016 application deadline has passed (16^th May) it is still possible to make a late submission or make changes to a previously submitted application.  Farmers can make a late application until midnight on 10^th June 2016, but they will receive a 1% penalty for each working day the application is late.  After 10^th June applications cannot be submitted.

For applications which have been submitted by 16^th May certain changes can still be made until midnight on 31^st May without penalty (see below).  For each working day after this, a 1% penalty will be applied to the land parcel which the change relates to, up until 10^th June.  After this date applications can only be changed in cases of force majeure or where an applicant withdraws part or all of an application.

For an already submitted application it is still possible to make the following changes without penalty until 31^st May 2016:

• Change the land use in a parcel
• Increase the area of a land parcel, including the eligible area you want to claim payment on
• Add land to a claim where it was at the claimant’s disposal on 16^th May 2016.  It should be possible to email the RPA to request the land to be put on the Rural Payments Service until 23^rd May.  Remember to put ‘BPS add land’ in the e-mail subject line and give the SBI and field parcel numbers.  Alternatively the land can be included on a Continuation Booklet.

To amend a submitted online application it will be necessary to ‘Create a new application’ similar to the process when the original form was created in ‘Apply for BPS’.  Most of the changes included in the first submission will have been retained, but if amendments were made to ‘Activate less BPS area’, ‘Use less EFA than available’ or ‘Activate less commons’ these will need to be made again.

The new application will replace the original one once submitted.  An e-mail should also be sent to [email protected] with ‘Amendments to BPS 2016 application’ in the subject line.  It should explain there has been a change to an already submitted application giving the SBI number and dates and times of both submitted applications.

The RPA helpline (03000 200 301) has now gone back to its normal working hours 8.30am to 5pm Monday to Friday and the Agent option (7) is no longer available.  But the 6 main RPA support centres are still open at Carlisle, Workington, Newcastle, York, Reading and Exeter (8.30am – 5pm Monday to Friday) although the other 9 which were available during the main application window are not available now.