#2026/105Northern Ireland Farming with Nature Scheme Amendment Regulations 2026
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This law changes the rules for Northern Ireland’s Farming with Nature Scheme, which supports farmers who carry out nature-friendly land management. It updates scheme definitions, removes one eligibility condition, raises the maximum payment from £9,500 to £20,000, and changes how certain EU control and penalty rules apply to the scheme. The amendments also revise practical requirements for environmental works, including new hedgerow planting. Farmers and land managers applying for support should check the updated conditions before starting work or submitting claims, especially where hedgerows, machinery, permanent grassland sensitive areas, and payment limits are relevant.
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Key Changes
- Raises the maximum scheme payment from £9,500 to £20,000.
- Updates definitions, including permanent grassland sensitive areas and machinery covered by the scheme.
- Revises scheme conditions for environmental works, including minimum requirements for planting new hedgerows.
Obligations
What this law requires
From 25 June 2026, applicants and participants in the Farming with Nature Scheme in Northern Ireland must apply the amended maximum scheme payment limit of £20,000 rather than £9,500 when submitting or calculating claims.
Applicants and participants must assess land against the amended definition of “permanent grassland sensitive area”, covering environmentally sensitive peat and wetlands protected under the Wild Birds Directive or Habitats Directive, when scheme conditions refer to such areas.
Applicants and participants must treat digging machines, mobile cranes, generators, compressors, construction equipment, agricultural equipment, tractors, quad vehicles, and fork-lift trucks as “machinery” where the Farming with Nature Scheme conditions restrict or regulate machinery use.
Farmers and land managers seeking support for environmental works, including new hedgerow planting, should comply with the amended practical scheme requirements before starting works or submitting claims.