Circular 4/2013
30/9/2013
To: AEOS1 and AEOS2 Scheme Participants
The Department is amending the Terms and Conditions of AEOS 1 and 2 under Section 29.1 and 31. respectively which state “the Department may expand upon, explain, interpret or define the meaning of any aspect of the Terms and Conditions of the Schemes”.
In this regardAnnex 4 of the Terms & Conditions of AEOS 1 and 2 is now replaced by the attached Penalty Schedule.
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Actions / Type of non-compliance / Scheme Penalty /· Natura 2000 (SPA & SAC)
· Commonage land outside Natura network / i. Baseline Breach*
ii. Area over declared / i. 100% of annual payment
ii. Calculated at crop group level (see table 1 below). Reduce payment if difference between eligible area found and area claimed. IACS Rules apply. Recoup amount not delivered in previous years. Payment in successive years will be limited to delivery found
· Slurry Spreading, Use of New Technologies / i. Baseline Breach*
ii. All slurries (whether produced or imported) not spread by the designated method / i. 100% of annual payment
ii. Action ineligible for payment. A 10% penalty on total AEOS payment in year of inspection, if participant remains eligible for the Scheme
· Animal Genetic Resources / i. Number of livestock units claimed for payment exceeds number kept for the calendar year
ii. Action not delivered** / i. Reduce payment by twice the difference between eligible numbers and numbers claimed
ii. Action ineligible for payment. A 10% penalty on total AEOS annual payment if participant remains eligible for the Scheme
· Tree Planting (Standard and Whips) / i. Baseline Breach*
ii. Action not delivered or required minimum number of trees/whips not delivered**
iii. Trees/whips claimed not delivered in accordance with specifications
iv. Items that received capital payments not used on the action / i. 100% of annual payment
ii. Action ineligible for payment. A 10% penalty on total AEOS annual payment if participant remains eligible for the Scheme
iii. Reduce payment by once the difference found and recoup any amounts overpaid.
iv. A 10% penalty on total AEOS annual payment in year of inspection
· Traditional Orchards*** / i. Action not delivered or required minimum number of trees not delivered**
ii. Trees claimed not delivered in accordance with specifications
iii. Items that received capital payments not used on the action / i. Action ineligible for payment. A 10% penalty on total AEOS annual payment if participant remains eligible for the Scheme
ii. Reduce agri-environment payment in year of inspection by once the difference found
Reduce capital investment payment by once the difference found
Recoup amount not delivered in previous years
Payment in successive years will be limited to delivery found
iii. A 10% penalty on total AEOS annual payment in year of inspection
· Riparian Margins
· Establishment and Maintenance of Habitats / i. Baseline Breach*
ii. Action not delivered**
iii. Linear length claimed not delivered
iv. Non-compliance with Specifications
v. Items that received capital payments not used on the action / i. 100% of annual payment
ii. Action ineligible for payment. A 10% penalty on total AEOS annual payment if participant remains eligible for the Scheme
iii. Reduce agri-environment payment in year of inspection by twice the difference found
Reduce capital investment payment by once the difference found
Recoup amount not delivered in previous years
Payment in successive years will be limited to delivery found
iv. Reduce payment by twice the non-compliant length
v. A 10% penalty on total AEOS annual payment in year of inspection
· Planting New Hedgerow / i. Baseline Breach*
ii. Action not delivered or required minimum length not delivered**
iii. Linear length claimed not delivered
iv. Non-compliance with Specifications
v. Items that received capital payments not used on the action / i. 100% of annual payment
ii. Action ineligible for payment. A 10% penalty on total AEOS annual payment if participant remains eligible for the Scheme
iii. Reduce agri-environment payment in year of inspection by once the difference found.
Reduce capital investment payment by once the difference found
Recoup amount not delivered in previous years
Payment in successive years will be limited to delivery found
iv. Reduce payment by once the non-compliant length
v. A 10% penalty on total AEOS annual payment in year of inspection
· Green Cover Establishment from a Sown Crop
· Minimum Tillage
· Wild Bird Cover / i. Baseline Breach*
ii. Action not delivered or required minimum area not delivered**
iii. Area over-declared
iv. Non-compliance with Specifications / i. 100% of annual payment
ii. Action ineligible for payment. A 10% penalty on total AEOS annual payment if participant remains eligible for the Scheme
iii. Reduce payment if difference between eligible area found and area claimed. IACS Rules apply
Recoup amount not delivered in previous years
Payment in successive years will be limited to delivery found
iv. Reduce payment by twice the non-compliant area in year of inspection
· Traditional
Dry Stone Wall Maintenance / i. Action not delivered**
ii. Linear length claimed not delivered
iii. Non-compliance with Specifications / i. Action ineligible for payment. A 10% penalty on total AEOS annual payment if participant remains eligible for the Scheme
ii. Reduce payment in year of inspection by twice the difference found. Recoup amount not delivered in previous years. Payment in successive years will be limited to delivery found
iii. Reduce payment by twice the non-compliant length in year of inspection
· Traditional Hay Meadows
· Species Rich Grasslands / i. Baseline Breach*
ii. Action not delivered**
iii. Area over-declared
iv. Non-compliance with Specifications / i. 100% of annual payment
ii. Action ineligible for payment. A 10% penalty on total AEOS annual payment if participant remains eligible for the Scheme
iii. Calculated at crop group level. Reduce payment if difference between eligible area found and area claimed. IACS Rules apply
Recoup amount not delivered in previous years
Payment in successive years will be limited to delivery found
iv. Reduce payment by twice the non-compliant area in year of inspection
· Water Trough Installation / i. Action not delivered**
ii. Number of troughs claimed for payment not found
iii. Items that received capital payments not used on the action / i. Action ineligible for payment. A 10% penalty on total AEOS annual payment if participant remains eligible for the Scheme
ii. Reduce payment by once the difference found
iii. A 10% penalty on total AEOS annual payment in year of inspection
· Arable Margins
· Hedgerow Coppicing
· Hedgerow Laying / i. Baseline Breach*
ii. Action not delivered or required minimum length not delivered**
iii. Linear length claimed not delivered
iv. Non-compliance with Specifications / i. 100% of annual payment
ii. Action ineligible for payment. A 10% penalty on total AEOS annual payment if participant remains eligible for the Scheme
iii. Reduce payment in year of inspection by twice the difference found
Recoup amount not delivered in previous years
Payment in successive years will be limited to delivery found
iv. Reduce payment by twice the non-compliant length in year of inspection
· Record Keeping / Record Sheets not kept as prescribed / A 10% penalty on total AEOS annual payment in year of inspection
*Baseline Breaches are breaches of the GAEC and/or SMR’s identified by this Department or an external competent authority that has been cross reported and that must be met as a minimum requirement for individual AEOS Actions. The 100% penalty applies in the year of inspection only.
**Form B/C/W participants must deliver a mandatory and a complementary action in each year of their contract in order to remain eligible for the scheme.
AEOS1: The 10% dropped action penalty applies to the annual payment in the year of inspection, for dropped actions identified through inspection only.
AEOS2: The 10% dropped action penalty applies to the annual payment in the inspection year/payment year in which action was dropped, whether dropped as a result of inspection or otherwise.
*** Action included in AEOS 1 only
Penalties for over-declaration of area under AEOS
Definition of Claimed Area
The claimed area in any year is the area claimed under the Single Payment Scheme. If there is a difference between the claimed area on the original AEOS Application Form and the area declared for Single Payment, the calculation of the claimed area will be based on the lower of the two figures. There will be NO penalty where the claimed area on the Application Form is greater than the area declared for Single Payment. Claimed and found areas will be calculated at AEOS crop group level. Crop groups attract the same payment rate and are shown in Table 1 below.
Table 1Crop Group / Actions / Rate
A / Natura and Commonage (incl. non-Natura Commonage) / 75
B / Traditional Hay Meadow / 314
B / Species Rich Grassland / 314
B / Natura Corncrake / 314
C / Minimum Tillage / 23
D / Green Cover Establishment from a sown crop / 80
E / Wild Bird Cover/Grey Partridge / 869
Differences between claimed area and area found
Where the area claimed is greater than the reference area found, the rules regarding payment and penalties will be applied as per Article 16 of Commission Regulation (EU) No. 65/2011, as outlined below:
If there is a difference between the claimed area and the area found, the calculation will be based on the lower of the two. If the difference is less than 3% of the area found, payment will be on the area found. However if the difference is greater than 3% or 2 ha, penalties as outlined in Table 2 below will be applied. If the difference between the claimed area and the determined area is equal to or less than 0.1 hectares, payment is based on the claimed area. No area penalty will apply where the maximum area payable for the action has been delivered (AEOS 2).
Table 2
Difference between the number of eligible hectares found and the number of hectares declared on Single Payment or AEOS Application Form if lower / Level of Reduction/ExclusionIf the difference is greater than 3% but not more than 20% of the area found, or if the area found is less than 20% but greater than 2 hectares for the crop group concerned / Payment is based on the number of eligible hectares reduced by twice the difference between the number of hectares found and number of hectares claimed
If the difference is greater than 20% of the area found / No payment is made under the crop concerned for the year in question
Greater than 50% / No payment is made for the crop group concerned for the year in question. In addition an administrative fine amounting to the difference between the number of hectares found and the number claimed will be offset against any EU payment due to the applicant during the course of the three calendar years following the year in which the determination is made
Furthermore, where an intentional area over-declaration is made, the following penalties will apply:
Where there is an intentional over-declaration of area up to 20%, no payment for that crop group is made in that year. This provision will apply if the difference between the area found and the area claimed is more than 0.5% of the area found or more than 1 hectare.
Where there is an intentional over-declaration of area over 20%, no payment for that crop group is made in that year and an administrative fine amounting to the value of the number of hectares over-declared (that is, the difference between the number of hectares found and the number of hectares claimed) will be offset against any EU payment due to the applicant made during the course of the three calendar years following the year in which the determination was made.
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