Getting paid for an SFI standards agreement
How you will be paid under your SFI standards agreement
Applies to England
This information explains how your Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) standards agreement payment will be calculated, when you’ll be paid and what you must do to get paid.
How your payment is calculated
The total annual payment for your SFI standards agreement is based on the number of hectares (ha) of eligible land you enter into each level of a standard.
| Standard | Level | Total annual payment |
|---|---|---|
| Arable and horticultural soils | Introductory | £22 per hectare |
| Intermediate | £40 per hectare | |
| Improved grassland soils | Introductory | £28 per hectare |
| Intermediate | £58 per hectare | |
| Moorland | Introductory | £10.30 per hectare |
Where relevant, your total annual payment may also include an additional payment for:
- the moorland standard (£265 per agreement per year)
- common land entered into a separate SFI standards agreement (£6.15 per ha)
When you’ll be paid
The total annual payment value is divided into 4 equal instalments and paid on a quarterly basis. The first quarterly payment will usually be made mid-way through the 4th month after the start date of your SFI standards agreement.
SFI standards agreements will not all start on a single date. The start date for your agreement will depend on when you submit your SFI application, how long it takes to process and how quickly you accept your agreement offer. Read more about when your agreement will start.
If you apply for SFI when applications open, your SFI standards agreement should start this autumn. In this case, your first quarterly payment should be made before the end of 2022.
Unlike other schemes, such as Countryside Stewardship, you don’t need to submit an annual revenue claim before you get paid. Your quarterly payments will usually be made automatically.
Your SFI payment statement
Your payment statement will be emailed to you a few days before you get paid. The payment statement tells you:
- how much you’ll be paid
- the payment date
- how RPA calculated your payment
What you must do to get paid
To get paid under your SFI standards agreement, you must:
- complete the actions in the standards you have chosen for a full agreement year
- submit your annual declaration to confirm progress of your agreement
- supply evidence specified in the standards when we ask for it
A full agreement year means each 12-month period from the start date of your SFI standards agreement.
If the levels of the standards or area of land in your SFI standards agreement are reduced, or it’s ended early, you may have to repay some or all of the money already paid to you. Read more about requesting changes to your agreement.
If you do not submit an annual declaration, your payments could be withheld. Read more about submitting an annual declaration.
Future changes to actions in the standards and payment rates
The actions and payment rates for the standards you have chosen will not change during your 3-year SFI standards agreement, unless there are exceptional circumstances.
Updates to this page
Published 30 March 2022Last updated 29 July 2022 + show all updates
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Added extra clarity on when agreement holders will be paid
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Updated section 'When you will be paid'.
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First published.