Spain refines the implementation of the CAP

Spain has amended three royal decrees on the application, from 2015, of direct payments to agriculture and livestock, and other support schemes, as well as the management and control of direct payments and rural development payments the allocation of rights basic payment scheme of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and the geographic information system for agricultural parcels. The aim of the changes is to enable better implementation and achieve greater efficiency in the management of aid.

These amendments are linked to the needs identified during 2015 in the implementation of the new support schemes under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) as well as to the technical guidelines issued by the European Commission on the model applied in Spain.

With standard approved a series of purely technical adjustments are set, in order to enable better implementation and achieve greater efficiency in the management of aid.

Direct payments

In connection with the Royal Decree on direct payments, the Government has introduced a number of clarifications and clarifications in relation to the figure of the active farmer. In particular, we have clarified the conditions for calculating the limit of 1,250 euros, regarding checks active farmer requirements, and incorporating the codes for Economic Activities Tax (IAE), as an element in determining the activities that are excluded from aid.

Also, it has adapted the definition of agricultural activity and the conditions of eligibility under this definition, as interpreted by the European Commission. Thus, grazing is considered as part of agricultural activity and, therefore, the list of maintenance activities remains unchanged.

In connection with the payment for agricultural practices beneficial for the climate and the environment and what has to do with crop diversification, they have clarified some aspects of crop mixtures, and has adapted the verification period compliance with the diversification of the technical guidelines issued by the European Commission.

In this area, they have also clarified aspects rotation constraints between nitrogen-fixing crops and fallow lands as a condition imposed on ecological focus areas.

At the same time, they have been clarified and adapted some aspects associated with certain aid to facilitate management and practical application. For the livestock sector, there is a shift in favor of simplification, according to the initiatives and priorities that are developing in the European Union.

Specifically, this change will facilitate the management of the coupled support for dairy cows, by reducing the four helplines that existed only two, through the establishment of a degressivity based on economy of scale criteria apply on farms benefiting.

The change in the design of this aid does not affect the amounts for dairy industry itself or the design and amounts of other lines of aid.

Likewise, it has simplified the minimum information required in the single application. So, generally less data will be requested to farmers, especially those relating to personal data. In the case of plots on lease or sharecropping, it has established a minimum threshold below which the applicant for aid not have to provide the NIF of the lessor or transferor sharecropper.

Also new on the information required in the single application is the ability to declare a minor crop for each parcel of farmland exploitation, if the case arises.

Basic payment rights

As for the amendments made in the royal decree on the allocation of basic pay rights CAP simplification it stands on the conditions to be met by young and new farmers to access to the national reserve. In the case of youth, also simplify requirements to qualify for the additional payment.

With this simplification it is intended that all young and new producers which can show they meet the criteria similar to those established for the training of rural development programs, can receive rights from the national reserve.

It also has picked up a new case of force majeure in the case of farmers who have not submitted the 2015 single application problems in processing, which are not the fault of the farmer himself. At the same time, it has established a new case of assignments of basic pay toll free.

Finally, it has been established as a general assignment period from 1 November to the end of the period for submitting the single application the following year. However, the regions may postpone that date to match the application period. However, exceptionally derived rights allocation process for the 2016 campaign, said communication period assignments will begin on 1 February.

Source: MAGRAMA