WITH the Single Application Form (SAF) deadline looming farmers are being urged to complete and submit the form as a matter of urgency.

The 2016 SAF is only available by accessing Rural Payments Wales (RPW) online, no paper forms are available in 2016.

Completion of the form ensures access to farm support under the new Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) and land based rural development payments including Glastir Entry, Glastir Advanced, Glastir Organic and Glastir Woodland schemes.

NFU Cymru President, Stephen James, said, “With only a short amount of time to go until the deadline, farmers should ensure that the completion of the forms is top priority. The Single Farm Payment and a number of Rural Development schemes cannot be secured without submitting a Single Application Form so this is one of the most crucial forms farmers will complete.”

Once the SAF form has been submitted a formal acknowledgement will be sent out electronically. NFU Cymru is advising farmers to check this through thoroughly to ensure that the form is correctly completed. Should there be any errors inform Rural Payments Wales immediately if you want to make a change in order to avoid possible penalties.

The following are some key areas to make sure you have completed correctly:

• Checked you meet the eligibility criteria as detailed in the Single Application Rules booklet

• Indicated which fields and/or crops you wish to claim for each scheme

• Submitted the appropriate supporting documents by May 16, some of these documents must be submitted by post /in person

To ensure that you do not incur a financial penalty the absolute deadline for Welsh Government to receive the Single Application Form and supporting documents is Monday, May 16. Applications received between May 17 and June 10 will be accepted but will incur financial penalties. Applications received after Monday, June 10 will be completely rejected.

If you have any questions about your Single Application Form, please contact the RPW Customer Contact Centre on 0300 062 5004.