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Piloting the Sustainable Farming Incentive: requesting an amendment to your agreement
The guidance on this page is for SFI pilot participants only. Please visit GOV.UK for the official Sustainable Farming Incentive scheme guidance.
How to request an amendment to a Sustainable Farming Incentive pilot agreement
You can amend your agreement every 12 months from its start date. We can only consider amendment requests received during an ‘annual change period’. The timing of this period depends on the start date of your agreement.
Read more about what amendments you can request and when your annual change period is.
Read more about eligibility criteria.
View terms and conditions.
There is no limit to the number of amendments you can ask for, but it would be helpful for you to submit all the amendments in a single request, wherever possible.
If you don’t submit your amendment request by the annual change period deadline that applies to your agreement, we’ll have to reject it. In that case, you’ll need to submit another amendment request during the relevant change period in the following year.
You’ll still need to tell us as soon as reasonably possible if there is a change in your circumstances after your agreement starts, such as:
- your eligibility for the pilot
- the amount of money you should receive
- your ability to fulfil the agreement
Read the monitoring guidance for more details. These changes are different to amending your agreement.
How to request an amendment
To request an amendment to your agreement, you need to email the RPA at ruralpayments@defra.gov.uk. Use ‘SFI pilot amendment’ as the subject of your email.
In the email, include:
- your business name and Single Business Identifier (SBI)
- your Sustainable Farming Incentive pilot agreement reference number
- a contact name and number
- the type(s) of amendment you’re requesting, for example adding a standard
During the relevant amendment window you can:
- add a land parcel
- remove a land parcel
- add or remove a standard
- increase or decrease the ambition level for a standard
Depending on which type of amendment(s) you’re requesting, you also need to include the details below in your email.
Add a land parcel
Include:
- the land parcel reference numbers to be added, including sheet reference number and parcel IDs
- the standards and ambition levels to be applied to each land parcel
You must also submit an RLE1 form if the land parcel being added is either:
- not registered
- registered but not linked to your SBI
If you’re emailing the RLE1 form, use ‘SFI pilot amendment - RLE1 form’ as the subject of your email.
Remove a land parcel
Include the land parcel reference numbers to be removed, including sheet reference numbers and parcel IDs.
If you remove a land parcel that’s being used for the hedgerows standard or the water body buffering standard, this could impact the length in metres you have available. This means you may also need to let us know if the length in metres in either of these standards needs to be reduced.
Change a standard or ambition level
Include:
- the land parcel reference numbers affected by the change, including sheet reference numbers and parcel IDs
- the new standards and ambition levels to be applied to each land parcel, including any optional actions you want to include
Mapping updates
You can request a mapping update for land parcels already in your pilot agreement outside the amendment window. Read the RLE1 guidance for more information.
The impact of changes on a CS Capital Grants (SFI pilot) agreement
If your SFI pilot standards agreement is amended to remove a land parcel or standard this can affect your CS Capital Grants (SFI pilot) agreement.
Your CS Capital Grants (SFI pilot) agreement claim may be rejected if you remove:
- a land parcel from your SFI pilot standards agreement which you have included in your CS Capital Grants (SFI pilot) agreement
- a standard from your SFI pilot standards agreement and the capital items in your CS Capital Grants (SFI pilot) agreement are only available on a land parcel used for that standard
You may also need to repay all or part of previous payments that you have already received.
Read the information on SFI pilot payments for more on a CS Capital Grants (SFI pilot) agreement.
Contact the RPA
Send an email with ‘SFI pilot’ in the subject line to ruralpayments@defra.gov.uk. Include your business name and Single Business Identifier (SBI).
You can also call or write.
Telephone: 03000 200 301
Monday to Friday 8.30am to 5pm, except bank holidays
Find out about call charges
PO Box 352
Worksop
S80 9FG
