Sustainable Farming Incentive 2026 (SFI26): Apply Now

Guidance
Sustainable Farming Incentive 2026 (SFI26): scheme information

Get paid to manage land sustainably to benefit the environment and support food production: find out if your land is eligible, select and apply for SFI26 actions.

Window 1 is due to open on 30 June 2026.

You can apply in Window 1 if your farm business (as identified by its SBI) meets all of the following criteria:

1. It was registered with the Rural Payments Agency (RPA), so it had an SBI by 1 January 2026 and the SBI had some agricultural land (defined in section 3.3) linked to it on that date.
2. It qualifies as either a small farm (defined in section 3.1), or a farm without an existing Environmental Land Management (ELM) revenue agreement (defined in section 3.2) – your farm business only needs to be in one of these groups.
3. It has at least 3 hectares (ha) of agricultural land (defined in section 3.3) linked to its SBI at the point you want to apply – this does not set a minimum area you need to enter into your SFI26 application.

This initial application window will remain open for around 2 months. It may close sooner if demand is high and the Window 1 budget is fully allocated.

If you’re eligible for Window 1 but do not apply during that window, you can apply in Window 2 instead.

Window 2 will open in September 2026 for all farmers and land managers.