What is SFI26? A plain-English guide for farmers in England

What is SFI26?

SFI26 is the 2026 version of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI). The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) runs it for Defra. You pick actions from a list. You do them on your land. You get a set rate for each one. The SFI26 scheme rules (opens in a new tab) say there are 71 actions, compared with 102 in SFI24.

Who could apply for SFI26?

To apply, a farm business had to meet these rules from sections 3 and 5 of the scheme rules (opens in a new tab):

• Be registered with the RPA when the application starts. That means having a Single Business Identifier (SBI), your farm business number.
• Have at least 3 hectares of agricultural land linked to that SBI. This is not the smallest area you must put into the agreement.
• Have management control of the land for the whole length of the actions, usually 3 years.
• Do the actions on fields (the RPA calls them land parcels) that are entirely in England.
• Not apply on common land, including shared grazing.

Each farm business, identified by its SBI, can only have one SFI26 agreement.

How much can an SFI26 agreement pay?

Each action has its own rate, set out in the SFI26 actions list (opens in a new tab). An agreement can be worth at most £100,000 per agreement year (scheme rules, section 8.2 (opens in a new tab)). Earlier offers also paid an SFI management payment. SFI26 does not (section 11.2 (opens in a new tab)).

This is a sample, not the full list. Each action has its own rules, so read its page in the actions list (opens in a new tab) or use the Find funding for land or farms (opens in a new tab) tool.

How long does an SFI26 agreement last, and how is it paid?

An agreement usually lasts 3 years. It normally starts on the first day of the month after you accept the offer. You are paid every 3 months (quarterly). The first payment usually comes around the middle of the fourth month after the start date (sections 9.2 and 11.1 (opens in a new tab)).

Each year you must send an annual declaration (a yearly check-in with the RPA). You must send it before your fourth payment of the year. It is due in the last 2 months of the agreement year (sections 11.1 and 12.1 (opens in a new tab)).

Is SFI26 open now?

No. The scheme rules start with "SFI26 is closed for applications." There were two application windows (section 2.1 (opens in a new tab)):

Defra allocated £310 million to new agreements across both windows (opens in a new tab). It received nearly 19,000 applications (opens in a new tab): around 6,700 in Window 1 and about 12,200 in Window 2. For Window 1, Defra has said (opens in a new tab) a small farm was one with 50 hectares or less of eligible agricultural land.

How is SFI26 different from SFI24?

• Fewer actions: 71 in SFI26, compared with 102 in SFI24 (section 1.2 (opens in a new tab)).
• No management payment: "the SFI management payment has been removed for SFI26 agreements" (section 1.2 (opens in a new tab)).
• One agreement per business, worth up to £100,000 per agreement year (section 2.2 (opens in a new tab)).
• Plan-based actions have gone: the SFI 2024 soil, nutrient and integrated pest management plan actions are not in the SFI26 actions list (opens in a new tab).

What other SFI26 rules should I know?

• Limited-area actions: some actions can only cover up to 25% of your farm's agricultural area. This counts all your SFI agreements and your Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier (CSHT) agreements from 2025 onwards (section 4.5 (opens in a new tab)).
• Rotational actions: the area you enter in year 1 is the most you can do in later years. Near the end of years 1 and 2, send a rotational actions declaration. If you don't, you won't be paid for the next year (section 4.3 (opens in a new tab)).
• Evidence (your proof): keep it for at least 7 years after your agreement ends. If the agreement is ended early, count from that date (section 12.4 (opens in a new tab)). See SFI evidence: what to keep.

How do I apply for SFI?

SFI26 is closed, so you can't apply now. When SFI opens again, you apply online in the Rural Payments service. You can apply yourself. Or an agent can apply for you, if they are registered with the RPA and you give them permission in the service (scheme rules, section 7.4 (opens in a new tab)). AgriSync does not apply for you. For who to ask, see SFI help.

What should I do now to get ready for SFI in 2027?

Defra plans to offer SFI in 2027. It has not given a date yet (see SFI 2027: what we know so far). The scheme rules ask you to check your digital maps in the Rural Payments service before you apply (section 7.2 (opens in a new tab)). Use the time now to:

1. 1Check your maps in the Rural Payments service. They should show at least 3 hectares of farmland, every field you want to use, the right areas and the right land cover.
2. 2Ask for any map corrections: sign in to the Rural Payments service, select Land and use Request rural land changes (section 5.1.2 (opens in a new tab)).
3. 3Sort your records field by field: the work done in each field, invoices and dated photos.
4. 4Look at which actions fit your land with the Find funding for land or farms (opens in a new tab) tool.