Limited SFI application window to open

Applications for 3,000 unfinished SFI applications will be allowed to proceed, although these will be subject to restrictions.

The SFI scheme was closed to new applications without warning on 11 March 2025 due to the budget being reached. Those who had started an application, but had not submitted by that date, were unable to apply. This has now changed.  SFI applications will be allowed for those who had started and saved their application within two month of 11 March but had not managed to submit.  Around 3,000 partially completed applications, started on 12 January 2025 or later will be given a six-week window to complete their application.

These applications are subject to the following restrictions:

• only one application may be submitted per farm business
• agreements will be offered up to a maximum value of £9,300 per year for the duration of the agreement (excluding the SFI management payment, which would not count towards the value limit). This maximum value reflects the median average agreement value for existing SFI 2024 agreements
• agreement holders will not be able to add more land to ‘rotational’ SFI actions after Year 1 of their agreement

The reason given for these new restrictions are that as the budget has already been allocated and so the funding for these remaining applications will likely come from other areas of the Defra budget.

Further information about SFI uptake released on 8 May, the latest SFI uptake date was published showing the number of agreements and options chosen, as of 1 April 2025.

• Assess soil test soil organic matter and produce a soil management plan (SAM1 and CSAM1) was the most popular action with a total of 25,500,000 agreements in SFI 2023 and the SFI expanded offer for 2024, respectively
• The action covering the most land area (718,000 ha) under SFI 2023 was ‘No use of insecticide on arable crops and permanent crops (IPM4)
• Under the SFI expanded offer for 2024, the action covering the most land area (363,000 ha) was ‘variable application of nutrients’ (PRF1)
• The total number of businesses in the SFI were 32,600 as shown in the graph below

Number of businesses in agri-environment schemes

Source: Defra

Including Countryside Stewardship (CS) capital agreements, a total of 52,000 businesses had agreements in agri-environment schemes.

What next?

As mentioned previously, further information on the SFI scheme will be available once the results of the Spending Review are published and digested.

In the interim, Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier (CSHT) is due to open for applications, on an invitation basis, in Summer 2025. Most actions last for five years (with some lasting for 10, 15 or 20 years) care will need to be taken when selecting these, especially if a farmer is planning to apply for the SFI once it re-opens next year.