Farmers are being encouraged to carry out essential checks on their Rural Payments Agency (RPA) accounts ahead of the launch of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) 2026 scheme – including anyone looking to apply in September 2026.

The SFI26 budget is widely expected to come under significant pressure when the scheme opens to all eligible applicants later this year, so submitting applications promptly could prove critical for farmers wishing to secure an agreement.

"With SFI26 operating on a first-come, first-served basis, it's important farmers don't get held up by avoidable admin issues," says Strutt & Parker farm consultant Paul Dennison. "I'd strongly advise checking RPA records and maps now and correcting anything that doesn't look right. Sorting issues early could make the difference between getting an agreement in place and missing out."

Mr Dennison says the most common problems include digital maps showing incorrect land cover and land use for each land parcel, or maps not showing all the land parcels you want to include in your application.

"This is something that farmers traditionally checked as part of their annual Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) claim. With BPS now gone, that routine has disappeared so unless farmers have updated their details for other reasons, they may well find their RPA records and maps are out of date.

"These are issues which tend to need fixing to avoid delays when it comes to submitting an SFI26 application. If a land parcel is incorrectly recorded as permanent grassland and you want to apply for an arable option, then the system will not allow it. Equally, land incorrectly shown as temporary grass will need the land use updating if you want to apply for the no insecticides on arable crops action (IPM4). It is therefore crucial to amend the land cover and land use, so it correctly reflects the situation on the ground."

Requests to add land or make changes to maps can be made online or using an RLE1 form.

Other checks worth making include ensuring that the contact email address held by the RPA is up to date and the correct permissions have been assigned to your agent if you want them to resolve any outstanding errors and make the application on your behalf.