Call for Applications: SRE01 Scheme – Support for Young Farmers Setting Up in Business

The scheme to support first-time farmers is designed to provide support to young farmers aged under 41 who are setting up for the first time on a farm as the head of the holding, subject to the submission of a business plan for the development of the farming activity. The aid consists of a lump-sum capital grant of €40,000.00.

For all applications, the Agriculture Department verifies the following requirements through administrative checks and, where necessary, on-site visits to the holding, in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 2021/2116 and the relevant implementing and delegated acts of the European Commission, as well as the relevant national implementing legislation:

• the implementation of the business plan;
• the continued fulfilment of the eligibility conditions for the granting of aid as set out in point 3.2;
• the continued validity of the scores awarded in the ranking based on the selection criteria set out in point 6.1 above, in the following categories: C (newly established farms), E (certification of production method), G (predominant technical and economic orientation of the farm);
• compliance with publicity obligations. In order to comply with the information and publicity obligations for operations receiving EAFRD support, the provisions of Regulation (EU) No 2022/129 and the provisions issued by the Managing Authority shall apply. The provisions regarding publicity and information obligations for each individual intervention are available at the link https://www.provincia.tn.it/FEASR.

Prior to the final payment of the grant, the paying agency APPAG carries out random on-the-spot checks on applications for final payment, in accordance with the relevant regulations in force.

For at least 10 years from the date the aid is granted, as determined by the Head of the Agriculture Department, each beneficiary must meet the following requirements:

• be the head of the holding;
• be registered in the first section of the Provincial Register of Agricultural Enterprises;
• operate as an agricultural entrepreneur in the management of a holding with a size, in terms of workload, equivalent to 2,080 agricultural working hours per year per beneficiary responsible for its management. The size is calculated on the basis of the information contained in the farm dossier, in accordance with the time and income table.

These requirements are verified through ex-post checks, in accordance with the relevant regulations in force.

Random checks will also be carried out, in accordance with the relevant legislation, on the declarations in lieu of a notarial act and on the certification documents.

Young farmers may apply if, on the date of submission of the aid application:

• are aged over 18 and under 41 (not yet 41);
• have taken up farming no more than 24 months prior to submitting the aid application;
• are setting up in a business with its registered office, business file and main place of business in the province of Trento;
• are setting up as the head of the holding;
• are active farmers.

Two young people may set up a business jointly, provided they join the company under conditions equivalent to those required of a person setting up as a farm manager. This may take place either when the young farmers take up their posts simultaneously or at different times, within the 2023–2027 programming period.

The young farmer must submit a business plan for the development of the agricultural activity, which forms an integral part of the aid application and will be assessed for its technical and economic viability during the preliminary examination.

The farm must have a minimum size of 300 hours on the date the application for support is submitted. During the establishment period, the farm’s size must not fall below this minimum threshold. The size is calculated on the basis of the contents of the farm dossier, in accordance with the time and income table published on the Province’s official website. In the case of a company, the minimum value applies to each partner who meets the requirements for a young farmer setting up.

Requirements that may be met at the time of application or achieved within 36 months of the grant being awarded

The young farmer must possess adequate training or professional competence, which is deemed to have been acquired if the young farmer holds one of the following qualifications: a university degree in agriculture, forestry or veterinary science, or an upper secondary school qualification in agriculture (a five-year technical upper secondary school diploma or a four-year vocational training diploma, both specialising in agriculture, or an equivalent qualification). For young farmers who do not hold the required qualification, the Professional Certificate for Agricultural Entrepreneurs (BPIA) is considered sufficient proof of adequate professional qualifications and competence.

Be a professional farmer.

Be registered in the first section of the Provincial Register of Agricultural Enterprises (APIA).

The farm being taken over must have a workload corresponding to at least one man-work unit (ULU), equal to 2,080 hours of agricultural work per year for each beneficiary responsible for its management. In the case of a company: 2,080 hours for each young person taking up the farm and 1,040 hours for each other partner engaged in agriculture as their main occupation. The size is calculated on the basis of the information in the farm dossier, in accordance with the table of working hours and income.

CConditions of ineligibility

Aid is not granted to young farmers who set up on a holding resulting from the division, within the 36 months prior to the application for support, of a holding run by a spouse, relatives and relatives by marriage up to the second degree, or from a division of a company in which a spouse, relatives or relatives by marriage up to the second degree are involved. This condition must remain in force until the date of the final assessment by the investigating officer, failing which the aid will be revoked and the first instalment paid will be recovered.

Aid may not be granted to young people setting up in businesses subject to the recovery of grants awarded under the 2007–2013 Rural Development Programme (PSR), the 2014–2022 Rural Development Programme (PSR) and the CSR (or PSP) which were subsequently revoked, without such grants having been repaid.

All the necessary requirements and selection criteria are set out in the text of the call for applications under Provincial Council Resolution No. 1914 of 13 October 2023.

Applications may be submitted by the young farmer, who may engage a consultant to submit the application via the SRTrento information system.

The application must be digitally signed by the person authorised to sign the document; otherwise, it will be deemed inadmissible.

For any assistance with accessing and registering on the portal, please contact helpdesk.srtrento@provincia.tn.it.

Applications must be submitted online via the provincial agricultural information system SRTrento at https://srt.infotn.it – which can also be accessed via the portal https://a4g.provincia.tn.it/ – within the specified deadlines.

Access to the restricted area is permitted only to registered users; each user must first register in accordance with the procedures set out in the user guides on the SRTrento website’s home page. The application must be digitally signed by the person authorised to sign the document; failure to do so will render the application inadmissible. For assistance with accessing and registering for the portal, please contact helpdesk.srtrento@provincia.tn.it

The application retrieves data from the company file and contains:

1. details of the documents used to award marks in relation to the selection criteria, together with the relevant details for their automatic retrieval;
2. objectives to be achieved;
3. the business plan;
4. a minimum company size of 300 hours;
5. a privacy notice.

The application must also include a declaration in lieu of an affidavit, in accordance with Articles 46 and 47 of Presidential Decree No. 445 of 28 December 2000, certifying:

that the applicant has not received any other aid for the establishment of young farmers, as indicated in point 4.5.1, and in any event has not already received the establishment grant under the EU’s rural development policy;

that they possess adequate professional knowledge and skills (specifying their qualification);

in the case of a company, the date of its incorporation or the date on which the young person joined the company as manager;

in the case of joint setting-up, details of the young people who are benefiting from or have already benefited from the setting-up grant.

The following requirements will be verified ex officio:

possession of a VAT number; registration with APIA, if applicable; registration with IAP, if applicable; the requirement to be an active farmer.

Documents to be attached to the aid application:

A declaration in lieu of an affidavit, pursuant to Articles 46 and 47 of Presidential Decree No. 445 of 28 December 2000, certifying:

the personal details of the applicant’s spouse, relatives and relatives by marriage up to the second degree who are agricultural entrepreneurs or have been so in the preceding 36 months;

for those applying for the ‘new farm’ score referred to in point 6.1(C1) of the table only, the declaration must also include the personal details of the applicant’s spouse, relatives and relatives by marriage up to the third degree who are agricultural entrepreneurs or have been so in the preceding 36 months.

Within 60 days of the day following the deadline for the submission of applications referred to in point 7.1, a merit-based ranking list of such applications shall be approved by decision of the Head of the Agriculture Department, on the basis of scores awarded in accordance with the ‘selection criteria’ as defined in point 6.

In the case of applications included in the priority ranking but which cannot be funded due to a lack of resources, a decision to reject the application shall be taken in accordance with Provincial Law 23/92, and the applicant shall be notified accordingly.

For all eligible applications, the Agriculture Service verifies that the eligibility conditions for the granting of aid are met, assesses the suitability of the business plan and the validity of the scores awarded in the ranking on the basis of the selection criteria through administrative checks and any on-site inspections, in accordance with Regulation (EU) No. 2021/2116 and the relevant implementing and delegated acts of the European Commission, as well as national implementing rules.

In particular, the commitments undertaken by the applicant to meet the objectives of the business plan are assessed. These commitments must be concrete, measurable and quantifiable.

The results of the preliminary assessment are set out in a checklist signed by the person responsible for the procedure. The deadline for concluding the procedure for granting or refusing support is set at 120 days, starting from the day following the date of adoption of the decision approving the merit ranking list.

The procedure concludes with a decision by the head of the Agriculture Department granting or refusing the aid to the applicant. The beneficiary is notified of the decision to grant or refuse the aid.

The aid is paid in two instalments:

• the first instalment, amounting to €30,000.00, will be paid following approval of the aid decision, subject to the provision of a bank or insurance guarantee for the amount of the first instalment. A guarantee is not required if the applicant has already met all the following requirements:
  1. having obtained the status of professional farmer (IAP), including ‘provisional’ status, pursuant to paragraph 5-ter, Article 1 of Legislative Decree No. 99 of 29 March 2004, issued by the competent authority;
  2. have achieved a farm size of at least 600 hours, as shown in the updated farm record prior to submitting the application for payment of the first instalment of the premium;
  3. be an active farmer;
• the second and final instalment of €10,000.00 will be paid following the successful implementation of the business plan and the fulfilment of all the eligibility requirements set out in point 3 of the resolution on the criteria.

Applications for payment must be submitted online via the provincial agricultural information system SRTrento at https://srt.infotn.it, which can also be accessed via the portal https://a4g.provincia.tn.it/. 

The application must include the declaration in lieu of certification and the affidavit, in accordance with Articles 46 and 47 of Presidential Decree No. 445 of 28 December 2000, certifying that the applicant has not received any other aid for the establishment of young farmers and has no pending applications to obtain such aid, as indicated in point 4.5.1 of the resolution setting out the criteria, and details regarding the status of professional agricultural entrepreneur (IAP) – including ‘provisional’ status – must be provided. Furthermore, the update to the farm dossier carried out by the applicant prior to submitting the payment claim must show an increase in the size of the farm, with a minimum of 600 hours being reached. The status of active farmer will be verified ex officio. Where not all the required criteria are met, a bank or insurance guarantee must be provided for the amount of the first instalment of the aid to be granted, equal to €30,000.00.