With over 1,000 farmers fined a total of €220,000 as a result of land eligibility checks in 2016, farmers must do their upmost to ensure they do not get a penalty for declaring land that, after inspection, is ineligible. With all farmers due to complete the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) form online this year, it is an area farmers need to take care of. A total of 771 farmers had a reduction in eligible area imposed of less than 3% or less than 2ha after an inspection in 2016. This could be for a number of reasons such as scrub encroachment, rushes taking over in grazing ground or areas of hill land and commonages.