Learning from people who have been through the process before is always the best way to go about something. That’s why the Irish Farmers Journal spoke to Derry Drew, Joseph Collins and Liam Hennessy of FDC agricultural consultants in Kanturk, Co Cork, on the new TAMs II scheme and got their insights and tips on how to be a successful applicant.

How long will the application process take?

With TAMS I comprising the Dairy Equipment Scheme, the Farm Safety Scheme and the Sheep Handling Scheme, most cases did not need planning permission. That is why it is difficult to tell yet how long the process will take for TAMS II. We had one client granted planning last week, but he had applied before the scheme was released and his planning took six months. The bulk have only started submitting for planning recently, so we just don’t know yet. After planning is approved, it then gets submitted for application approval. Once approved, you have three years to complete the job.

Planning is the biggest obstacle for most farm buildings. Your application will not get the go-ahead until planning permission is obtained. In previous applications, you used to be able to submit an application “subject to planning”.

Were there many unsuccessful applicants in TAMS I. If so, what for?

TAMS I was undersubscribed. The Department even opened the safety grant after the initial opening of the scheme for more applications as money was left over. So, in terms of applicants being refused, we didn’t see it.

What do you predict will be the biggest reason for an application refusal in TAMS II?

We don’t know. Every adviser in the country has a lot to learn about the scheme as of yet. We think applicants will have a fair idea after they get planning back if they will get refused for an application. We think, as tranches go on and depending on the demand, money may be the biggest limiting factor to a successful application, because if funding is limited your application may be scrutinised on a marking scheme.

Minimum and maximum payments for the scheme – and grant aid?

The minimum investment is €2,000, with a maximum of €80,000. This increases to €160,000 if you’re in a partnership. Low-emission slurry spreading has a minimum investment of €5,000, with a maximum of €40,000.

The grant aid is 40%, up to an investment ceiling of €80,000 but if you’re a young trained farmer, this increases to 60%. So, if a young trained farmer and a category one farmer are in a partnership, the TAMS II investment ceiling doubles to €160,000. If both partners are qualifying young farmers, they can be grant-aided at 60%. But if only one is a qualifying young farmer and the other a general applicant – as in a typical father/son partnership – the son can get 60% grant aid on up to €80,000 and the father can get 40% on up to €80,000.

For companies, the investment ceiling is €80,000. If a young farmer is in the company and signs annex D of the terms and conditions, the company can get 60% of a grant on the €80,000 ceiling but that is the maximum.

What penalties should people be on the lookout for?

The use of certified materials. If you don’t use certified materials, you won’t get any money and nothing can be purchased without prior approval.

Not building for purpose would be another of the bigger ones, the building has to be used for its agricultural purpose for at least five years. An extreme case of this would be, we’ll say you draw a grant for a cattle shed but get an inspection after three years and you’re using it as a garage.

One area which may become a problem is young farmers not having the Green Cert at the time of applying and not getting it within the 36 months allowed by the scheme. Then, the grant for the job would be dropped from 60% to 40%.

What isn’t included in the scheme that people seem to looking for?

No conversions allowed; for example, a house in the yard that might be perfect for cubicles – you can’t do it. If you want to add cluster removers to an existing parlour you won’t get grant aid for it, whereas if you add more units you will get the grant for cluster removers on the new units. No modifications or conversions are allowed, as the older parts of the building wouldn’t be grant-aided.

What needs to be done on the health and safety side for the scheme?

Prior to claim submission, applicants must have attended a mandatory farm safety workshop or completed a Level 6 FETAC course in the previous five years. This is the newest safety measure to the scheme.

Finally, what are your five tips for a successful application?

  • Long-term view: Because milk prices aren’t favourable at the moment people start to think this job can wait, but it is a long way off anyway. With planning permission, application submission and work time, you’re looking at nearly four years before the job needs to be finished. Start on time and take the long-term view on it.
  • Costings: Break down the cost of every item. In the older schemes, you had your drawing and then you’d put down the overall job cost. In TAMS, individual component breakdown needs to be carried out; for example, in the case of a slatted tank, the slats have to be costed as well as the tank itself.
  • Documentation: Be sure to have all documentation at the ready, such as planning, drawing, education and qualification, storage capacity form, a declaration or whatever is needed for the individual job. Some applications may require partnership numbers or documents if the ground is leased.
  • Consider stage application: You can make a number of applications, so think about the amount you put in one application. For example, you might need a bulk tank which could wait for two or three years but the milking parlour is the priority to be done this year. If you had both on the one application, you would first need to have installed the bulk tank before you could draw down payments on the parlour. With a number of applications, maximum payment will be the same but you won’t have to wait until all is complete to draw payments.
  • Get in early: TAMS I was undersubscribed but we don’t know what way TAMS II will go. The earlier you enter one of the tranches, the more chance you have of getting the full payment and avoiding a score card situation.