On March 4th, Wednesday, the 2015 Direct Payments campaign began. On the last working day of February, Ordinance No. 3 of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food on the conditions and procedures for implementing the Direct Payment schemes was published in the State Gazette.
Agricultural producers will receive 1.5 billion BGN from the 2015 direct payments campaign, which is approximately 300 million BGN more than the funds in 2014. The acceptance of applications for EU subsidies started this week and will continue until mid-May. Those who are late will be able to submit documents until June 9th, but the amount they are to receive will be reduced by 1% for each day of delay. Payments will be made under 15 different schemes, with support for the livestock, fruit, and vegetable sectors for the first time (230 million BGN for 2015), as well as for young and small producers. In addition to the basic area payment for farmers, various supplements are envisaged.
