The European Commission has today launched a public consultation inviting all interested parties to submit their comments on the draft targeted amendments to the rules on de minimis aid in the agricultural sector (‘de minimis regulation’). All interested parties can participate in the public consultation until 21 July 2024.

The proposed amendment

The de minimis regulation in the agricultural sector excludes small amounts from the scope of State aid control as they are considered not to affect competition and trade in the single market.

After its last revision in 2019, Member States can currently grant support in the agricultural sector of up to €20,000 per beneficiary over a period of three financial years, without prior notification for approval by the Commission. If a Member State has a central register at national level for the registration of de minimis aid, a higher ceiling of EUR 25,000 over a period of three financial years applies. In addition to these ceilings per beneficiary, each EU Member State has a maximum national amount for such support (the so-called “national ceiling”), in order to avoid the possibility of distortion of competition.

The regulation on de minimis aid in the agricultural sector expires on 31 December 2027. The regulation was expected to be revised before that date.

The Commission took note of the European Council conclusions of 17 and 18 April 2024 on the importance of a competitive, sustainable and resilient agricultural sector. Against this background and taking into account the increasing inflationary pressure in the agricultural sector and high commodity prices, the Commission launched a targeted review of the de minimis aid regulation in the agricultural sector on 2 May 2024, earlier than the planned review.

The Commission is now gathering views on the early revision of the de minimis aid regulation in the agricultural sector.

The draft amendment includes the following changes:

increasing the ceiling for de minimis aid per enterprise over three years from €25,000 to €37,000 to take inflation into account.
the adjustment of national ceilings, which are calculated on the basis of the value of agricultural production. The current rules take into account the reference period 2012-2017 for this calculation. This reference period is extended to cover the period 2012-2023, which will allow to take into account the increased value of agricultural production, especially in recent years, and by extension to increase the national ceiling for all Member States .
the maximum amount of aid will be calculated over a period of three calendar years instead of three financial years, in accordance with the general rules for de minimis aid.
establishing a mandatory register of de minimis aid at national or European level in order to increase transparency and reduce the administrative burden for farmers who currently use a declaration system and since they will no longer need to self-monitor compliance (currently , such central registries are optional for Member States).
By increasing the de minimis aid ceiling per holding to take inflation into account, the proposed amendments will expand the possibilities for Member States to provide support to farmers in a simpler, faster, more direct and effective way, given that such support it does not need to be notified to or approved by the Commission. In addition, the proposed amendments will reduce the administrative burden on farmers by introducing mandatory central de minimis registers, which will ease reporting obligations for farmers – mainly micro, small and medium-sized enterprises.

Finally, the revision will extend the period of validity of the regulation until 2032.

Next steps

All interested parties can submit their comments on the draft amendment until 21 July 2024. More information on how to make contributions is available here.

In addition to the public consultation launched today, the draft proposal will also be discussed in meetings between the Commission and Member States.

This process will ensure that both Member States and other interested parties have adequate opportunities to submit their comments on the Commission’s draft proposal.

The Commission intends to adopt the amendments to the Regulation on de minimis aid in the agricultural sector as soon as possible, after taking into account the comments of Member States and stakeholders.

Record

Article 108(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union imposes on Member States the obligation to notify any State aid to the European Commission and to implement it only after the Commission’s approval. The EU State Aid Enabling Regulation allows the Commission to declare certain categories of State aid compatible with the single market and not subject to the Treaty notification obligation.

More information on state aid in the agricultural sector is available on the dedicated website of DG Competition.

Ms. Margrethe Vesteyjer, Executive Vice President responsible for Competition Policy

We are reviewing our rules on small amounts of aid in the agricultural sector to help farmers cope with inflationary pressures and high commodity prices. The proposed amendments, by increasing the exemption ceilings, facilitate and speed up the granting of small amounts of aid by Member States. We also propose a central register to facilitate the control of de minimis aid and reduce farmers’ reporting obligations. We invite all interested parties to express their views.

Athena Papakosta