27-05-2025
How many BISS applications were made in your county this year?
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has confirmed that Cork was again the county with the highest number of applications for the Basic Income Support for Sustainability (BISS) and other area-based schemes this year.
In total, 123,705 scheme applications were submitted from across the country by the deadline of Wednesday, May 15. This is down from 124,274 scheme applications in 2024.
This year's figure includes 2,792 temporary reference number applications which are numbers assigned to allow an application until the herd number application has been completed.
BISS
The DAFM received 12,181 applications on behalf of farmers in Co. Cork for BISS and other area-based schemes in 2025, which is down from 12,344 in the previous year.
Galway was the county with the second-highest number of applications at 11,603, followed by Co. Mayo with 10,942.
The county with the lowest number of applications was Dublin with 607, followed by Louth with 1,442 and Carlow with 1,591.
The following table provides a county-by-county breakdown for the number of BISS and other area-based scheme applications made to DAFM by May 15:
County Total applications Carlow 1,591 Cavan 4,731 Clare 5,893 Cork 12,181 Donegal 8,771 Dublin 607 Galway 11,603 Kerry 7,532 Kildare 2,030 Kilkenny 3,134 Laois 2,723 Leitrim 3,365 Limerick 4,829 Longford 2,325 Louth 1,442 Mayo 10,942 Meath 3,671 Monaghan 4,032 Offaly 2,763 Roscommon 5,480 Sligo 3,819 Tipperary 6,404 Waterford 2,263 Westmeath 2,929 Wexford 3,775 Wicklow 2,078 Temporary reference numbers 2,792 Total 123,705 Source: DAFM
Where farmers have made their BISS and other area based schemes application, but now wish to make an amendment, they may make such changes online at until midnight on Saturday (May 31) without any penalty.
If a change made to a BISS online application leads to a farmer having insufficient land to use all of their entitlements, they will have the opportunity to submit a transfer of entitlements application up until midnight on May 31, 2025.
This is only available to farmers who can show that they have made a change to their BISS application by May 31, 2025 and that change has directly led to the need to transfer entitlements.
The department has reminded farmers that scheme applications will be accepted after the May 15 closing date, however a 1% per day penalty will be applied in these instances.
