Article 43

Farmers entitled to a payment under the basic payment scheme or the single area payment scheme shall observe, on all their eligible hectares within the meaning of Article 32(2) to (5), the agricultural practices beneficial for the climate and the environment referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article or the equivalent practices referred to in paragraph 3 of this Article. The agricultural practices beneficial for the climate and the environment shall be the following: crop diversification; maintaining existing permanent grassland; and having ecological focus area on the agricultural area. The equivalent practices shall be those which include similar practices that yield an equivalent or higher level of benefit for the climate and the environment compared to one or several of the practices referred to in paragraph 2. Those equivalent practices and the practice or practices referred to in paragraph 2 to which they are equivalent are listed in Annex IX and shall be covered by any of the following: commitments undertaken in accordance with either Article 39(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005 or Article 28(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013; national or regional environmental certification schemes, including those for the certification of compliance with national environmental legislation, going beyond the relevant mandatory standards established pursuant to Chapter I of Title VI of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013, which aim to meet objectives relating to soil and water quality, biodiversity, landscape preservation, and climate change mitigation and adaptation. Those certification schemes may include the practices listed in Annex IX to this Regulation, the practices referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article, or a combination of those practices. The equivalent practices referred to in paragraph 3 shall not be the subject of double funding. Member States may decide, including, where appropriate, at regional level, to restrict the choice of the farmers to use the options referred to in points (a) and (b) of paragraph 3. Member States may decide, including, where appropriate, at regional level, that farmers shall carry out all of their relevant obligations under paragraph 1 in accordance with national or regional environmental certification schemes referred to in point (b) of paragraph 3. Subject to the decisions of Member States referred to in paragraphs 5 and 6, a farmer may observe one or more of the practices referred to in point (a) of paragraph 3 only if these fully replace the related practice or practices referred to in paragraph 2. A farmer may use certification schemes referred to in point (b) of paragraph 3 only if these cover the entire obligation referred to in paragraph 1. Member States shall notify the Commission of their decisions referred to in paragraphs 5 and 6 and of the specific commitments or certification schemes which they intend to apply as equivalent practices within the meaning of paragraph 3. The Commission shall assess whether the practices included in the specific commitments or certification schemes are covered by the list in Annex IX, and if it considers this not to be the case, notify Member States accordingly by means of implementing acts adopted without applying the procedure referred to in Article 71(2) or (3). Where the Commission notifies a Member State that those practices are not covered by the list in Annex IX, that Member State shall not recognise as equivalent practices within the meaning of paragraph 3 of this Article the specific commitments or certification schemes covered by the Commission notification. Without prejudice to paragraphs 10 and 11 of this Article, to the application of financial discipline and of linear reductions in accordance with Article 7 of this Regulation and to the application of Article 63 of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013, Member States shall grant the payment referred to in this Chapter to farmers who observe the practices referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article that are relevant for them, and to the extent that those farmers comply with Articles 44, 45 and 46 of this Regulation. This payment shall take the form of an annual payment per eligible hectare declared in accordance with Article 33(1) or Article 36(2), the amount of which shall be calculated annually by dividing the amount resulting from the application of Article 47 by the total number of eligible hectares declared in accordance with Article 33(1) or Article 36(2) in the Member State or the region concerned. By way of derogation from the second subparagraph, Member States deciding to apply Article 25(2) may decide to grant the payment referred to in this paragraph as a percentage of the total value of the payment entitlements that the farmer has activated in accordance with Article 33(1) for each relevant year. For each year and each Member State or region, that percentage shall be calculated by dividing the amount resulting from the application of Article 47 by the total value of all payment entitlements activated in accordance with Article 33(1) in that Member State or region. Farmers whose holdings are fully or partly situated in areas covered by Directives 92/43/EEC, 2000/60/EC, or 2009/147/EC shall be entitled to the payment referred to in this Chapter provided that they observe the practices referred to in this Chapter to the extent that those practices are compatible in the holding concerned with the objectives of those Directives. Farmers complying with the requirements laid down in Article 29(1) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 as regards organic farming shall be entitled ipso facto to the payment referred to in this Chapter. The first subparagraph shall apply only to the units of a holding that are used for organic production in accordance with Article 11 of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007. The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 70: adding equivalent practices to the list set out in Annex IX; establishing appropriate requirements applicable to the national or regional certification schemes referred to in point (b) of paragraph 3 of this Article, including the level of assurance to be provided by those schemes; establishing detailed rules for the calculation of the amount referred to in Article 28(6) of Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013 for the practices referred to in points 3 and 4 of Section I and point 7 of Section III of Annex IX to this Regulation, and any further equivalent practices added to that Annex pursuant to point (a) of this paragraph for which a specific calculation is needed in order to avoid double funding. The Commission shall adopt implementing acts establishing rules on the procedure for the notifications, including on timetables for their submission, and the Commission assessment referred to in paragraph 8. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 71(2).

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Source: EUR-Lex (Cellar) · retrieved 2026-11-08 · Text as adopted (Official Journal); later amendments are not incorporated in this text.