Farm Business Council Report July 2025

Budget 2026 Submission

Presented and approved by IFA National Council on 11^th June, the IFA submission has been received by the Department of Agriculture and Department of Finance. The IFA will meet with the Minister for Agriculture Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon, on Wednesday 16^th July and DAFM officials to discuss the IFA Budget 2026 submission in detail. 

Budget 2026 Priorities 

• Extension of current Agriculture Reliefs and Accelerated Capital Allowances
• Residential Zoned Land Tax
• Funding from the Climate and Nature Fund to support on-farm investment
• Cost of doing Business supports
• Tillage Support Package €250/ha
• €300/cow on all suckler cows 
• €30/ewe on all breeding ewes & €40/ewe for Hill ewes
• Beef Calf from Dairy herds Scheme – €100/calf
• Beef Sustainability Scheme – €100/head for cattle aged 1-2yrs
• Horticulture – Support scheme to alleviate cost of production including labour 
• Sector Specific supports for Mushroom & Potato farmers
• Pigs & Poultry- additional Tam’s grant supports and animal health measures
• Forestry support package to deal with windblow

Cross sector schemes and supports measures

• ANC’s
• ACRES overhaul
• TAMS
• Income volatility measure for all sectors
• Energy from Farms Proposals
• Low-cost finance SBCI Agri fund
• Generational Renewal 
• Fair Deal 

Residential Zoned Land Tax (RZLT)

Many farmers submitted an application to their local authority or County Council seeking an exemption from RZLT for 2025 based on current economic activity. This was a burdensome administration task placed on hundreds of farmers. Government leaders committed to addressing this issue for farmers in advance of the general election 2024 and this must be delivered in Budget 2026. Many farmers have received notification from their local authority explaining that their application to rezone their land was unsuccessful. This notification caused a lot of fear and worry for many farmers who had successfully gained the exemption for 2025.  It further highlights the need for a permanent solution and actively farmed land to be removed from the scope of our RZLT on a permanent basis.

The Chair of the Farm Business committee, Bill O’Keeffe met with the Minister for Housing, James Browne and it is clear that a strong lobby effort from IFA is required in advance of a decision to remove actively farmed land from the scope of RZLT being made for Budget 2026. 

Farm Finance 

2025 has seen an uplift in farm finance applications. Engagement with the mainstream banks indicates an increase in loan applications from the farming sector in 2025. Turnaround times in some banks has become an issue with up to 10 weeks being indicated for decisions. IFA have engaged with AIB, BOI, PTSB; SBCI & Credit Unions, to try and streamline the application process and provide in-person consultations to assist farmers. IFA will continue to keep close engagement with our mainstream banks to ensure farmers receive competitive interest rates and ongoing ECB interest rate reductions materialize into lower lending costs for farmers.

Credit from livestock marts is strictly regulated by the Property Services Regulatory Authority (PRSA). IFA has engaged with all the stakeholders to ensure that the livestock trade isn’t negatively impacted by regulatory terms being enforced on marts.

Proposed New EU Carbon Tax on Fertiliser – a Step Too Far 

IFA calls on the Minister for Agriculture Food and the Marine to insist that fertilizer is removed from the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) by the EU Commission. This new levy is due to take effect from 1^st January 2026.