FARMERS WILL BE able to apply for a grant of up to €1,500 for succession and inheritance planning under a new scheme.

The Succession Planning Advice Grant will help older farmers to plan for the future of their farms by contributing towards the legal and financial costs associated with inheritance planning.

It is hoped that the scheme will encourage best practice in intergenerational land transfer, which will in turn address generational imbalances in Irish farming.

Farmers aged 60 and above will be eligible if they have been farming a minimum of three hectares of land for at least two years.

Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue said in a statement: “While not unique to Ireland, I recognise that there are considerable demographic challenges in the agricultural sector.

“It is very important to be able to assist farmers in making what can be very difficult but ultimately very important decisions about the future of their farming enterprise.”

An information webinar for the new scheme is scheduled for 6 September at 7pm.

The scheme will open from 19 September, with the first grants paid in the first quarter of next year.