The second window of the Sustainable Farming Incentive 2026 (SFI26) opened today to eligible farmers and land managers who can now apply for funding to support food production, improve farm productivity and deliver environmental outcomes.
Window 2 is open to farmers and land managers who:
- are registered with the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) and have a Single Business Identifier (SBI) at the point of application, and
- have at least 3ha of eligible agricultural land linked to that SBI.
You can find the full eligibility criteria for Window 2 in the SFI26 scheme rules and guidance on GOV.UK.
Before farmers and land managers start their SFI26 application, please read section 7 ‘Get ready to apply’ in the SFI26 scheme rules and guidance.
SFI26 Window 2 has a total budget of £233 million which includes £3 million not allocated in Window 1 and an additional £50 million investment recently announced by the Prime Minister as part of wider government support for farmers facing drought and rising costs. As with Window 1, Defra intend to publish updates when around 25%, 50% and 75% of the Window 2 budget has been allocated. The length of time Window 2 remains open will depend on demand. In line with SFI Window 1 and the Capital Grants offer, Defra expects strong demand initially when the scheme opens.
You can read further information and guidance including full eligibility criteria how to apply on this Defra Farming Blog post.
