Budget 2027: Key measures for farmers
Budget 2027 includes changes to farm taxation, succession supports and social protection, Farm Management Specialist at Teagasc, Kevin Connolly outlines some of the main budget measures.
Succession and land transfer
The headline farm measure, the Succession Farm Partnership tax credit doubles from €5,000 to €10,000 a year for up to five years. For partnerships registered from 1 January 2027, the land transfer also no longer has to wait three years. However, the €100,000 EU State Aid lifetime cap still applies across this credit, Young Trained Farmer Stamp Duty Relief and enhanced stock relief.
From 7 October 2026, the Capital Acquisitions Tax (CAT) Group A threshold (son/daughter) rises from €400,000 to €420,000. Group B rises to €44,000 and Group C to €22,000. The CAT rate (33%) and Agricultural Relief are unchanged.
The Capital Gains Tax rate falls from 33% to 31% for disposals (excluding development land) from 7 October 2026. Retirement Relief, stamp duty rates and reliefs are unchanged.
Income Tax, USC and PRSI
The standard rate band goes up by €2,500, to €46,500 for a single person. Tax rates stay at 20% and 40%. Personal, PAYE and Earned Income tax credits each rise by €125, to €2,125. The USC 2% band is widened to €30,300, in line with the minimum wage rising to €14.94 per hour from January.
Class S PRSI went up to 4.35% on 1 October 2026. It will rise to 4.5% in October 2027 and to 4.7% in October 2028. For farm employers, the higher employer PRSI rate of 11.4% now starts where employee weekly earnings exceed €600.
Capital Allowances, Stock Relief and VAT
Accelerated Capital Allowances for Farm Safety Equipment are extended to 31 December 2029, and 12 new items will be added to the eligible list – details to be announced shortly. Accelerated allowances for slurry storage continue to 2029. General, partnership and young trained farmer stock reliefs continue to the end of 2027.
The VAT flat-rate farmer addition increases from 4.5% to 4.8% from 1 January 2027. The rate of VAT on respiratory vaccines is being reduced from 23% to 9%.
Social protection
The main weekly payments rise by €10 from January 2027. Farm Assist goes to €264 and the State Pension (Contributory) to €309.30.
From July 2027, the amount of agri-environmental scheme income ignored in the Farm Assist and non-contributory State Pension means tests rises from €5,000 to €7,500, and more schemes will be ignored. The tax-free allowance for income from selling microgenerated electricity rises from €400 to €600.
Agriculture allocations
Key allocations for the budget for measures administered by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine include:
- ACRES: €280 million
- TB programme: €142.4 million (on-farm valuation ceilings up €500)
- Livestock schemes: €131 million
- TAMS: €93.35 million
- Forestry: €93 million
- Fertiliser Scheme: €46.1 million
- Tillage Sustainability Support Scheme: €30 million
- Straw Incorporation Measure: €14 million
- Protein Aid: €10 million
Next steps
The Finance Bill is due on 15 October, with Finance Act 2026 to be signed before Christmas.
The above is just a brief summary of some of the measures carried in Budget 2027. For more details, and to see how Budget 2027 affects your farm, read Kevin Connolly’s ‘Budget 2026 – Summary of the main Budget measures’ (PDF) here.
Farmers should consult their accountant or tax adviser on their own situation.