Grant or payment · Scotland
Scottish Suckler Beef Support Scheme (SSBSS) 2026
Payment per eligible beef calf to help keep suckler herds in Scotland, with separate mainland and island rates.
- From
- Scottish Government / RPID
- How much
- Rate set each year from the number of calves claimed. 2025 rates: £127.20 per calf mainland, £175.90 per calf islands. Annual budget about £34m mainland and £6m islands.
- Who can apply
- Farming businesses with a suckler beef herd that submitted a 2026 SAF. Calves must be at least 75% beef bred, born on your Scottish holding and kept there 30 days, and be the dam's first calf or from a dam with a calving interval of 410 days or less.
- Opens
- 15 January 2026
- Closes
- 14 January 2027
What you’ll need
- 2026 Single Application Form
- Correct cattle passports, tags and herd register
- Calving interval of 410 days or less (businesses claiming 10 calves or fewer are exempt from 2026)
How to apply
- Claim online through Rural Payments and Services, or on the paper claim form, any time in the window
- More than one claim is allowed
- Calves born on or after 2 December 2026 go into the 2027 scheme year
Full guidance published 30 July 2026. 2026 claims accepted from 15 January 2026 until 14 January 2027. 2025 rates published 2 April 2026; 2026 rates are set after the window closes. Payment by 30 June.
Similar schemes
- Scottish Upland Sheep Support Scheme (SUSSS) 2026 OpenScottish Government / RPID · Closes 30 November 2026Flat-rate payment for each homebred ewe hogg kept on rough grazing farms that rely on Payment Region 3 land.
- Croft House Grant Open all yearScottish Government / RPIDGrants for crofters to build a new croft house, rebuild or improve one, or make it more energy efficient.
- Crofting Agricultural Grant Scheme (CAGS) Open all yearScottish Government / RPIDCapital grants for crofters to build or improve agricultural buildings and other croft works, and to set up Common Grazings Committees.
- Crofting Cattle Improvement Scheme (bull hire) Open all yearScottish Government / RPIDHire of Scottish Government-owned bulls to groups of crofters who cannot practically keep their own bull or use AI.
Checked against the official pages on 29 October 2026. Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4. Always read the official page before you apply.