Rural Payments and Services

The Future Farming Investment Scheme (FFIS) is a competitive capital grant scheme supporting investment in Scottish farm and croft businesses to improve efficiency, sustainability and environmental outcomes.

The budget for the 2026 scheme is £14.25 million.

This guidance explains how FFIS works and forms part of the scheme rules. It should be read alongside the separate Capital Investment Guide, which sets out the eligible investments, Item Scores, Maximum or Standard Costs, specifications and any investment-specific requirements.

You should read both documents carefully before applying.

Funding is limited and not all applications will be successful. Eligible applications will be ranked under the scheme rules. Funding will be awarded to the highest-ranked applications until the available budget is fully committed.

Applying, or meeting the eligibility requirements, does not guarantee that you will receive funding.

Remember: FFIS support can only be used for eligible capital investments. The applicant business must purchase and own them. They must be used solely by or on behalf of that business for the purposes and benefit of its agricultural business.

How the scheme works

The scheme follows a simple process:

• Apply – submit your application during the application window.
• Assessment and ranking – your application will be checked for eligibility and, if eligible, ranked in accordance with the scheme rules.
• Offer – if your application is successful, you will receive an Offer of Grant.
• Payment – once you accept your Offer of Grant, your grant will be paid to your registered business bank account. The grant is paid in advance and remains provisional. Payment does not confirm your final entitlement. You must complete every approved investment and quantity, provide all required evidence and comply with your Offer of Grant. SGRPID will verify the evidence, complete any necessary inspection or further checks and reconcile the grant before confirming final entitlement.
• Complete your investments – purchase or complete every investment and the full approved quantity included in your Offer of Grant within the required timescale.
• Provide evidence – submit all the required evidence for every approved investment and approved quantity within the required timescale.
• Retention – retain your supported investments for six years from the date your Offer of Grant was made and make them available for inspection if requested.

By accepting an Offer of Grant, you enter into a binding agreement to complete and evidence the whole approved Project. You cannot choose to complete only some of the investments included in your Offer.

Scheme objective

FFIS supports capital investment that contributes to one or more of the following objectives:

• improve business efficiency and sustainability;
• protect, restore or enhance the environment;
• reduce greenhouse gas emissions; and
• mitigate the effects of climate change.

The eligible capital investments and their Item Scores are set out in the Capital Investment Guide.

Guidance updates

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