Slovakia's agriculture ministry pays out 98% of EU direct subsidies

Slovak Agriculture Minister Richard Takáč announced that 582.8 million euros of the 595.4 million euros allocated for the 2025 direct payments campaign have been disbursed, representing a 97.89 % payout rate. About 12.6 million euros remain unpaid, affecting roughly 200 farmers still undergoing checks, but the ministry confirmed that the EU Commission will not impose sanctions because the required 95 % threshold was met.

For the upcoming 2026 campaign, 14,400 farmers applied for support from a national budget of over 662 million euros. The ministry will increase advance payments to a maximum of 70 % in the first pillar and 85 % in the second pillar, introduce pre‑payments for animal welfare, and raise linked payments for dairy cows by 7.7 million euros.