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FAQs
- What are ‘Exceptional Circumstances’?
- What is an EC declaration?
- What is a prima facie declaration?
- How do regions become EC declared?
- How is an EC application prepared?
- What is the NAMS?
- How is an EC application processed and assessed?
- What are the EC criteria?
- What is the role of State and Territory governments in EC?
- Which areas are currently EC declared?
- What are the boundaries of my EC-declared area?
- Is any assistance available while NRAC is assessing an EC application?
- What assistance is available to farmers once an area is EC declared?
- What assistance is available to small businesses?
- Am I eligible for EC Relief Payments? Who do I contact?
- Am I eligible for Interest Rate Subsidies? Who do I contact?
- What happens when an EC declaration is due to expire?
- More information
What are ‘Exceptional Circumstances’?
Exceptional Circumstances (EC) are rare and severe events outside those a farmer could normally be expected to manage using responsible farm management strategies.
What is an EC declaration?
An area or region becomes ‘declared’ as experiencing an Exceptional Circumstances event (see below for more information on how regions become EC declared). The EC declaration triggers short-term support for farmers in situations beyond the scope of normal risk management and when the future of significant numbers of farmers in a region is at risk. Support is also available to agriculture-dependent small businesses. Events triggering an EC declaration have an impact so severe and prolonged that they are likely to occur only once in every 20-25 years.
What is a prima facie declaration?
An area or region is said to be prima facie declared when the Australian Government Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry receives an application for EC, agrees that a prima facie case has been established and refers the application to the National Rural Advisory Council (NRAC) for advice. The prima facie declaration triggers interim income support for farmers and agriculture-dependent small businesses while the EC application is being assessed.
How do regions become EC declared?
Communities or peak industry groups must approach their State or Territory Government in the first instance. When the State or Territory Government is confident that the event and the case fully meet the EC criteria, the State or Territory can then lodge an application for EC assistance with the Australian Government Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.
How is an EC application prepared?
The National Agricultural Monitoring System, or the NAMS, contains the majority of the information required for an EC application to be developed by State or Territory governments. The NAMS has an application template which is the National Rural Advisory Council’s preferred format and should be used as the basis for application for EC assistance. The NAMS is an online tool and can be fount at www.nams.gov.au.
What is the NAMS?
The NAMS is a web-based tool developed to assist in developing applications for EC areas and EC assessment processes. This is achieved through the generation of standardised reports containing relevant data that was agreed to by major stakeholders, including the National Rural Advisory Council, the Australian, State and Territory Governments and industry groups. These reports form the basis of an EC application.
A NAMS based application provides the majority of the climatic and production data for a proposed area over the EC event period. Additional information and analysis, however, will need to be provided. These should demonstrate the effect the climatic event has had on production and income at a local level, and may include data specific to the area, for example: when rainfall is required for certain production systems, and what this means for the major agricultural industries in the area.
Additional information can be entered directly into a NAMS based EC report, where the user is prompted by a series of questions. Much of this additional information comes from the community, including farmers, accountants, financial institutions, Rural Financial Counsellors and welfare agents.
How is an EC application processed and assessed?
Once the Australian Government Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry receives an application, he will request a preliminary assessment of the application against the EC criteria. If a prima facie case exists, the Minister then refers the application to the National Rural Advisory Council (NRAC) — an independent panel of farmers, agribusiness and industry experts — to determine whether a full case has been made against the EC criteria. NRAC provides a recommendation to the Minister on whether the applying region should be EC declared. The Minister must seek approval from the Australian Government before declaring that an area is experiencing EC.
What are the EC criteria?
EC applications must demonstrate that the event
- was rare (a one in 20-25 year event) and severe
- resulted in a severe downturn in farm income over a prolonged period (eg. more than 12 months) for a significant number of farmers in a region or industry, and
- was not predictable or part of a process of structural adjustment (the policy does not cover downturns in commodity prices).
What is the role of State and Territory governments in EC?
Before applying for EC, the relevant state or territory government must be able to demonstrate that it has provided substantial new assistance, which is not normally available, to the EC application area. The state or territory government must also declare drought in the EC application area.
Which areas are currently EC declared?
For maps and descriptions of EC and prima facie declared areas across Australia see Exceptional Circumstances (EC).
What are the boundaries of my EC-declared area?
For maps and descriptions of EC and prima facie declared areas across Australia see Exceptional Circumstances (EC).
Is any assistance available while NRAC is assessing an EC application?
Farmers in prima facie areas can apply to Centrelink for six months of Interim Income Support from the date that a prima facie case is established and NRAC is asked to examine an EC application. Agriculture-dependent small businesses that derive at least 70 per cent of their turnover from agriculture in prima facie areas may also be eligible for Interim Income Support.
Farmers and small business operators should not self-assess their eligibility for income support but should call the Drought Assistance Hotline on 13 23 16. Drought payments delivered by Centrelink on behalf of the Australian Government are taxable.
What assistance is available to farmers once an area is EC declared?
- Income support for farmers
After NRAC has reported to the Minister and an area is declared as experiencing EC, eligible farmers will be transferred from Interim Income Support to EC Relief Payments. EC Relief Payments are equivalent to the NewStart Allowance and are delivered by Centrelink.
Farmers should not self-assess their eligibility for EC Relief Payments but should call the Drought Assistance Hotline on 13 23 16. Farmers should note that drought payments delivered by Centrelink on behalf of the Australian Government are taxable.
Eligible farmers may also receive a Health Care Card and concessions under the Youth Allowance means tests.
Farmers in EC-declared areas can also access their Farm Management Deposits (FMDs) within 12 months of lodgement without losing their tax benefits.
- Business support
Eligible farmers can apply for EC Interest Rate Subsidies on new or existing loans under EC business support measures.
EC Interest Rate Subsidies are delivered through the State and Territory Rural Assistance Authorities, with assistance capped at $100 000 per year or $500 000 over five years. 90 per cent of the cost of this EC component is met by the Australian Government with State and Territory governments contributing 10 per cent.
For further information regarding EC Interest Rate Subsidies please contact your relevant State or Territory Rural Assistance Authority.
- Extra support for rural trainees
Employers in an EC-declared area who take on a new apprentice at the Certificate II level in a national rural skills traineeship or in a national agriculture or horticultural training package may be eligible for additional incentives of up to $3300. Further information is available by calling 1800 639 629 or online at www.newapprenticeships.gov.au.
For more information on other forms of assistance available to farmers see Drought Assistance.
What assistance is available to small businesses?
Agriculture-dependent small business operators who derive 70 per cent of their turnover from agriculture in any EC declared area are also eligible to apply for income and business support. For more information see Small Businesses.
Am I eligible for EC Relief Payments? Who do I contact?
Producers and small business operators should not self-assess their eligibility for EC Relief Payments (income support) but should call the Drought Assistance Hotline on 13 23 16.
Am I eligible for Interest Rate Subsidies? Who do I contact?
For more information on EC Interest Rate Subsidies (business support) please contact your state rural assistance authority.
What happens when an EC declaration is due to expire?
A streamlined review process was introduced to make it easier for farmers who have not experienced a break in the drought to have their EC declarations assessed for a possible extension. Under the review process, National Rural Advisory Council (NRAC) reviews EC declared areas before their expiry date to assess whether an extension to the declaration is warranted.
As part of the review, NRAC assesses information from a number of sources, If NRAC assesses an area as no longer being in exceptional circumstances, and the Minister accepts the advice not to extend the declaration, assistance ceases on the date the declaration ends. If NRAC supports extending the declaration, and the Minister agrees, assistance continues until the new declaration end date.
More information
For more information about how to apply for EC business support, you should first contact your State or Territory Government.
For more information on how to apply for EC income support, you should contact the Drought Assistance Hotline on 13 23 16.
For information on other Australian government programs and services available in regional Australia visit the Commonwealth Regional Information Service website, or call them on 1800 026 222 (Monday to Friday 9am - 6pm EST).