February 23, 2021 3:14 pm Applications for Northern Ireland’s 2021 Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) and Entitlement Transfer Service will open on March 1, Agriculture Minister Gordon Lyons has announced. Welcoming the launch, Minister Lyons said: “I am pleased to announce that the 2021 Single Application and Map Service and Entitlement Transfer Service will open on March 1, 2021. Entitlement transfer applications will be accepted up to May 4, and Single Applications for Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) and other schemes such as the Environmental Farming Scheme can be submitted up to May 17 this year without penalty. Minister Lyons continued: “The farm payments made by my department represent the single largest income for farms in Northern Ireland, and underpin the financial viability of the agricultural industry.