These are entitlements, held by farmers, to financial support within the context of the single payment scheme.The single payment scheme was introduced by the 2003 reform of the common agricultural policy with the purpose of simplifying the administration of direct payments. Prior to the reform, a farmer could receive a number of specific direct payments, each one associated with a particular line of production (milk, cereals, beef…).Following that reform, the specific direct payments have been incorporated into a single payment. The amount of this payment is equal to the number of payment entitlements multiplied by the average value of each payment entitlement (e.g. 10 payment entitlements times 200 € per entitlement = a single payment of 2000 €).The number and value of payment entitlements was derived from the sum total of the specific direct payments that the farmer received during a reference period (2000 – 02) and the number of hectares of land that gave rise to those specific direct payments. For example, if a farmer was growing 100 ha of wheat and received, in the form of direct payments, 30 000 €, he would be granted 100 payment entitlements and the value of each would be 300 €.To receive his single payment, a farmer needs to ‘activate his payment entitlements.’ He does this by declaring, for each payment entitlement, one ‘eligible hectare.’To take the above example, the farmer would declare to his national authority that he has 100 payment entitlements (each worth 300 €) and that he has 100 eligible hectares (these being 100 hectares under production). Upon verification of these declarations and subject to other conditions, the farmer would receive a single payment of 100 x 300 = 30 000 €.