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Kosovo: AZHB to review rejected wheat subsidy applications, cites “technical error”
After criticism that the criteria changed after the deadline closed, the Agency for Agricultural Development says the affected cases will be handled under the 2026 administrative instruction.
By ANN Newsroom · Newsroom
October 20, 2026, 17:29 · Updated 12:22 · 2 min read
In brief
- The Ministry of Agriculture says a technical error in the system caused a small number of farmers to receive rejections for the quantity-based wheat subsidy.
- The applications will be reviewed under Administrative Instruction No. 02/2026 and the documentation submitted.
- The minister's Oct. 2 decision had raised the yield threshold for the additional payment from 3,225 to 3,450 kilograms per hectare.
Kosovo's Agency for Agricultural Development (AZHB) will review the applications of farmers who were rejected for the wheat subsidy based on quantity produced. The announcement came from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Development, which attributed the rejections to a “technical error in the system” that it said affected a small number of farmers.
The ministry gave no figures on how many farmers were affected. It said the cases will be handled in accordance with Administrative Instruction No. 02/2026 on Direct Payments and the documentation farmers submitted when applying, and that after review the applications will be processed under the criteria in force. AZHB asked farmers for their understanding.
Criteria that changed after the deadline
The issue came to light after Buletini Ekonomik reported that Minister Armend Muja had issued decision No. 2723 on Oct. 2, after the application deadline closed on July 31. The decision raised the national average wheat yield from 4,300 to 4,600 kilograms per hectare and the threshold for the additional payment from 3,225 to 3,450 kilograms. Some farmers who met the old criterion were rejected on Oct. 13, with reference to the new decision.
The ministry maintains that the Oct. 2 decision does not apply to 2026 applications but to the 2027 Direct Payments program, and that for this year the minimum threshold remains 3,225 kilograms per hectare.
Political reactions
The opposition sharply criticized the change. LDK lawmakers called it a punishment for those who work the land, while AAK lawmaker Burim Ramadani claimed the subsidy budget for 2026 had fallen from 67 million to 47 million euros. Meanwhile, the farmers' union supported raising the threshold for the coming years. The ministry has announced that decisions and payments for some 33,460 applications under Direct Payments 2026 begin this week.
