Implementing projects

When the Swedish Board of Agriculture has made a decision about your project, they will send you a start decision. This is the LEADER project's steering document that you must follow in order to receive the money you have applied for.

It is important that you follow your application and project plan. If the project cannot be implemented as planned, it is important that you contact us at Leader Södermanland before making any changes, otherwise there is a risk that the support cannot be paid and/or that you will receive a deduction.

Separate reporting is a requirement from the EU. All expenses in the project must be reported separately. If the expenses are not reported separately, you risk not receiving the support you have applied for. The report must clearly show which income and expenses belong to the project or investment through one of the following methods:
– project code, profit center, cost center, object or similar
– one or more accounting accounts specifically designated for the project or investment
– clear marking in accounting records, cash book or diary sheets showing that you have recorded the project's expenses and income

When you advertise or provide information about the project in printed material, social media and on your website, it is important that it is visible that it is a Leader project that is partly financed by the EU. You do this by writing in the text that you are financed by Leader Södermanland and by using the correct logo. The logo that you should use is called the EU logo with the text "Co-financed by the European Union". You can see what it looks like at the bottom of the page. On the Swedish Board of Agriculture's website you can read more about which logos are required for different types of information.

When applying for final payment, the project states the amount for the non-profit resources, as well as other non-profit resources. The documents are sent to the Leader office. An Excel template is available on the Leader Södermanland website.

An application for advance payment can be made when the project has been formally approved by the Swedish Board of Agriculture. You can apply for up to 50% of project support from the EU/state, and a maximum of SEK 250,000. The application is usually processed within a few weeks.

When the project is formally approved by the Swedish Board of Agriculture, you can apply for payment of support. In the application for payment, you can only include expenses that have been carried out and paid by the beneficiary. Please note that the project is always ultimately responsible for the accuracy of the accounting. When applying for payment, the project will have direct contact with the Swedish Board of Agriculture, which is the responsible authority. If you have any questions, please contact the Leader office.

The payment account is sent to the Swedish Board of Agriculture and to the Leader Södermanland office.

Be careful to follow the decision on support. If you do not meet the conditions or rules for the support, you may have your support reduced. If the error is serious, the Swedish Board of Agriculture may revoke the decision in whole or in part. If the Swedish Board of Agriculture revokes the decision, you cannot receive any money.

For used equipment to be eligible for support, you must provide a certificate in connection with your accounting showing that:
– the previous owner who used the equipment did not receive support for its purchase
– the equipment has the technical characteristics needed for the project
– the price of the equipment does not exceed the market value and is lower than the cost of new equipment

Certificate “Used equipment and materials – certificate (Strategic plan 2023–2027)” is available on the Swedish Board of Agriculture’s website.

Unforeseen events may arise in the project that contribute to the need for you to submit a change request. Examples of when you need to submit a change request are:
– new end date
– increased budget
– new activities
– change of beneficiary

Contact your LEADER office if you are unsure whether you need to make an application. The form ”Application – change of decision on support (Strategic plan 2023–2027)” is available on the Swedish Board of Agriculture’s website.

The Swedish Board of Agriculture has ten years to claim back support that has been paid incorrectly. It is therefore important that you save all accounting records and documents for ten years after the final payment of your project. You are responsible for ensuring that the accounting records and other documents, such as invoices, receipts and procurement documents, are available for inspection during that time.