Article 38 Area measurement

The actual area measurement of the agricultural parcel as part of an on-the-spot check may be limited to a randomly selected sample of at least 50 % of the agricultural parcels for which F2an aid application ora payment claim has been submitted under the F3area-related aid schemes or rural development measures. When this sample check reveals any non-compliance, all agricultural parcels shall be measured or conclusions from the sample shall be extrapolated.

Agricultural parcel areas shall be measured by any means proven to assure measurement of quality at least equivalent to that required by applicable technical standards, as drawn up F4in the relevant constituent nation.

The competent authority may make use of remote sensing in accordance with Article 40 and Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) techniques where possible.

A single value buffer tolerance shall be defined for all area measurements performed using GNSS and/or ortho-imagery. For this purpose the measurement tools used shall be validated for at least one validation class of buffer tolerance below the single value. However, the single tolerance value shall not exceed 1.25 m.

The maximum tolerance with regard to each agricultural parcel shall not, in absolute terms, exceed 1.0 ha.

However, for the measures referred to in Article 21(1)(a) and Articles 30 and 34 of Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013 as far as the forestry area is concerned, F5the relevant authority may define appropriate tolerances, which shall in no case be greater than twice the tolerance set out in the first subparagraph of this paragraph.

The total area of an agricultural parcel may be taken into account in the measurement provided that it is fully eligible. In other cases the net eligible area shall be taken into account. F6For that purpose, the pro-rata system as referred to in Article 10 of Delegated Regulation (EU) No 640/2014 may be applied, where appropriate.

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Where F8Article 17 of Delegated Regulation (EU) No 640/2014 may lead to an artificial division of the area of adjacent agricultural parcels with a homogeneous land cover type into separate agricultural parcels, the measurement of this area of adjacent agricultural parcels with a homogeneous land cover type shall be combined in one single measurement of the agricultural parcels concerned.

Where appropriate, separate measurements shall be carried out on the agricultural parcel for the purpose of the F10basic payment schemefarm sustainability transition payment schemeF11... in accordance with Chapter 1 of Title III of Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013 and a spatially different overlapping agricultural parcel for the purpose of the remaining area-related aid schemes and/or rural development measures, where appropriate.

Where the eligible area measured in accordance with F14paragraphs 1 to 8this Article is different from the area established as a basis for the calculation of the F15aid or support where checks by monitoring are applied in accordance with Article 40a, the area measured in accordance with F16paragraphs 1 to 8 of this Article shall prevail.

In the specific case of agricultural parcels of permanent grassland F17or permanent pastures used in common by several beneficiaries, the actual measurement may be substituted by checks based on the ortho-images used for the update of the identification system for agricultural parcels referred to in Article 70 of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013 provided that those checks are carried out on all such parcels within a period of maximum three years and the competent authority can demonstrate effective operational procedures complying with the rules laid down in Article 7 of this Regulation and effects the recoveries appropriately.