Canary Islands readjust extraordinary aid for the primary s…

The Government of the Canary Islands has approved Decree-Law 7/2026, of October 30, which modifies Decree-Law 3/2026, of April 6, to adapt extraordinary aid for farmers, livestock breeders, and fishers to the European de minimis aid regime. The regulation is published in the Official Gazette of the Canary Islands (Boletín Oficial de Canarias) no. 220, of November 4, 2026, and will enter into force on November 5, one day after its publication. The text is signed by the president of the Government of the Canary Islands, Fernando Clavijo Batlle, and the counselor of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries, and Food Sovereignty, Alejandro Narvay Quintero Castañeda.

From the European Temporary Framework to the de minimis regime

Decree-Law 3/2026, of April 6, published in the Official Gazette of the Canary Islands no. 66, of April 7, 2026, approved a set of measures in response to the crisis in the Middle East. Its Chapter III contains extraordinary aid intended to compensate for the differential overcost of inputs, feed, and energy, with special attention to the higher logistical costs of double insularity.

The European Commission adopted the Temporary Crisis Framework through Communication C/2026/2593, published in the Official Journal of the European Union on May 5, 2026. Once approved, it was found that the aid under Article 6 of Decree-Law 3/2026 could not be covered by it, making it necessary to resort to the de minimis regime.

Depending on the sector, the following apply:

Commission Regulation (EU) No 1408/2013, of December 18, 2013, for de minimis aid in the agricultural sector.
Commission Regulation (EU) No 717/2014, of June 27, 2014, for the fisheries and aquaculture sector.

State figures and exclusions

Royal Decree 639/2026, of July 29, published in the Official State Gazette (Boletín Oficial del Estado) no. 186, of July 31, 2026, regulates the direct granting of a subsidy to the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands to finance the Impulse Plan for the Canarian primary sector, for a total amount of 23,100,000 euros. Of that amount, 3,600,000 euros may be allocated to cover the aid from Decree-Law 3/2026.

The regional decree-law self-designates as the Impulse Plan for the Canarian primary sector, and the three lines of aid are as follows:

Compensation for the overcost of production inputs, except for potatoes and tomatoes.
Compensation for the overcost in the acquisition of feed.
Compensation for energy and logistical overcosts in the fishing sector.

The exclusion of potatoes and tomatoes is because both crops will receive specific aid charged to the European Union’s agricultural reserve, in application of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/1894, of July 27, 2026, which will compensate for the overcost of fertilization.

Limits per beneficiary and access requirements

Aid for inputs and feed must respect the limit of 50,000 euros per beneficiary over a three-year period, in accordance with Article 3.2 of Regulation (EU) No 1408/2013. Aid for the fishing sector is limited to 40,000 euros per beneficiary over three years, according to Article 3.2 bis of Regulation (EU) No 717/2014.

The access requirements are established as follows:

Production inputs: holdings registered in the Canary Islands Agricultural Holdings Registry (REAC) upon the entry into force of the regulation, instead of the reference prior to May 31, 2025.
Feed: holders of goat, sheep, pig, cattle, rabbit, and poultry livestock holdings registered in the Canary Islands Livestock Holdings Registry (REGAC) as of February 28, 2026, with an updated census and at least 5 large livestock units.
Fishing: shipowners of vessels registered in the General Registry of the Fishing Fleet, with a valid license and a home port in the Canary Islands.

Double insularity and distribution of amounts

The amounts will be determined by the holder of the Vice-Ministry of the Primary Sector, in accordance with Decree 212/2024, of December 16. For inputs, the type of surface area and the island will be considered, with a maximum of 50 hectares per applicant and without granting aid whose eligible amount is less than 30 euros.

For feed, the aid will be distributed in proportion to the livestock units declared as of February 28, 2026, and will be increased by 16% for holdings on islands other than Tenerife and Gran Canaria, due to double insularity. In the fishing sector, it will be distributed according to the days of activity accredited by the vessel monitoring system (VMS), with a maximum of 20,000 euros per vessel and 40,000 euros per shipowner if requested for both concepts; the vulnerability criterion is eliminated due to the difficulty of its specification.

Control, publicity, and entry into force

The granting resolution will be conditional upon the submission, within five days of its notification, of the responsible declarations regarding de minimis limits, which will be processed through the electronic office. Non-compliance will render the subsidy null and void. The aid will be published in the National Subsidy Database (BDNS) and the resolutions will incorporate the logo GOVERNMENT OF SPAIN-MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD.

The decree-law further declares that these aids are compatible with those of Royal Decree-Law 7/2026, of March 20, which approves the Comprehensive Response Plan to the Crisis in the Middle East. It is, therefore, a regulation that unlocks the effectiveness of payments already planned, by providing them with community and state legal coverage before the applications from the Canarian primary sector are resolved.

Source: Official Gazette of the Canary Islands, no. 220, of November 4, 2026, section I. General provisions, page 39481 (official reference: BOC-A-2026-220-3774).