Extremadura adapts its aid for the promotion of wine in third countries

The Governing Council of the Junta de Extremadura approved Decree 173/2026, of October 13, which modifies the regional regime for aid for wine promotion and communication activities in third countries. The provision is published in the Official Gazette of Extremadura (DOE) number 202, of October 20, 2026, section I (General Provisions), with the official reference 2026040221, and enters into force the day following its publication, that is, October 21.

The regulation is signed by the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Natural Environment, Juan José García García, and endorsed by the President of the Junta de Extremadura, María Guardiola Martín, following the deliberation of the Governing Council in its session on October 13, 2026. The text modifies Decree 151/2022, of December 21, published in DOE number 4, of January 5, 2023, which established the complementary rules for these aids and carried out the first call for the EAFRD 2024 financial year.

Alignment with state and European regulations

The decree responds to the publication, in BOE number 179 of July 24, 2026, of Royal Decree 610/2026, of July 22, which modified various regulations on interventions in the fruit and vegetable, wine, and beekeeping sectors within the framework of the Strategic Plan for the Common Agricultural Policy. In its third article, that royal decree updates Royal Decree 905/2022, of October 25, which regulates the Wine Sector Intervention and dedicates articles 55 to 72 to promotion in third countries.

The ultimate origin of the reform is Regulation (EU) 2026/471 of the European Parliament and of the Council, of February 24, 2026, which amended Regulations (EU) 1308/2013, 251/2014 and 2021/2115 regarding the marketing and sectoral support measures for wine. The Junta maintains that the modification is necessary to incorporate the basic national regulations and avoid discrepancies between the regional, state, and European legal frameworks.

Duration of programs and extensions

Article 4 of Decree 151/2022 is rewritten to establish that programs are executed between January 1 and December 31 of each year. The main changes are:

• Maximum aid duration of three years per third-country market.
• Up to two extensions of three years each for wines with PDO, PGI, or grape variety indication.
• A maximum of nine consecutive years of aid per beneficiary in the same market.
• Calculation based on the combination of country, region, action, sub-action, and target audience.

Two calls for 2028 and 2029

The new second transitional provision establishes two calls that will be paid from the 2028 and 2029 annual budgets, with their own calendars:

• 2028 Call: execution from March 1 to December 31, 2027, applications until December 31, 2026, financial needs on February 1, 2027, and selected programs on April 30, 2027.
• 2029 Call: execution from March 1 to December 31, 2028, applications until December 31, 2027, financial needs on February 1, 2028, selection on April 30, 2028, and payments until December 31, 2029.

Both are subject to the existence of adequate and sufficient credit in the European fund for the 2028-2034 programming period, their inclusion in the regional and national CAP plans, and the European regulations of the following period. The 2028 call will be processed as an extension of the effectiveness of the Wine Sector Intervention, and the 2029 call as a new intervention.

Electronic processing and evaluation

The decree reinforces the mandatory electronic relationship with the Administration for all natural and legal persons, with notifications through the Associated Electronic Office of the Junta de Extremadura. Applications shall be submitted to the Directorate General of Agriculture and Livestock until September 14 of the year prior to the start of the program, with a minimum of three provider offers for each expense and a ten-day period for corrections.

The Evaluation Commission will be chaired by the head of the Agricultural and Food Quality Service, with two members, and will send the list of admissible programs to the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food before November 30 of each year. The resolution will be issued by the General Secretariat of the Department within a maximum period of six months from the Sectoral Conference, with negative administrative silence. Annexes I and II are also replaced, including the application model for intervention 2984422.

The text arrives after the General Secretariat opened, via resolution of August 21, 2026, published in DOE number 165, a consultation, hearing, and public information process of seven business days regarding the project. The sole transitional provision clarifies that the new regulation will apply to calls published after its entry into force, while applications already submitted will continue to be governed by the previous regulations.

The calendar is the most urgent piece of data for the sector: wineries and sectoral entities wishing to opt for EAGF funds in the 2028 call have just over two months, until December 31, 2026, to submit their promotion programs in third-country markets.

Source: Official Gazette of Extremadura, number 202, of October 20, 2026, section I (General Provisions) (official reference: 2026040221).