Agritourism Investment Scheme (AIS) 2026

10 February 2026

The Agritourism Investment Scheme opened on 19th January 2026 and will close at midnight on 13th March 2026.

The Agritourism Investment Scheme is a capital grant scheme designed to help agritourism businesses in Scotland to be financially sustainable, profitable, and resilient businesses that will play a key role in sustaining the future of Scottish agriculture.

The grant has a maximum support rate of 40% of the capital investment costs. At the maximum rate of 40%, if approved, it means an application to purchase an eligible item costing £10,000 could receive £4,000 in grant funding towards the item. Please note that the support can be lower than 40% depending on the type of project and objectives achieved, and you will be notified of the agreed rate and offer of grant if your application is successful.

The budget allocation for this application window is £1 million.

The application form asks for the position of the project lead held within the agritourism business and the relationship between the agricultural business and agritourism business (e.g. the parents are the partners in the agricultural business, but the agritourism business is run by the next generation).

Scottish Government will prioritise grant support to applications that are judged to deliver most against the objectives of the scheme.

Priority will also be given to new entrants, young farmers, and island-based businesses.

Please note, the Agritourism Investment Scheme is competitive, and you may not receive the funding you apply for.

Full details about this scheme including a link to the application form is available here: Agritourism Investment Scheme (AIS)

How to ensure your application is competitive

Build a compelling case. The reviewer is time poor and wants to get to the point as quickly as possible. Hook the reader in from the start, quickly build a compelling case, don’t wander too far from the point, and try to stand out from the others. Seek quotes to determine the total cost of your investment. The maximum funding (£50,000) requires 3 quotes and a business plan with 3 years of financial projections.

Put yourself in the shoes of the funder/reviewer. The funder/reviewer has key criteria and objectives to score your application against. When writing and reviewing your own application before submission, put yourself in the shoes of the funder. Do your answers meet the scheme objectives? Key criteria? Have you included key information and financials? This is what your application is being scored/rated on so make sure it is fully completed.

Always relate back to the scheme objectives and priorities. It’s easy to describe the “thing” you want to buy, but it’s vital you explain how your investment meets the scheme objectives and priorities, why your investment is important, and how it will improve/benefit your agritourism offering.

With the above in mind, review the scheme’s objectives below to best understand the objectives, opportunities, and your own eligibility, then complete your application form and email the supporting documents to AIS@gov.scot. Good luck!

Scheme objectives

The scheme’s objectives are:

to increase the number of farms and crofts offering agritourism or farm retail to 1,000 by 2030.

to develop Scotland’s agritourism on-farm offering based on food and drink and farm experiences.

to support new innovative products and services in the agritourism sector.

to attract, develop and retain a skilled, committed, and diverse workforce, made up of both family employment on farm, and employees.

to create, develop and promote a thriving and responsible sector.

to provide quality, unique, and memorable market led experiences.

to assist businesses to become “Travel Trade Ready” and to attract more international visitors to experience agritourism in Scotland.

to build financially sustainable, profitable, and resilient businesses and to play a key role in sustaining the future of Scottish agriculture.

for 50% of agritourism and farm businesses to offer a food and drink experience using their own produce.

to contribute to strengthening rural communities and/or celebrating local heritage including farm heritage.

Eligibility for AIS

You are eligible to apply if:

your agritourism business meets the definition set by Scotland’s National Agritourism Strategy, “A tourism or leisure activity on a working farm, croft or estate which produces food or wool”.

your agricultural business is registered and approved for funding with Scottish Government Rural Payments and Inspections Division (SGRPID).

your agritourism business has a direct connection to an agricultural business that is registered and approved for funding with SGRPID.

where your proposed agritourism/ food retail business offers a food and drink experience, you can demonstrate that it uses produce from the farm (not necessarily exclusively).

You are not eligible if you:

are a non-departmental public body.

are a local authority.

are a crown body.

are a group of farmers or crofters (including producer organisations/common grazing committee).

let all your land out.

are an equine business (including grazing horses).

are an agricultural contractor.

are an agricultural business that provided false or misleading information in a capital grant application/claim within the last five years.

Guideline for ineligible and eligible costs and items for AIS

The tables below give examples of eligible and ineligible costs, items, and investments for the Agritourism Investment Scheme.

Capital investments made with grant funding must be retained in use by your business, operational and in good repair for a period of six years from the date the offer of grant was made. They must also be used for the same purpose as set out in the original application, for six years (or for their useful life if this is less than six years and correct maintenance has been carried out) from the date of being made the offer of grant.

Please note that this is not an exhaustive list. You can check that your planned investment(s) may be eligible before you apply by emailing AIS@gov.scot