What it pays
LEADER is funded through Ireland's Common Agricultural Policy plan for 2023 to 2027. The Department publishes one table of ceilings for the whole country.
| Type of project | Who applies | Highest rate | Highest grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| Investment in a business, including marketing done as part of the project | Private business | 75% | €200,000 |
| Analysis and development, such as a feasibility study | Business or community group | 90% | €30,000 |
| Training | Business or community group | 100% | €200,000 |
| Community project with commercial activity | Community group | 75% | €200,000 |
| Community project with no commercial activity | Community group | 75% | €500,000 |
These are ceilings. The rules say a Local Action Group may offer a lower rate, and it decides project by project. The smallest grant it can approve is €1,250, and a group can set its own minimum of up to €5,000.
The Department's own examples give a feel for the range. A karting track in Longford got €112,512 to resurface its track. A wool business in Offaly got €72,910 for an energy-efficient baler. A distillery in Monaghan got €37,125 for a filling unit. A start-up in Cavan selling eggs from vending machines got €31,482.
By 30 June 2026 the groups had approved 1,326 projects worth €64.5 million under the current programme.
What is open in your county?
Pick a county to see its Local Enterprise Office, what the council itself offers and the next closing date.
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Who can apply
An individual, a company or a community group can apply, for a project in a rural area. For LEADER, rural means everywhere except inside the boundaries of the five main cities.
The project has to fit one of the programme's themes and the local strategy your group has written. For a business the relevant headings are:
- enterprise development
- rural tourism and recreation
- rural food production
- farm diversification
- the green economy
- social, community and co-operative enterprises
You must show you have the matching money, that the project could not go ahead without the grant, and that it will not take trade from a similar business nearby. You must keep operating as funded for five years after the last grant payment.
The rules call the Local Enterprise Office the first stop for anyone starting a business, and the application form warns that enterprise projects may be referred there before they are assessed. So check what your Local Enterprise Office can and cannot fund as well.
What LEADER will not pay for
The operating rules list sectors and costs that cannot be funded. The ones that catch most small businesses are:
- conventional retail. Community shops, farm shops and outlets selling locally produced goods are the exceptions
- cars, vans, buses, tractors, diggers, forklifts and trailers
- working capital, including stock
- running costs such as wages, overheads and insurance
- primary farming and horticulture, fishing, fish farming and fish processing
- childcare, creches, nursing homes, health care and housing
- a bed and breakfast that is part of your own home, and work on private homes
- the horse racing and greyhound industries
- planning application fees, VAT you can reclaim, and the cost of meeting a legal requirement
New machinery and equipment, building work, and fees for architects and engineers of up to 12% of the building cost can be funded.
How to apply, step by step
- Contact the Local Action Group for your area, or the local development company that works for it. You can find the group that covers your county on our county pages.
- Register an expression of interest. Staff tell you whether the idea is eligible and how a full application will be scored. Some calls are open all year, first come first served. Others are competitive, with a closing date.
- Prepare the full application with the group's development officer. There is no fee. The rules ban groups from charging applicants.
- The group's evaluation committee assesses the project. The group's members then make the decision and write to you with their reasons.
- Sign and return the contract within the time given. The rules suggest 15 working days.
- Only now start the project. Pay the bills, then claim the grant with receipted invoices and bank statements. You can ask for up to five phased payments once 20% of the costs have been spent.
Anything started, ordered or paid for before the group receives your signed contract cannot be funded. The rules ban approval after the fact.
What you have to write and send
The standard application form asks for:
- a description of the project, its costs, and its start and finish dates
- for a business, how it will earn its income, with a business plan or projected income and spending
- financial projections for the next five years
- for a business already trading, accounts for the last three years
- the jobs the project will create or keep
- planning permission, or a letter from the council saying none is needed
- proof you own or lease the property
- evidence of your matching money, and of how you will pay the bills until the grant comes in
- details of any other public funding you have had. State aid of this kind is capped at €300,000 over three years
A tax clearance certificate is needed once grant payments pass €10,000 in a year.
How many quotes you need
It depends on how much of the project is paid for with public money.
| Purchase | Public funding of 50% or less | Public funding over 50% |
|---|---|---|
| Equipment or services under €5,000 | One written quote | One written quote. Three is best practice |
| Equipment or services, €5,000 to €10,000 | One written quote | Three written quotes |
| Equipment or services, €10,000 to €50,000 | Three written quotes | Three written quotes |
| Equipment or services over €50,000 | Five written quotes and a public notice | Advertise on eTenders |
| Building work under €10,000 | Two written quotes | Five written quotes, or eTenders |
| Building work, €10,000 to €100,000 | Three written quotes | Five written quotes, or eTenders |
All amounts are before VAT. A business offered more than half the cost of its project has to follow the national public procurement rules, which is the right-hand column. Once the group has approved a supplier, do not change it without asking first.
What goes wrong, and appeals
- Starting early. It makes the cost ineligible.
- Costs rising after approval. The rules say the grant can never be increased.
- Paying in cash. Cash payments over €1,000 in total on a project are not eligible.
- Running out of money mid-project. The grant is paid after you have paid your suppliers, so line up a bridging loan first if you need one. You can ask a credit union about a business loan or talk to your bank.
- Closing or selling within five years. All or part of the grant has to be repaid.
If the group turns you down, at either stage, you can ask it for a review within 30 days. It must answer within 60 days. If you are still unhappy you have 30 days to appeal to the Department's regional inspector, who also has 60 days to decide.
Budget 2027 on Tuesday 6 October 2026 could change the money available for LEADER, so check with your Local Action Group before you plan around a figure.
Common questions
Can a shop get LEADER funding?
Usually not. The operating rules exclude conventional retail. The exceptions are community shops, farm shops and outlets selling locally produced goods.
Can I buy a van, a tractor or a digger with a LEADER grant?
No. Cars, vans, buses, tractors, diggers, forklifts and trailers are all on the list of things LEADER cannot fund. New machinery and equipment that is not a vehicle can be funded.
Do I have to pay for everything first?
Yes. The grant is paid on claims backed by paid invoices. You can ask for up to five phased payments once 20% of the costs have been spent, and the group must check before it makes an offer that you have the money or a loan to carry the project.
Is there a fee to apply for LEADER funding?
No. The rules say Local Action Groups are not permitted to charge application fees or other fees. The rules also tell groups to help applicants who need it to prepare an application.
Can a farmer apply?
Not for farming itself. Breeding or keeping livestock, growing crops and milking are excluded. Farm diversification is one of the programme's themes, so a non-farming venture, or processing that adds value after harvest, can be considered. The farmer's own labour can count towards the matching contribution.
How long does a LEADER application take?
No overall timescale is published. It depends on your group's call dates and decision meetings. Where a group gives provisional approval while you wait for planning permission or finish tendering, you get six months to complete those steps.
The LEADER groups, county by county
- LEADER groups in Carlow
- LEADER groups in Cavan
- LEADER groups in Clare
- LEADER groups in Cork
- LEADER groups in Donegal
- LEADER groups in Dublin
- LEADER groups in Galway
- LEADER groups in Kerry
- LEADER groups in Kildare
- LEADER groups in Kilkenny
- LEADER groups in Laois
- LEADER groups in Leitrim
- LEADER groups in Limerick
- LEADER groups in Longford
- LEADER groups in Louth
- LEADER groups in Mayo
- LEADER groups in Meath
- LEADER groups in Monaghan
- LEADER groups in Offaly
- LEADER groups in Roscommon
- LEADER groups in Sligo
- LEADER groups in Tipperary
- LEADER groups in Waterford
- LEADER groups in Westmeath
- LEADER groups in Wexford
- LEADER groups in Wicklow
Where this comes from
- gov.ie, LEADER programme for Rural Development
- gov.ie, 2023 to 2027 LEADER Operating Rules, version 8 (June 2026)
- gov.ie, LEADER Operating Rules and Guidelines
- gov.ie, 2023 to 2027 LEADER Programme information leaflet
- gov.ie, LEADER Programme examples of projects
- gov.ie, LEADER Local Action Groups approved projects (to 30 June 2026)
- gov.ie, LEADER Local Action Groups contact details
Checked on 3 October 2026. We are an independent guide, not a government service. Rules change, so confirm the detail on the official page before you apply.