Payment

Benefits are calculated for the Agri-Québec Plus program when the final payment for AgriStability is calculated. There are no interim payments with Agri-Québec Plus.

Agri-Québec Plus does not kick in when the net income calculated for the purpose of the program exceeds $50,000. The program payment is therefore limited to the amount required to make up the difference between the net income and $50,000.

The total payout from the AgriStability and Agri-Québec Plus programs, for a same participation year, cannot exceed $3 million.

In an operation’s financial statements, the net income usually occupies the last line of the statement results and represents the difference between all income and expenses. The net benefit is adjusted by La Financière agricole for the purpose of calculating the payment from the Agri-Québec Plus program. It is established using the accrual method of accounting and takes into account:

• The operation’s farming portion, including aquaculture;
• Income and expenses related to any incidental non-farming activity (as a general rule, we consider that incidental non-farming income can account for up to 30% of total income).

Any adjustments requested or made by Financière agricole for the AGRI programs (changes in inventory, crop insurance payments, etc.) are taken into account.
 
In addition, the following items are excluded from the net income calculation under Agri-Québec Plus:

• All income tax;
• Wages paid by a joint-stock company to its shareholders;
• Accounting gains or losses on the disposition of assets;
• Private insurance proceeds if they are not related to the loss of farm products;
• The share of the operation in the results (positive or negative) of a joint-stock company or a partnership of persons engaged in a farming operation;
• Payments as well as government contributions or withdrawals from the AgriInvest and Agri-Québec programs;
• Income and expenses from non-farming activities when they are presented separately in the financial statements or for tax purposes. If not, they must be excluded from the net income calculation when income from non-farming activities exceeds 30% of the operation's total income.

Payments from the Agri-Québec Plus program are not taken into account when calculating ASRA program compensation.