More than 80 farmers and crofters are still waiting for subsidy support payments from 2015.
A parliamentary question by Scottish Conservative MSP for the north-east, Peter Chapman, reveals 81 producers are still waiting for Less Favoured Area Support Scheme (LFASS) payments from applications submitted almost four years ago.
In response to the question, Rural Economy Secretary Fergus Ewing revealed the number of outstanding LFASS payments for 2015, and said it equated to 0.71% of the eligible population.
He said: “We are aiming to process the vast majority of these remaining claims by April 1 2019.
“We check each claim carefully, providing every opportunity for customers to confirm they have met scheme rules and are eligible for a payment,” he added.
“In any year the last few claims are always the most complex, and take longer to resolve, but we will conclude the processing of these few remaining claims as quickly as possible.”
Mr Chapman said LFASS recipients were the latest casualty of the Scottish Government’s “botched IT system” put in place to pay Common Agricultural Policy (Cap) cash.
Mr Chapman added: “Farmers in my region and across Scotland are routinely paying the price for the SNP’s incompetence.
“Their Cap IT fiasco has only just resolved after thousands of farmers across Scotland were left out of pocket to the tune of hundreds of millions of pounds.
“Scottish farmers are being left in the dark and they are desperate for help.
“To wait almost four years, only to be told no, is unacceptable.
“How can the industry make plans for the future when it doesn’t know what’s coming in? It is a kick in the teeth.”