The move aims to address liquidity problems which farmers face due to exceptional conditions caused by the ongoing financial crisis and unfavourable climatic conditions.

The derogation will allow the advance to be paid from 16 October onwards (ie the first day of the 2013 budget year) rather than from the usual date of 1 December.

This decision is subject to the necessary controls having taken place.

The formal decision will be published in the Official Journal in the coming weeks.

Until now 10 countries - Portugal, Spain, Italy, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania,Hungary, France, Romania and Ireland - have officially requested to pay direct payments in advance.

For the few member states that maintain "coupled" payments, this derogation will also allow a 80 per cent of the beef and veal payments.

In a separate vote, the Committee provided an exceptional derogation for farmers in Northern Italy [Emilia Romagna, Lombardia and Veneto regions] affected by the earthquake at the end of May, to receive advances from 1 August onwards.

The special measure will permit Italy to advance 50 per cent of the Direct Payments to farmers in the 113 communes affected by the earthquake and to the milk producers who deliver their milk on a regular basis to the storage centres situated in those communes – within a maximum limit of €40 million for advances paid before 16 October.