ARC and PLC Enrollment 2026: Why the Deadline Moved and What to Do Now

If you grow commodity crops, ARC and PLC are the safety net you elect between every year to protect against a bad market. Normally you would have made your election back in late winter or early spring. For 2026 the calendar moved, and the dates are now set:

2026 election and enrollment: September 16 through December 11, 2026.
2027 election and enrollment: November 2, 2026 through March 15, 2027.

Both run through your county Farm Service Agency (FSA) office. Miss December 11 and you lose your 2026 payments, so this is not one to leave until the last week.

What ARC and PLC actually are

Both are annual safety-net programs run by FSA for producers with an interest in a covered crop grown on a farm with base acres. You elect one or the other, crop by crop (or ARC-Individual for the whole farm), and it pays out when conditions turn against you:

ARC (Agriculture Risk Coverage) protects against revenue loss. It pays when actual revenue falls below a guarantee set from historical data and market conditions.
PLC (Price Loss Coverage) protects against price drops. It pays when the effective price for a covered commodity falls below its effective reference price.

FSA lists 22 covered commodities, including wheat, oats, barley, corn, grain sorghum, rice, seed cotton, soybeans, peanuts, dry peas, lentils, chickpeas, sunflower seed and canola.

The choice between them is a bet on how you think risk will show up: ARC if you are more worried about a revenue shortfall from yield and price together, PLC if you are more worried about prices falling below a floor. What you pick can mean real money in a down year, which is why the election is not a formality.

Why the 2026 timeline moved

The usual early-year window did not happen for 2026. The Working Families Tax Cuts Act (also called the One Big Beautiful Bill Act), passed July 4, 2025, added 30 million base acres to farms nationwide, and FSA had to allocate those acres before anyone could enroll. Because eligible acres came in over the 30-million-acre cap, FSA trimmed all newly allocated base acres by 3.69% across the board.

Landowners could review their new base acres from June 1 through August 31, 2026, and FSA opened 2026 enrollment on September 16. If you own farmland, your Base Allocation Notification is available online with a Login.gov account or from your county FSA office.

What happens if you miss December 11

FSA spells it out: if you do not submit your 2026 election by December 11, 2026, your election stays the same as your 2025 election for the crops on the farm, and the farm is not eligible for 2026 payments.

A few more rules worth knowing:

You sign a contract every year. The old multi-year contracts ended in 2025. You can sign a new multi-year contract covering 2026 through 2031.
Landowners need a share of the crop. A landowner cannot enroll unless they have a share interest in the crops on the farm.
2027 overlaps 2026. The 2027 window opens November 2, before the 2026 window closes, so you may be able to handle both in one office visit. Ask.

What to do this month

Call your county FSA office and set an appointment before December. Offices get busy near a deadline. Not sure where yours is? See our guide to finding your local FSA office.
Check your base acres and yields against your Base Allocation Notification. Errors here directly affect your payments.
Run the ARC-versus-PLC math for your crops under current price expectations. Your FSA office and land-grant extension economists often publish decision tools.
Decide whether a 2026 to 2031 multi-year contract makes sense for you, and sign your 2026 contract by December 11.

We track the program on our ARC/PLC page, and FSA posts the details at fsa.usda.gov.

How ARC/PLC fits with your other risk tools

ARC and PLC are the commodity-price and revenue safety net, but they are not your only protection, and they work alongside other programs rather than replacing them:

Crop insurance covers production and yield risk directly and is a separate decision with its own deadlines.
NAP covers crops that federal crop insurance does not reach. See our NAP crop coverage guide.
Disaster programs like ELAP and LFP for livestock cover specific loss events, a different job from the annual price-and-revenue coverage ARC/PLC provides.
DMC is the parallel safety net for dairy, and its 2027 enrollment is open through December 18, 2026. See our Dairy Margin Coverage breakdown.

Think of ARC/PLC as your baseline market safety net, with insurance and disaster programs layered around specific risks.

Frequently asked questions

Is ARC/PLC enrollment open for 2026? Yes. 2026 election and enrollment runs September 16 through December 11, 2026, at your county FSA office.

When is the 2027 ARC/PLC sign-up? November 2, 2026 through March 15, 2027.

What happens if I miss the December 11 deadline? Your 2026 election stays the same as your 2025 election, and the farm is not eligible for 2026 ARC/PLC payments.

What is the difference between ARC and PLC? ARC protects against revenue loss, paying when actual revenue falls below a guarantee. PLC protects against price drops, paying when the effective price falls below the effective reference price. You elect one per covered crop, or ARC-Individual for the whole farm.

Why was the 2026 deadline later than usual? FSA had to allocate the 30 million new base acres from the July 2025 law before enrollment could open. Landowners reviewed their new base acres through August 31, and 2026 enrollment opened September 16.

Who is eligible? Producers with an interest in a covered commodity grown on a farm with base acres. Landowners need a share interest in the crops.

The bottom line

The 2026 calendar moved, but it is settled now: enroll for 2026 by December 11, 2026, and handle 2027 between November 2, 2026 and March 15, 2027. Check your base acres, run your ARC-versus-PLC numbers, and get on your FSA office’s calendar before the rush.

Want to see every safety-net and disaster program you might qualify for? Run our free eligibility checker or browse the deadline calendar.