Connecticut small business grants, loans and training funds (2026)

Where Connecticut’s $119.4 million in SSBCI money went

Most states use the federal State Small Business Credit Initiative to back bank loans. Connecticut did not. Treasury’s program summary shows that the whole $119.4 million allocation runs through Connecticut Innovations, Inc. (CI), the state’s quasi-public venture investor, in two direct programs ⁠²:

Scroll the table sideways to see every column.

DECD is the implementing entity, and CI administers both programs ⁠². Neither one is a grant. CI takes an ownership stake or lends against one, and it invests only in companies with high growth potential. A restaurant, salon or contractor will not qualify.

The Future Fund invests $250,000 to $1.5 million per company, usually leading or co-leading a pre-seed or seed round, in venture-backable, tech-enabled startups that are in Connecticut or will move there. Diverse leadership is preferred, and outside co-investors are required ⁠⁴. Treasury’s summary gives a $250,000 to $1 million range, so confirm the current size with CI ⁠². The ClimateTech Fund invests $150,000 to $2 million per round in climate-related companies ⁠². CI also runs a separate Pre-Seed Investment program of up to $150,000. To qualify, a technology company in bioscience, IT, clean tech, photonics or advanced materials must be under seven years old, have under $2 million in non-grant revenue, and have at least half its staff in Connecticut. It must also match CI’s money 50% from private sources ⁠⁵.

The Boost Fund is the loan most owners will actually use

For a business that is not a venture-backed startup, the Connecticut Small Business Boost Fund is the main state-backed financing. It is a repayable loan, not a grant ⁠⁶:

• Amount and price: $5,000 to $500,000 at a fixed 4.5%, with no origination fee.
• Term: 60 months for loans under $150,000 and 72 months for loans over $150,000.
• Who qualifies: Small businesses and nonprofits with operations in Connecticut, up to 100 full-time employees, revenue up to $15 million, and at least one year in operation before applying. If your revenue is above $8 million, at least 75% of the loan must go to fixed assets.
• Uses: Equipment, payroll, utilities and rent, supplies, marketing, building renovations, eligible refinancing and other operating costs.

You pre-apply online. Seven community lenders, including Pursuit, Ascendus, NDC/GrowAmerica and Capital for Change, then underwrite the loans. The fund warns that limited money means not every applicant will get a loan, and it reviews applications on a rolling basis ⁠⁶. A startup in its first year cannot use the Boost Fund. Those owners should start with CTSBDC or a CDFI’s own microloan product.

The CT Opportunity Fund is a second DECD loan program, administered by the CDFI HEDCO. It will offer $10,000 to $500,000 at no more than 4% interest for up to 10 years. Priority goes first to businesses in concentrated-poverty census tracts, then to owners at or below HUD’s median income, then to first-time owners or others without access to bank credit ⁠⁷. As of October 2026, DECD says applications will be posted when the fund launches. Until then you can only sign up for updates ⁠⁷.

The one real DECD-backed grant, and why it is closed

The CT Small Business Support Grant is a true grant, run by HEDCO, Inc. with DECD and the Spanish American Merchants Association. Awards are $2,500 to $10,000 ⁠⁸. Eligibility is narrow:

• a registered Connecticut business with at least two years of continuous operation
• no more than 25 employees
• profitable, as shown on tax returns and financial statements
• no HEDCO/SAMA grant since July 1, 2022, and no grant from the program’s other administrators

Allowed uses include professional services, leasehold improvements, equipment, technology, cyber insurance, and up to three months of non-owner payroll or rent for an expansion ⁠⁸. The 2026 cycle ran March 16 to May 15, 2026, and is closed. HEDCO has not announced a 2027 round ⁠⁸. If you want to try next year, have two years of tax returns, current financial statements, projections and a sources-and-uses breakdown ready, since the 2026 application asked for all of them ⁠⁸.

Training money: generous for manufacturers, regional for everyone else

DECD’s Manufacturing Innovation Fund (MIF) has the state’s most substantial employer grants, but only manufacturers can use them. They are reimbursements, not upfront cash ⁠⁹:

Applications are filed in the grant portal run by CCAT (the Connecticut Center for Advanced Technology), which the MIF page links to for each program ⁠⁹.

Businesses outside manufacturing have to go through a regional workforce board instead. In October 2025, the U.S. Department of Labor gave the Connecticut Department of Labor $8 million for an Industry-Driven Skills Training Fund. CTDOL is passing $1.5 million to each of the five Workforce Development Boards to reimburse employers for on-the-job training, incumbent-worker upskilling, classroom training and apprenticeships ⁠¹⁰. The five boards are Capital Workforce Partners, Workforce Alliance, Eastern Connecticut Workforce Investment Board, The WorkPlace and Northwest Regional Workforce Investment Board. Target industries are shipbuilding and supply chain manufacturing, advanced manufacturing, IT and cybersecurity, construction, healthcare and social assistance, and transportation and logistics ⁠¹⁰. CTDOL does not publish a per-employer cap, so ask your board.

STEP export grants are open through July 2027

DECD’s State Trade Expansion Program is a reimbursement grant funded by the SBA. Under the FY 2025 guidelines dated July 22, 2026, the program period runs July 22, 2026 through September 29, 2027. STEP covers 75% of eligible expenses, up to $6,500 per activity and $10,000 per company, and the smallest request it accepts is $500 ⁠¹¹. DECD accepts applications first come, first served until July 1, 2027, while funds last ⁠¹¹.

Eligible activities include foreign trade shows where you exhibit, trade missions, international marketing materials, website translation, U.S. Commerce Department services such as Gold Key matchmaking, export training and B2B matchmaking ⁠¹¹. Your business must be registered in Connecticut, have operated for at least one year, meet SBA size standards, and export goods or services of U.S. origin or with at least 51% U.S. content ⁠³. The application has six forms: one online, plus five with handwritten signatures (self-certification, debarment, vendor profile, W-9 and a strategic export plan). Within two weeks after the activity, and no later than October 1, 2027, you submit receipts, a post-activity report and an invoice. DECD says the state payment system takes 2 to 4 weeks to pay ⁠¹¹.

Help for SBIR applicants, and two tax credits

DECD’s funding list includes no state SBIR/STTR matching grant, and CI’s current fund lineup is equity and debt, not SBIR matching ⁠¹⁠². Instead, CTSBDC runs a free online SBIR/STTR Accelerator: six weekly sessions on building a competitive federal proposal, and up to $1,000 in specialized consulting for those who finish. The latest cohort met August 26 to September 30, 2026 (application deadline August 14) ⁠¹³. CTSBDC itself is hosted by UConn and gives no-cost advice on startup planning, customers, operations and access to capital ⁠¹².

Two state tax credits can lower costs but do not provide startup cash:

• Angel Investor Tax Credit. This credit goes to your investors, not to you. A Connecticut investor who puts at least $25,000 into a qualifying company gets a 25% credit against state income tax, capped at $100,000 per company. To qualify, the company must have under $1 million in gross revenue, fewer than 25 employees, under seven years in Connecticut, at least half its staff living in Connecticut, and less than $2 million in prior angel investment ⁠¹⁴.
• ICHRA tax credit. Approved in the 2026 legislative session, this credit gives employers with 50 or fewer employees up to $1,000 per employee per year. It covers the first two consecutive years an employer offers an Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangement through Access Health CT’s BusinessPlus, and you claim it with Department of Revenue Services forms ⁠¹⁵.

A Connecticut owner’s order of operations

1. Request a CTSBDC adviser

   Use “Request Business Advising” on the CTSBDC site. It costs nothing, and an adviser can tell you whether you fit the Boost Fund, a CI program, MIF or STEP before you spend time on an application ⁠¹².

2. Match yourself to the right money

   If you have been operating less than a year, you are not eligible for the Boost Fund ⁠⁶. A non-tech business will not fit CI’s equity funds ⁠⁴⁠⁵. Manufacturers should look at MIF first ⁠⁹, and exporters at STEP ⁠¹¹.

3. Pre-apply for the Boost Fund if you have a year of operations

   Submit the online pre-application. A community lender contacts you to underwrite the loan at 4.5%, and you repay it over 60 or 72 months ⁠⁶. If one lender declines, ask CTSBDC whether another partner lender or a CDFI microloan fits better.

4. Manufacturers: apply in the CCAT portal before training starts

   Open the IWT or AFP listing from the MIF page and submit. IWT then reimburses half your documented training costs, up to $50,000 a year ⁠⁹.

5. Other employers: call your regional workforce board

   Ask Capital Workforce Partners, Workforce Alliance, Eastern CT WIB, The WorkPlace or Northwest Regional WIB about Industry-Driven Skills Training Fund reimbursement for on-the-job or incumbent-worker training. CTDOL’s main line is 860-263-6000 ⁠¹⁰.

6. Exporters: file STEP before you book the trip

   Submit the online form and the five signed forms in SM Apply, wait for approval, complete the activity, then file receipts within two weeks. Funds are first come, first served, so apply early in the July 2026 to July 2027 window ⁠¹¹.

7. Tech founders: send CI a pitch deck

   Use the online form for the Future Fund, ClimateTech Fund or Pre-Seed. Line up co-investors or the 50% private match first ⁠⁴⁠⁵.

8. Watch for the next rounds

   Sign up on DECD’s CT Opportunity Fund page for its launch notice ⁠⁷, and check HEDCO in early 2027 for a new Support Grant cycle. If HEDCO or a lender turns you down, ask why, fix the gap (often profitability, time in business or documentation) and reapply in the next cycle ⁠⁸.

Compare Connecticut with other states on the small business grants hub.