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

What Indiana pays for, sorted by type of money

Lists of “Indiana small business grants” usually mix five different things. Know which one you are applying for:

• Repayable loans with state backing. The Legend Fund. You borrow from a community lender and repay every dollar with interest. The state’s role is to buy part of the loan from the lender ⁠²⁠³.
• Equity. The Indiana Angel Network Fund buys a stake in high-growth companies alongside private investors ⁠³.
• Reimbursement grants for training. The Department of Workforce Development’s Employer Training Grant and IEDC’s Skills Enhancement Fund repay part of what you spend training staff ⁠⁷⁠⁹.
• Reimbursement grants for specific projects. IN-STEP for export costs, SBIR/STTR matching for companies with federal research awards, and Innovation Vouchers for university research ⁠¹⁰⁠¹¹⁠¹².
• Free help. The Indiana SBDC and the SSBCI technical assistance providers ⁠⁶⁠¹⁴.

The Legend Fund: how IEDC buys part of a CDFI’s loan

The Legend Fund does not lend to you directly, does not forgive loans, and is not guaranteed by the State of Indiana ⁠². It works like this: an approved mission-driven lender (a community development financial institution, local revolving loan fund or specialty lender) makes you a loan, and the IEDC buys up to 50% of it ⁠³. The lender sets the interest rate and terms ⁠¹.

Loans run from $5,000 to $1,000,000. You can use them for start-up costs, working capital, franchise fees, equipment, inventory, and buying or improving a business location that is not a passive real estate investment ⁠¹. The IEDC page still describes up to $29 million for the program, while Treasury’s February 2026 summary lists a $23.7 million allocation ⁠¹⁠³. The program runs until 2031 or until the money is gone, and the IEDC warns that not every applicant will get a loan ⁠¹⁠².

When the Legend Fund launched on March 5, 2024, the IEDC named nine approved lenders. They were Build Fund, Business Ownership Initiative Inc. (BOI), Cambridge Capital Management Corp., Community Investment Fund of Indiana, Flagship Enterprise Capital, Lendistry, Lynx Capital, Indiana Community Business Credit Corporation and One Southern Indiana ⁠⁵. The pre-application form on the IEDC site matches you with whichever lenders are currently participating ⁠².

Indiana’s SSBCI money has been slow to reach businesses. Treasury allocated Indiana $99,087,725. By December 31, 2025, the state had received $63,335,598 and deployed $31,400,041, or 31.7% of its total. That ranks Indiana 40th of 56 reporting jurisdictions ⁠⁴.

Indiana Angel Network Fund and the Capital Access Program

The Indiana Angel Network Fund (IANF) invests directly in Indiana companies through the IEDC and Elevate Ventures. It targets seed to early-stage companies raising $500,000 to $5,000,000 of equity, with an estimated 30 investments a year averaging $350,000 ⁠³. Its priority sectors are manufacturing, life sciences, energy and cyber/blockchain ⁠³. This is equity: you give up ownership, and the fund invests only alongside private investors in the same round ⁠³. You apply through Elevate Ventures, not the IEDC ⁠¹.

Older lists also name Indiana’s Capital Access Program (CAP), a loan-loss reserve. CAP is not one of the two programs in Treasury’s February 2026 summary of Indiana’s SSBCI portfolio ⁠³. Ask a lender whether it still enrolls loans in CAP before you count on it.

Employer Training Grant and Skills Enhancement Fund

The Employer Training Grant (ETG) is the closest Indiana comes to a grant for an ordinary small business, but it only pays back training costs. Under DWD’s FY26 Round 1 terms, an employer can be reimbursed up to $50,000 a year, with a limit of two FEINs per workforce development board region ⁠⁷.

Training must be at least 40 hours, tied to an eligible occupation in one of six sectors: advanced manufacturing, health and life sciences, agriculture, technology and business services, building and construction, or transportation and logistics ⁠⁷. Under FY26 Round 1, new hires must earn at least $19 an hour, existing employees must get at least a 5% raise when training ends, and each trainee must stay six months from the start of training ⁠⁷. Before you apply, you need an Indiana unemployment insurance (SUTA) account with no taxes owed and registration with the Indiana Secretary of State ⁠⁸. Local workforce development boards run the program and pay the reimbursements, so your contact is your region’s ETG representative, not a central DWD office ⁠⁸. DWD had not posted FY2027 round terms on the pages checked for this guide.

The Skills Enhancement Fund (SEF) is IEDC’s training grant for companies making a new capital investment, such as a plant expansion. It typically repays 50% of eligible training costs over two full calendar years from the project start, and existing workers must get a raise ⁠⁹. A business that is not expanding should look at ETG instead.

IN-STEP export reimbursement for the rest of 2026

IN-STEP pays back 80% of approved export costs, up to $15,000 per calendar year. The current money covers trade activities held between June 30 and December 31, 2026 ⁠¹⁰. You must have been operating at least one year, meet SBA size standards, be new to exporting or expanding into new markets, sell goods made in the U.S. or with at least 51% U.S. content, register as a State of Indiana vendor, and already be an Indiana SBDC client ⁠¹⁰.

Eligible costs include international and domestic trade shows, trade missions, translation, website localization, international marketing design, export training and product compliance testing ⁠¹⁰. Approval comes first: the IEDC must sign a contract before the activity counts. Then you send receipts and a post-program survey within 45 days of finishing the activity ⁠¹⁰. Indiana’s STEP Program Year 13 budget is $765,000: $565,000 from SBA and $200,000 from the state ⁠¹⁰.

Research grants for tech firms: SBIR/STTR match and Innovation Vouchers

Indiana is one of the states that tops up federal SBIR/STTR awards. The IEDC adds $0.50 for every federal dollar, up to $50,000 per Phase I award and $75,000 per Phase II award. Each company, counting subsidiaries, can receive at most $150,000 in Indiana matching over its lifetime ⁠¹¹. You must win the federal award first. The IEDC’s SBIR/STTR advisors will review proposals and help with support letters before you submit to one of the 11 federal agencies ⁠¹¹.

The Innovation Voucher Grant pays an Indiana university or approved nonprofit research center up to $50,000 to do research or product development for your company. The money goes to the research partner, not to you, and you must put in a cash match ⁠¹². The lifetime limit is $100,000 per company. Work cannot start before the agreement is signed ⁠¹². Applications are accepted year-round but reviewed three times a year. The 2026 deadlines were January 16, May 15 and September 18, all now past, and 2027 dates were not posted on October 20, 2026 ⁠¹².

Closed rounds: Manufacturing Readiness Grants and FHLBank Elevate

• Manufacturing Readiness Grants (closed). These IEDC grants, managed by Conexus Indiana, paid for smart-manufacturing equipment and technology; 772 grants have been made. The program stopped taking applications on April 21, 2025 because the budget cycle’s money was committed. Conexus keeps an interest form for manufacturers who want to be told if it reopens ⁠¹³.
• Elevate Small Business Grant (2026 round closed). The Federal Home Loan Bank of Indianapolis is not a state agency, but its grant is one of the few cash grants Indiana businesses can get. A member bank applies for its customer: up to $20,000 for one business or $10,000 each for two ⁠¹⁵. In 2026, businesses had to be for-profit, headquartered in Indiana or Michigan, under the same ownership since October 1, 2025, and have 2025 gross revenue above $20,000 but no more than $1 million. Rent, wages and debt payments were not eligible uses ⁠¹⁵. Applications closed October 1, 2026, and awards are announced October 22, 2026 ⁠¹⁵. If you want to be considered in a future round, ask your bank whether it is an FHLBank Indianapolis member that takes part.

Starting with an Indiana SBDC regional office

The Indiana SBDC opened in 1985 and has worked with more than 50,000 businesses. Its advising and training cost nothing and are confidential, delivered through 10 regional offices ⁠¹⁴. Being an SBDC client is required for IN-STEP ⁠¹⁰. Very small businesses (under 10 employees) and owners who are socially and economically disadvantaged can also get free accounting and financial advising from the IEDC’s SSBCI technical assistance providers: J.R. Helms & Associates, Penny Tracker and Projection Hub ⁠⁶.

1. Book a free SBDC session

   Find your county’s regional office on the SBDC locator or call 888-472-3244. Bring a business plan, recent financial statements or projections, and the amount you need. Ask the advisor which Indiana program fits ⁠¹⁴.

2. Pre-apply for the Legend Fund

   Fill in the IEDC’s pre-application form to be matched with participating lenders, then talk to the lenders it suggests ⁠². Each lender sets its own documents, rate and terms ⁠¹.

3. Get free help with the paperwork if you qualify

   Complete the SSBCI technical assistance intake form. A provider will scope the work, such as cash flow projections or a loan application package, at no charge. Questions go to [email protected] ⁠⁶.

4. Set up the Employer Training Grant before training starts

   Submit the interest form through DWD’s ETG page and the Access Indiana portal. Confirm your SUTA account and Secretary of State registration. Send your regional ETG contact a job description with pay range and a training plan of at least 40 hours ⁠⁷⁠⁸. Keep payroll records: you are reimbursed only after each trainee completes six months ⁠⁷.

5. Apply for IN-STEP before you book the trip

   Fill out the online application with your export history, target market, scope and budget. Wait for the signed contract, then file receipts within 45 days of the activity ⁠¹⁰. Email [email protected] to ask what funding is left for December 2026 and when the 2027 cycle opens.

6. Claim the SBIR/STTR match after a federal award

   When a Phase I or Phase II award arrives, apply for the Indiana match through the IEDC’s SBIR/STTR page ⁠¹¹.

7. If you are turned down, ask why and try again

   A Legend Fund decision is a credit decision by one lender, so the matching tool can send you to another ⁠². For ETG, ask your regional contact which requirement you missed. The Innovation Voucher application stays open year-round, so a stronger proposal can go into a later review ⁠¹².

For other Indiana assistance, see the Indiana overview, or compare states on the small business grants hub.