Routes

How to apply for a Stand-Up India loan

स्टैंड-अप इंडिया ऋण के लिए आवेदन कैसे करें

You can apply for a Stand-Up India loan in three ways: at any branch of a Scheduled Commercial Bank, on the official Stand-Up India portal, standupmitra.in, or through the Lead District Manager (LDM) of your district. The Department of Financial Services adds that you can also apply through the JanSamarth portal. All routes end at a bank branch, which appraises your project and decides on the loan.

Each route ends at the bank you choose, so keep the branch officer’s name and any acknowledgement you are given.

Before you start: check the scheme is open at your bank

The earlier scheme period ended on 31 March 2025. On 11 November 2026 the Union Cabinet approved continuation to 31 March 2031 (PIB release). The release does not give a restart date for sanctions. Before you pay anyone for a project report, ask your branch or the Lead District Manager whether Stand-Up India applications are being accepted under the continued scheme.

Also check your eligibility first with the eligibility checker, and work out your margin with the margin-money calculator.

Three routes compared

Point	Bank branch	standupmitra.in	Lead District Manager
Start	Visit any SCB branch	Register online	Contact the LDM office
Good for	Ready project, known bank	Comparing banks, guidance	Help, or a stalled case
Handholding	Branch may guide	Linked automatically	Coordinates support
Tracking	With the branch	Portal dashboard	LDM follows up

Source: scheme guidelines.

Route 1: apply at a bank branch

Every branch of a Scheduled Commercial Bank can lend under Stand-Up India. That includes public sector, private sector and foreign banks, and the bankers’ FAQ also names regional rural banks.

Choose a branch near your proposed unit. A bank where you already have an account knows your history.
Ask for the Stand-Up India application form and the bank’s document checklist.
Submit the form with your documents and project report.
Ask for an acknowledgement with the date. Bank timelines run from the date your application is complete.

The bankers’ FAQ says branches can accept offline applications and record them on the portal, so your application can still be tracked.

Route 2: register on standupmitra.in

The Stand-Up India portal is run by SIDBI. You can use it from home, at a Common Service Centre, at a bank branch or with the LDM’s help. Registration is free.

Go to standupmitra.in and choose to register as an applicant.
Answer the short questionnaire.
Create your login using the portal’s own sign-up steps.
Choose your preferred banks and complete the online loan application.
Track the application, message the bank and upload extra documents from your dashboard.

If the portal does not load or is not accepting new registrations, use the branch or LDM route instead. Do not use lookalike sites.

The short questionnaire

The scheme guidelines list the questions the portal asks at the start:

Question	Why it matters
Your location	Links you to your district’s LDM and banks
Category: SC, ST or woman	Checks eligibility
Nature of business	Sector check
Place to run the business	Readiness
Help with the project plan	Handholding need
Skills or training needed	Handholding need
Present bank account	Bank linkage
Your own investment	Margin money
Help with margin money	Convergence support
Previous business experience	Readiness

Ready borrower or trainee borrower

Based on your answers, the portal puts you in one of two groups:

Ready borrower. You need no handholding. Registering starts your loan application at the bank you select. An application number is generated, and your details go to the bank, the LDM and the linked SIDBI or NABARD office.
Trainee borrower. You need support first. You are linked to your district’s LDM and the relevant SIDBI or NABARD office, which arrange help such as training, a project report or margin money. Once your needs are met to the satisfaction of the LDM and you, the portal generates your loan application.

Being a trainee borrower is not a rejection. It is a route for first-time founders who want help before facing the bank. Read more on handholding support and the LDM.

Choosing banks, messaging and extra documents

The portal FAQs describe several features:

Bank choice. You choose preferred banks, but any bank or branch can pick up your application from the portal’s marketplace.
Messaging. You can message LDMs, handholding centres and the banks handling your application about requests, documents and clarifications.
Extra documents. You can upload more documents after submitting the application.
Events. You can see events held by handholding agencies in your area.

Withdraw to reapply

Before the first disbursement, you can withdraw your application and reapply using the “Withdraw to reapply” option on your dashboard. You can also edit details such as loan size or ownership under “My Profile”, and the portal will re-categorise the scheme.

Route 3: through the Lead District Manager

Every district has a Lead District Manager, an officer of the district’s lead bank who coordinates bank lending there. Under Stand-Up India the LDM:

can help you use the portal and choose a branch
links trainee borrowers to SIDBI, NABARD and training agencies
alerts branches to likely applicants and follows up for timely sanction
convenes the District Level Credit Committee, which takes up cases every quarter

Ask your bank branch, the District Industries Centre or the Collectorate for the LDM’s office. The portal also lists LDMs by state and district.

JanSamarth: where it fits

JanSamarth is the government’s single portal for credit-linked schemes. The Department of Financial Services says Stand-Up India loans can also be applied for there. However, the list of 16 schemes on JanSamarth published by PIB on 5 June 2026 did not include Stand-Up India. Its Business Activity Loan list named PMEGP, Weaver Mudra, PMMY (Mudra), PM SVANidhi, NAMASTE, START and CCME. Check the live JanSamarth scheme list before you start there. If Stand-Up India is not shown, use one of the three routes above.

Make your application bank-ready

Banks turn down many first-time applications because the project is not clearly explained. Before you submit, make sure your file answers the questions a loan officer will ask:

What will you sell, and to whom? Name your likely customers and show prices from the local market.
What will it cost to start? List each machine or item with a supplier quotation, plus setup costs and the first months’ working capital.
Where will the money come from? Show the bank loan, your own contribution of at least 10%, and any subsidy or margin-money support.
How will you repay? Give monthly sales, costs and the instalment you can afford after the moratorium.
Where will you work? Attach proof of the premises, whether owned or rented.

If you need help putting this together, ask for handholding when you register on the portal, or contact your LDM. Project profiles from SIDBI, NABARD and District Industries Centres are a useful starting point.

What happens after you apply

The scheme guidelines expect banks to decide within the timelines of the Code of Bank’s Commitment to Micro and Small Enterprises, once your application is complete with all documents:

Loan amount	Decision expected within
Up to ₹5 lakh	2 weeks
₹5 lakh to ₹25 lakh	3 weeks
Above ₹25 lakh	6 weeks

Stand-Up India loans are above ₹10 lakh, so the 3-week and 6-week rows are the ones that apply. If the bank rejects the application, it should tell you the reason.

After sanction, deposit your margin money, complete the bank’s paperwork and draw the loan in stages as the unit is set up.

If your application is rejected

The portal FAQs advise you to speak to the banker you chose, understand why the proposal was not approved, and take corrective action. That might mean a better project report, more margin money or clearing an old credit issue. You can then reapply at the same bank or another. If you think the bank did not follow the scheme rules, see the grievance route.

A simple timeline to plan around

Step	What you do
Week 0	Confirm with the bank that the scheme is open
Weeks 1–3	Prepare the project report and documents
Week 3	Submit the complete application
Weeks 3–9	Bank appraisal (3 or 6 weeks by loan size)
After sanction	Deposit margin; sign; first disbursement

If you need handholding, add time for training and margin-money support before you submit. Keep copies of everything you hand in.

If you are applying as a firm, make sure the person who signs the application is an SC/ST or woman promoter with authority to sign for the firm, as shown in the firm’s documents.

Whichever route you use, keep your application number and the name of the branch officer handling your file. You will need both if you follow up with the LDM or raise a complaint later.

Stay on official sites

Apply only on standupmitra.in, jansamarth.in or at a bank branch.
Registration on the portal is free. Nobody needs to charge you a “Stand-Up India registration fee”.
Banks never ask for OTPs or passwords over the phone.
Be wary of agents who promise guaranteed sanction for a fee.

FAQ

How can I apply for a Stand-Up India loan online? Register on standupmitra.in, answer the questionnaire, choose banks and submit the application from your dashboard.

What is the standupmitra portal? It is the official Stand-Up India portal run by SIDBI. It links applicants with banks, LDMs and handholding agencies.

Can I apply for Stand-Up India on JanSamarth? The Department of Financial Services says so, but the June 2026 JanSamarth scheme list did not include Stand-Up India. Check the live list first.

Can I apply offline? Yes. Apply at any branch of a Scheduled Commercial Bank. Branches record offline applications on the portal.

How long does approval take? For complete applications, about 3 weeks for loans up to ₹25 lakh and 6 weeks above that, under the bank code the scheme follows.

Is there a fee to register? No. Registration on the portal is free. Training agencies and banks may charge their own fees.

What is a trainee borrower? An applicant who asked for support before the loan. They are linked to the LDM and SIDBI or NABARD for training and other help.

Back to the Stand-Up India overview.

Last reviewed: 12 November 2026.