Startup SG Loan

Who qualifies

• Organisation types: Private limited company (Pte Ltd); Limited liability partnership; General partnership; Sole proprietorship.
• Must be registered in Singapore.
• The applicant must be a business entity registered and operating in Singapore.
• For SME Working Capital, SME Fixed Assets and the EFS-FFI/MDB Working Capital Loan, the either/or SME test is group revenue up to S$100 million or maximum employment size of 200 employees.
• EnterpriseSG shares loan default risk with participating financial institutions in the event of enterprise insolvency.
• A higher risk share is considered for young enterprises formed within the past 5 years with at least 1 employee and more than 50% equity owned by individuals, and for markets with an S&P rating of BB+ and below, including non-rated countries.
• EnterpriseSG's risk share is generally 50%, rising to 70% for young enterprises or challenged markets where applicable; EFS-Green is 70%, and EFS-WCL and Project Loan are 70% for all enterprises from 1 September 2026 to 31 March 2027. Borrowers remain responsible for repaying 100% of the loan.
• Project Loans require an underlying contract, secured sales order or project; fixed assets must discharge a project obligation, and the loan cannot be solely for general working capital or operating expenses. Domestic construction applicants must be registered under BCA's Contractors Registration System or Builders Licensing System.
• EFS-Green applicants must meet its qualifying green-sector, activity and borrower-type criteria.
• Minimum local shareholding (%): 30.
• Maximum group annual sales (S$): 500,000,000.

What it funds

• Working capital, trade or project financing schemes

Costs covered: General operating funds (loans); Hardware, machinery, IT equipment.

Recorded cap: S$50,000,000.

Maximum exposure is S$50 million per borrower group across all EFS facilities. Sub-caps: SME Working Capital S$500,000 per borrower and S$5 million per borrower group; Venture Debt S$8 million per borrower and S$20 million per borrower group; EFS-Green Developmental Capital S$3 million and Venture Debt S$8 million; EFS-FFI/MDB Working Capital S$300,000. Other listed fixed-asset, trade, project and M&A facilities are subject to the S$50 million group limit. Maximum repayment is 5 years for working capital, venture debt and M&A, 15 years for fixed assets and ordinary project loans, and 1 year for trade loans; EFS-Green project loans allow 20 years, and Trade Loan bank guarantees are capped at 2 years' tenure.

Payment: Government-backed financing rather than a grant.

How to apply

Approach a participating financial institution for the selected EFS facility and apply subject to its credit approval; the individual facility pages also provide the Enterprise Singapore Incentive Management System link and application guide where applicable.

1. Choose the appropriate EFS financing facility.
2. Approach a participating financial institution and apply for the loan, subject to its credit approval.
3. Use the ESIMS portal and application guide where the selected facility page directs applicants to do so.

Before applying

• Meet the common EFS eligibility conditions and any facility-specific conditions.

Claiming support

Borrowers repay 100% of the loan. If a default occurs, the participating FI must follow its standard commercial recovery procedure, including realising security, before claiming the unrecovered amount from EnterpriseSG in proportion to the risk share.

Contact: Apply through a participating financial institution listed on the selected facility page; technical assistance is available through the Enterprise Infoline.

Application window: No overall closing date is stated. EFS-Green applications must reach EnterpriseSG and be approved by a participating FI by 31 March 2031; EFS-FFI/MDB applications must be submitted and FI-approved by 31 March 2028. Other enhancements take effect 1 April 2026; WCL and Project Loan enhancements run 1 September 2026 to 31 March 2027.