Fund your Louisiana business

When your own money is not enough, start with a no-cost advisor, then read which program actually lends. On the state programs below, a lender originates the loan. The Louisiana Economic Development Corporation enrolls a micro loan or guarantees part of a bank loan. You send the application to the lender. Regular SBA loans also come from a lender.

What’s different in Louisiana

• Two no-cost places to start. The Secretary of State names free business counseling from SCORE¹. The SBDC offers confidential, no-cost consulting².
• The SBDC does not lend or give grants. It will help you get ready for a lender.
• State dollars on these programs sit with a lender. Micro lending is originated by a participating lender. The guaranty starts at a bank, and the bank keeps at least 20%⁹ of the loss.
• The named grant is not opening-day cash. LED says grants to start or operate a business typically are not there. SBIR pays for competitive research and development.
• One SBA office covers every parish. It is in New Orleans¹⁰.

Do this

1. Write down what you need and what it is for. Equipment, inventory, and a line of credit are different asks. The micro rule allows start-up costs, working capital, business procurement, franchise fees, and equipment, inventory, or services, among other business uses. Passive real estate investment is excluded⁶. The guaranty rule has its own uses and its own job test, in the steps below.
2. Book no-cost advising. The Secretary of State FAQ says the office cannot pick your entity and points you to free business counseling from SCORE¹. The Louisiana SBDC FAQ offers confidential, no-cost consulting and help writing a business plan. The same page also names workshops and training, without a price.* Ask what a class costs before you sign up. The SBDC does not provide grants or direct loans³. What it will do is free help preparing a loan package for a bank, credit union, or microlender².
3. Use the SBA office for the whole state. The Louisiana District Office in New Orleans covers the entire state of Louisiana, all 64 parishes¹⁰. There is not a second district office for part of the state.
4. Understand who lends the regular SBA loans. On the SBA loans page, 7(a) loans are delivered by SBA 7(a) lenders and microloans are provided by intermediary lenders¹¹. The SBA loans guide explains who makes each kind.
5. Read the micro lending rule before you assume the state writes the check. The May 20, 2026 rule says the business is referred to a participating lender, which underwrites and originates the loan, and LEDC enrolls it. The business is doing business in Louisiana and has 100 employees or fewer when the loan is enrolled. Uses include start-up costs, working capital, business procurement, franchise fees, and equipment, inventory, or services, among other business uses. Passive real estate investment is excluded. Loan limits are determined by LEDC and stated in the program participation agreement. LED’s SSBCI site prints two different caps. The Micro Lending page lists loans from $1,000 to $150,000, and the site’s home page says up to $100,000⁸.* Ask the lender which cap its agreement sets before you apply. The Micro Lending page also lists what the program will not fund: restaurants, grills, cafes, fast food operations, and vehicle, trailer, curbside, sidewalk, or street vendor food operations in business less than 2 years; bars and other businesses set up mainly to sell alcohol; gaming or gambling; pyramid sales; financial services; speculative real estate; owner-to-owner buyouts; refinancing; recreational, theme, or amusement parks and camping facilities; and businesses federal law prohibits, including marijuana businesses⁷. LEDC may charge an application fee of up to $150, and it can waive the fee. Lender fees are capped at $500 on a loan under $25,000, or up to 2 percent on a larger loan⁶.
6. Use the guaranty when a bank is already willing to lend. The guaranty rule says you start at a bank or other lender that will originate and service the loan, and that lender then applies to LEDC. A loan in the program cannot exceed $5,000,000. A line of credit cannot exceed $20,000,000. The guaranty itself is no greater than 80% of the loan and no more than $1,500,000. Lenders bear at least 20% of a loss. The job test is at least one full-time job if the loan is under $100,000, and at least two if it is over $100,000. Guaranty terms are up to 3 years for a revolving line of credit, 5 years for equipment, and 7 years for real estate. The application fee is up to $150, and it can be waived. LEDC may also charge a guaranty fee of not more than 2% of the guaranteed amount. The program does not purchase SBA-guaranteed loans⁹. The rule has more eligibility lines than the job test. Read them before you apply.
7. Start SSBCI at the state application, then pick a program. The SSBCI page says that if the state accepts the first application, Micro Lending, Collateral Support, Loan Guaranty, Seed Capital, or Venture Capital⁵. Micro lending and the loan guaranty are the two whose rules are summarized above. Collateral support, seed capital, and venture capital are the other names on that page. Read the page for the one you are actually applying for.
8. Read the grant sentence before you treat it as startup cash. Louisiana Economic Development says typically there are no state or federal grants to start or operate a small business. The program it does name for funding of a project is SBIR. That award is a competitive federal research and development award for a project that may be commercialized, not a grant for every new business⁴. It is not a check for every opening day. Be wary of anyone selling access to a guaranteed grant.
9. Keep your paperwork ready. Lenders and LEDC ask for formation documents and an EIN. Register your business and Get your tax IDs are the Louisiana versions.
10. After a declared disaster, the SBA can lend directly. Disaster assistance covers several kinds of loan the SBA makes itself after a declared disaster, including physical damage, economic injury, and military reservist economic injury, and only if you qualify¹². A disaster by itself does not qualify you. Check the declaration and the loan type before you apply.

What you get back

An appointment with an advisor, and help preparing what a lender asks for. A loan decision comes only if you qualify, from the lender on a micro loan or a guaranteed bank loan, and from LEDC on whether it enrolls or guarantees that loan. A grant decision comes only if you are in a program the page actually funds. These pages do not promise a finished plan or an approval.