Government Scheme For Women Entrepreneurs

Prime Minister Loan Scheme for Ladies such as the Pradhan Mantri Rozgar Yojana (PMRY) provides self-employment opportunities. Whereas the Trade Related Entrepreneurship Assistance (TREAD) offers training and counseling to develop business skills.

As you read more, you will come across various other government loan schemes for women that provide loans without collateral, low interest rates, etc.

Top Government Schemes For Women Entrepreneurs

The table below gives you a brief overview of the top government schemes for female entrepreneurs in India along with its key benefits.

Now, let’s look at each of the government schemes for women entrepreneurs in detail, including their eligibility criteria.

Mudra Loan Scheme for Women Entrepreneurs

The Mudra Loan Scheme aims to encourage women into entrepreneurship by providing them with the necessary financial assistance.

The key features of the Mudra Loan Scheme are as follows:

• Supports small businesses and does not require collateral for loans up to ₹ 10 lakh.
• Designed for non-farm businesses.
• Provides low interest rates and is based on the applicant’s requirements and lender.
• Is easy to access and there are no complicated terms and conditions.
• Convenient solution for women who are planning to start, expand, or modify their businesses.

Note that the loan amounts vary based on the Mudra loan categories you are applying for:

• Shishu Mudra Yojana: If your business is in its early stages, the shishu loan provides loans up to ₹ 50,000. The interest rate varies from 1% to 12% per annum.
• Kishore Mudra Yojana: This scheme is designed to support or maintain your business and provides an allowance of ₹ 50,000 to ₹ 1 lakh. The interest rate starts from 8.60%.
• Tarun Mudra Yojana: This scheme is designed for those who want to grow their business and provides a loan ranging from ₹ 5 lakh to ₹ 10 lakh. The interest rate depends on the applicant’s credit history.

Here are the eligibility criteria for the Mudra Loan Scheme:

• Applicants should have businesses in production or manufacturing.
• Applicants with micro and small businesses can also apply.
• Applicants should be aged between 18 and 65 years old.

Stand-Up India Scheme for Women Empowerment

The Stand-Up India Scheme is designed to help women in manufacturing, trading, or services, that is, greenfield business. The loans can be obtained from the Scheduled Commercial Banks (SCBs).

Here are the features of the Stand-Up India Scheme:

• Suitable for small business.
• Loans start from ₹ 10 lakh up to ₹ 1 crore.
• Can be repaid in 7 years.
• Rupay debit card for easy access.
• Interest rate varies based on the banks and their interest policies.

Below is the eligibility criteria for the Stand-Up India scheme:

• Applicants should belong to SC and ST communities.
• Applicant must be above the age of 18.

Annapurna Scheme for Women in Food Business

The Annapurna Scheme is designed to help women start their own food catering business. The Bharatiya Mahila Bank and the State Bank of Mysore provide access to the Annapurna Scheme.

• Loans up to ₹ 50,000.
• The loan can be repaid in 36-month installments.
• Supports business in food vending units, food processing units, and tiffin services.
• Loans for both current and new businesses.

The eligibility criteria for the Annapurna Scheme for women in food business are as follows:

• The applicant should be above between the ages of 18 and 60.
• The applicant should be an Indian citizen.
• The applicant must be interested in the food catering business.

Mahila Udyam Nidhi Scheme

Launched by the Small Industrial Development Bank of India (SIDBI), the Mahila Udyam Nidhi (MUN) helps women to start businesses.

Below are the features of this scheme:

• Loans up to ₹ 10 lakh.
• Can be repaid in 10 years.
• Suitable for business in manufacturing, production, and service industries.
• Service charge of 1% per year.
• Interest rate ranges from 7.35% to 7.60%.

The eligibility criteria for the Mahila Udyam Nidhi Scheme:

• Women entrepreneurs in manufacturing, production, and service-related industries can apply for this scheme.
• The applicant should have a financial holding of at least 51%.
• The company should fall under either MSME, Small-Scale Industries or Tiny Units.

Dena Shakti Scheme

The Dena Shakti Scheme allows women entrepreneurs to access loans without complexities and effectively fund their businesses.

The features of the Dena Shakti Scheme are as follows:

• Loans up to ₹ 20 lakh.
• Suitable for businesses in manufacturing, housing, education, retail, etc.
• Loan repayment tenure is up to 7 years.
• Easy to access as there are fewer complexities.
• Interest rate is 0.25% below base rate.

The eligibility criteria for the Dena Shakti Scheme are as follows:

• Only women entrepreneurs in industries such as education, agriculture, retail trade, housing, small and medium enterprises, etc can apply for this scheme.
• The applicant needs to have more than 50% ownership of the company.
• Self-employed women such as doctors, architects, and chartered accountants can also apply.

Udyogini Scheme for Women Entrepreneurs

Launched by the Government of Karnataka, the Udyogini Scheme promotes self-employment of women in the trade and service sector. The Udyogini Scheme can be accessed via Regional Rural Banks (RRB), District Co-operative Banks, and Commercial Banks.

The features of the Udyogini Scheme are as follows:

• Loan subsidy up to 30%.
• Agriculture-related businesses are given advance payments without interest.
• Qualified candidates are given an advance of ₹ 3 lakh.

Below are the eligibility criteria for Udyogini Scheme for women entrepreneurs:

• Women belonging to the general and special categories should have a family income of less than ₹ 1,50,000.
• The applicant should be living in Karnataka and should be aged between 18 and 55 years old.
• The applicant should not have a previous loan with any other financial institution.

Pradhan Mantri Rozgar Yojana (PMRY)

The Pradhan Mantri Rozgar Yojana (PMRY) supports/promotes self-employment opportunities for women entrepreneurs in rural and urban areas.

The features of PMRY are as follows:

• Loan repayment period is from 3 to 7 years.
• Loan of ₹ 1 lakh does not require collateral.
• Training program on business skills.
• For businesses in trading, services, and manufacturing.
• Provides loan subsidies.
• Normal interest rate of bank.

The eligibility criteria for PMRY are as follows:

• The applicant must be aged between 18 and 35 years old.
• The applicant must be a permanent resident of their area for the past 3 years.
• Applicants belonging to the SC/ST category will have reservations.
• The family income as well as the income of the applicant and spouse must not exceed ₹ 40,000 per month, on a collective basis.

Trade-Related Entrepreneurship Assistance and Development (TREAD)

Unlike the rest, the TREAD scheme focuses on the growth of women entrepreneurs by providing them with the necessary skills and knowledge.

Have a look at some of the top features of the TREAD scheme:

• Training and counseling to develop business skills.
• Loans are given via NGOs.
• Promotes self-employment of women in all non-farming activities.

Check out the eligibility criteria below:

• The applicant must be an Indian citizen and registered with the NGO for 3 years.
• The applicant should have the necessary resources such as staff, facilities, etc for the micro-enterprise development.
• The registered NGO must not be blacklisted by the state government or any ministry.
• Must not have any pending government assistance that was released previously.

Benefits of Woman Entrepreneur Scheme

There are various benefits of government schemes for women entrepreneurs, such as:

• Helps working women fulfill their career goals.
• Supports women to be financially independent and improve their standard of living.
• Helps women entrepreneurs establish themselves in the business world.
• Promotes women’s empowerment and enables them to create more employment opportunities for women.

Documents Required to Apply for Woman Entrepreneur Scheme

Here are some of the generic documents required to apply for the government schemes for women:

• Income certificate of the family.
• Proof of government ID such as Aadhar card, PAN card, Ration card, or Voter’s ID.
• Proof of company ID such as LLP agreement, etc.

Apply for Government Schemes for Women Entrepreneurs

To apply for government loans for women entrepreneurs online, the applicant can do it by online or offline mode depending on the scheme.

Online Process

• Visit the official website of the chosen scheme or any digital portal such as myScheme.
• Fill in the details as required.
• Submit the documents as requested.
• Complete the registration process as per the instructions.
• Verify the details entered.

Offline Process

• Visit the nearest local bank or counseling center wherein the applicant can make an informed decision on choosing the right scheme.
• Fill in the details as required.
• Submit the necessary documents.
• Verify the details you have provided.

Get a Business Loan for Women with Buddy Loan

Let’s go through the steps to Apply For a Business Loan with Buddy Loan:

Step 1:Visit buddyloan.com or Download & install the Buddy Loan app (Android or iOS).

Step 2:Open the business loan application page. Enter your mobile number and OTP.

Step 3:Specify the desired loan amount and email. Next, choose the Business Loan option.

Step 4:Choose if you have a Business Proof (Yes/ No)

• If ‘Yes’ (If you have a business proof), enter your business and personal details.
  Or
• If ‘No’ (If you do not have a business proof), choose the profession type and enter your personal details.

Step 5:Provide income details and Click the ‘Submit’ button.