| State economic development agency | New Hampshire Department of Business and Economic Affairs (BEA) |
| State SBIR/STTR match or Phase 0 grant | State program (see below) |
| State small-business or supplier-diversity certification | None found |
| Signature grant programs cataloged | 1 programs |
The New Hampshire Department of Business and Economic Affairs (BEA) is the state's lead economic-development agency. Major programs are concentrated in the Economic Revitalization Zone Tax Credit (ERZ), WorkInvestNH (formerly the Job Training Fund), the R&D Tax Credit, and CDBG-state pass-throughs administered by the Community Development Finance Authority (CDFA).
Primary site: New Hampshire Department of Business and Economic Affairs (BEA)
State matching grant for workforce training at New Hampshire businesses. 50/50 match; rolling applications administered by NHES.
We found no state small-business set-aside or MBE/WBE certification program for New Hampshire state contracts (no state MBE/WBE program; NHDOT federal DBE only). Federal SBA certifications (8(a), HUBZone, WOSB, SDVOSB) still apply to federal contracts.
New Hampshire supports SBIR/STTR applicants through the UNHInnovation FOSTER SBIR/STTR microgrant. Check the program page for current rounds and eligibility; the federal award itself is still applied for through the agencies listed at SBIR.gov.
Match amount: proposal-preparation microgrant
Program page: UNHInnovation FOSTER SBIR/STTR microgrant
New Hampshire programs take applications one by one on the administering agency's site; there is no single statewide grants application system. Confirm the application link on each program page before drafting.
Portal: Program-by-program applications
Federal grants reach businesses in New Hampshire through several pass-through channels: HUD CDBG-State dollars administered by New Hampshire Department of Business and Economic Affairs (BEA) that sub-grant to localities for economic development; EDA public-works and economic-adjustment grants, awarded through regional EDA offices to local governments, economic development districts and nonprofits; USDA Rural Development Business and Industry loan guarantees for rural businesses, plus Rural Business Development Grants that go to towns, tribes and nonprofits (not to businesses directly) to support local small businesses; and SBA loan programs (7(a), 504, Microloan) accessed via local lenders, alongside Treasury-certified CDFI lenders. Business eligibility for each channel depends on entity size, location (rural vs urban), and use-of-funds.
CDBG state administrator: New Hampshire Department of Business and Economic Affairs (BEA) (CDBG-state administrator)
EDA regional contact: US EDA regional office
State programs cover one half of the picture. Federal grant opportunities are listed on Grants.gov; the eligibility floor often overlaps with state programs. Use the GrantProbe Grant Map to search open federal opportunities by keyword, category and agency, and read our federal grants for startups primer for the framework behind every match.
Need help beyond business grants? The New Hampshire section of the GrantProbe State Assistance Finder links the official rental, LIHEAP, SNAP, Medicaid and small-business programs for New Hampshire.
New Hampshire's economic development agency administers several grant and incentive programs for businesses, but most flagship programs require either an existing operation, a defined hiring commitment, or capital investment milestones. Pure pre-revenue startups should usually pair federal SBIR/STTR (where R&D-eligible) with New Hampshire's SBIR/STTR support program (see above) and CDFI lending. See the signature programs section above for the named New Hampshire programs and their eligibility thresholds.
Yes. New Hampshire supports SBIR/STTR applicants through the UNHInnovation FOSTER SBIR/STTR microgrant: proposal-preparation microgrant. See the program page for current rounds.
The Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program flows from HUD to New Hampshire's state agency (New Hampshire Department of Business and Economic Affairs (BEA) (CDBG-state administrator)), which sub-grants to localities. Businesses do not apply directly to the state for CDBG dollars; they apply to participating cities or counties for economic development sub-awards (job creation, blight remediation, low-to-moderate-income workforce). Contact your local economic development office for current sub-awards.
There is no single statewide grants application system; New Hampshire programs take applications on the administering agency's site. Confirm the link on each program page.