America’s seed fund
How to prepare for SBIR and STTR
The proposal is the short part. The registrations take weeks, the review takes months, and the gap between phases is longer still. Founders who plan for all of it do best.
Checked
SBIR and STTR are authorized through September 30, 2031.
S. 3971 reauthorized both programs through September 30, 2031. U.S. Small Business Administration, news release 26-43. Always check sbir.gov and the agency’s own SBIR/STTR page for the latest: agencies are still updating policies and solicitations to match the new law.
The long, patient timeline
Five years from a first registration to a business that sells, drawn month by month.
The bars are a planning picture, not a promise. They assume a first award about 9 months after the first registration, and a Phase II award about 17 months after that, the median wait in the award data. Phase II starts around month 26. Your own dates will differ with the agency and its solicitation calendar.
-
Preparing. Month 0 to 1
Register
A SAM.gov entity registration and Unique Entity ID, the SBA company registry and a Login.gov account. SAM.gov advises allowing at least ten business days, and registrations are renewed every year.
-
Preparing. Month 0 to 4
Choose an agency and a topic
Read the open solicitations, talk to the agency’s program staff, and decide which of the eleven programs fits the work.
-
Preparing. Month 3 to 6
Write and submit
A technical plan, a commercialization plan, a budget and a team. Some agencies start with a short pitch or white paper.
-
Waiting. Month 6 to 9
Review and decision
NASA’s published schedule runs from about one month to ten months between a close date and a selection, depending on the opportunity.
-
Funded work. Month 9 to 15
Phase I work
Six months is normal for SBIR and a year for STTR. A proof of concept, not a product.
-
Waiting. Month 15 to 26
Phase II proposal and the wait
In the award data the median company took 17.2 months from its first Phase I award to its first Phase II award, so a Phase II usually begins about month 26.
-
Funded work. Month 26 to 50
Phase II work
Two years is normal. The development that turns a proof of concept into something a customer can use.
-
In the market. From month 50
Phase III: sell the result
No SBIR or STTR money is awarded in Phase III. The company sells to the private sector or to a federal buyer, and the work goes on.
Four registrations to start early
None of them is hard. All of them take longer than people expect.
-
Get a Unique Entity ID and register in SAM.gov
You must have a Unique Entity ID from SAM.gov to receive SBIR or STTR awards. SAM.gov does not charge for the ID or for registration. Allow at least ten business days for the registration to go active, start early, and put the yearly renewal in a calendar.
SBIR.gov, How to Apply , SAM.gov, Entity Registration Checklist
-
Register the company on SBIR.gov
SBIR.gov asks for a company registration, and its login now runs through a new identity verification step. Applicants use the external user login.
-
Have a Login.gov account ready
Federal sign-in for these programs goes through Login.gov identity verification. Set it up before a deadline week, because verification can take longer than expected.
-
Create the agency accounts you need
Each agency runs its own portal: DSIP for DoD, the NIH grants system for HHS, and each program’s own site for the rest. Plan for one registration per agency.
Are we eligible?
Tick what is true today. The list is a guide; the agency’s solicitation is the rule.
Your ticks stay in this page’s address, so you can bookmark or share the page as you left it. Nothing is stored or sent anywhere.
Are we ready to write?
Eligible is not the same as ready. These are the questions that decide whether a first proposal is worth the months it takes.
If several boxes stay empty, that is useful to know in October and not in the week of a deadline. WE can walk through the list with you in a readiness review.
Help around you
Several independent programs exist to help a founder prepare.
These are independent programs WE encourages founders to consider; no affiliation is implied. WE does not run them.
-
Small Business Development Centers
Run by U.S. Small Business Administration and host organizations
Local advisers and training for small businesses, with counseling on planning, registration and applying for federal programs.
Visit the program’s page SBA, Small Business Development Centers
-
Federal and State Technology (FAST) Partnership
Run by U.S. Small Business Administration, through state and regional organizations
Outreach, technical and business assistance, and financial support to help companies that have not yet won an award.
-
State matching and Phase 0 programs
Run by Individual states
Some states cover part of the cost of preparing a proposal or match an award once it is made. SBIR.gov calls this Phase 0, and each state sets its own rules.
-
APEX Accelerators
Run by U.S. Department of Defense, Office of Small Business Programs
Local centers, formerly called Procurement Technical Assistance Centers, that help businesses learn to work with the Department of Defense and other federal buyers. Useful before a first defense proposal.
Visit the program’s page DoD Office of Small Business Programs, APEX Accelerators
-
The agency’s own program staff
Run by Each participating agency
Agencies list contacts for each program and many hold webinars before a solicitation closes. A short conversation about whether a topic fits is the best use of an hour before writing.
Visit the program’s page SBIR.gov, Participating Federal Agencies
Prepare alongside people who plan for the long run
WE helps founders get ready for SBIR and STTR: choosing an agency and a topic, checking eligibility, lining up the registrations and writing a plan that holds up over years. WE is not an agency, does not make or review awards, and cannot promise that any proposal is funded. WE makes no promise of funding.
Sources
- Administrator Loeffler Applauds SBIR-STTR Reauthorization (SBA news release 26-43, April 13, 2026), U.S. Small Business Administration . Accessed October 15, 2026.
- How to Apply, U.S. Small Business Administration, SBIR.gov . Accessed October 15, 2026.
- About SBIR and STTR, U.S. Small Business Administration, SBIR.gov . Accessed October 15, 2026.
- Participating Federal Agencies, U.S. Small Business Administration, SBIR.gov . Accessed October 15, 2026.
- SBIR and STTR Policy Directive (May 2023) and the Policy Directives page, U.S. Small Business Administration, SBIR.gov . Accessed October 15, 2026.
- SBIR.gov award data download (no-abstract CSV), all agencies, 1983 to 2026, U.S. Small Business Administration, SBIR.gov . Accessed October 15, 2026.
- Entity Registration Checklist: Prepare for Entity Registration in SAM.gov, U.S. General Services Administration, SAM.gov
- NASA SBIR/STTR, solicitation schedule (last updated October 14, 2026), National Aeronautics and Space Administration . Accessed October 15, 2026.
- America's Seed Fund, powered by NSF, U.S. National Science Foundation . Accessed October 15, 2026.
- SBIR/STTR Programs, Office of Science notice on reauthorization, U.S. Department of Energy . Accessed October 15, 2026.
- Small Business Program Basics, National Institutes of Health, NIH SEED . Accessed October 15, 2026.
- Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs), U.S. Small Business Administration . Accessed October 15, 2026.
- Federal and State Technology (FAST) Partnership Program, U.S. Small Business Administration, SBIR.gov . Accessed October 15, 2026.
- APEX Accelerators, Department of Defense Office of Small Business Programs, U.S. Department of Defense, Office of Small Business Programs
A source listed without a retrieval date was cited from a reputable index and could not be opened by this build. Dates are when the page was read. Programs change: always check sbir.gov for the latest.
Always check sbir.gov for the latest. Registration steps and portals change.