Small Enterprise Fund







This FAQ will help you prepare to submit a strong application to the Small Enterprise Fund. As soon as you have your Queue number, start gathering the necessary documents so you are ready when your navigator contacts you to start the application form.

The process:

If your application is approved, it will take between 30-45 days from when you are assigned a Queue number to receive your funds.

  • Queue – After you have been assigned your Queue number, a navigator will contact you to begin your application. You can expect a navigator to call you within 7-14 days of being assigned your Queue number. Use this time to gather required documents.
  • Navigation – A navigator from a community based organization will contact you to schedule an application interview. This interview is estimated to take 60 minutes. Your navigator will work with you to help you prepare a strong  application. You should have your documents ready to go. You have 10 days from when the navigator contacts you to work with them to complete and submit your application. If you miss this deadline, your application might not be considered and you might lose your chance to apply for the funds.
  • Review – All applications are reviewed by a diverse, independent committee of business community members. The application review can take up to 7 days.
  • Approval & processing – If your application is approved you will receive a confirmation from your navigator. 
  • Validation & Funding – After receiving approval confirmation, your bank account information will be validated, along with bank account ownership information. The bank account must be in the name of the business or, if a sole proprietor, in the name of the applicant. You must complete a W-9 tax form and a grant agreement. After your information is validated and the completed forms are received, your grant can be funded. Normally, funding occurs through a bank wire deposit within 3-5 business days. If your application is not approved due to insufficient proof, you may resubmit your application with additional evidence to be reconsidered. 

What information will I need to provide?

Make sure you have your personal information such as your name, date of birth as listed on your identity document and basic business information. You will be asked to provide the following information:

  • Business name and address or location where you operate, if different from your home address
  • Years in operation
  • Estimated annual revenues
  • Whether you received funding from other sources such as grants or donations and if so, information about these funding sources
  • Bank wiring information. You will need to provide a routing number and account number to receive an ACH direct deposit if your application is approved. If approved, you will need to submit bank verification information, a W-9 tax form, and a signed grant agreement. The bank account must be in the name of the business or, if a sole proprietor, must be in the name of the applicant. All bank account information, including account holder, will be verified before funding.

What kind of documentation will be required for the navigation?

Each applicant must submit:
1. Valid form of identification
2. Proof that you have a business in Oregon
3. Proof of “loss of business income”

Identification document:Any government issued identity document is acceptable, including non-US documents. Translations are not required. Examples include, passport, State ID, drivers license, matricula, consular card, RENAP cards. The ID cannot be more than 3 years expired, must contain the birth date and full name of the applicant

Proof that you have a business in Oregon:

You will need one of the following:

  •  Business registration with the State of Oregon. If you do not know if your business is registered, you can look your business up here: https://sos.oregon.gov/business/pages/find.aspx 
  • Business registration for a city or county in Oregon. Most cities have their own registration and look-up system. Please check with the individual city where your business is located to learn more. Below are several business registration look ups as an example (this is not a comprehensive list):
  • A business lease for a location in Oregon
  • If you are a sole proprietor and are not required to register your business with the State, city, or county, you will need to submit one of the following as proof that you have a business in Oregon. Note that a sole proprietor may submit the above as proof of an Oregon business in which case you do not need to submit additional proof from the list below. 
    • Other examples of “proof of a business in Oregon:”
      • Registration with other Oregon entities such as Oregon Department of Agriculture. Examples may include mobile food cart registration, food processing application, or other type of business license. 
      • License from a professional Oregon board such as Cosmetology, Hair Design, Dietician,etc. You can look up Oregon professional licenses here: https://elite.hlo.state.or.us/OHLOPublicR/LPRBrowser.aspX 
      • Proof of payments for goods or services such as a Point of Sale statement, bank statements that indicate commerce in Oregon
      • Other proof of an operating business in Oregon such as a business website, or other indication of commerce in Oregon.

Proof of loss of business income:

It is important that your proof of business income loss shows your revenues from pre- and post-COVID in order to demonstrate the impact or comparison. You will need at least one of the following:

  • Profit and Loss Statements for two years: 2019 and 2020 and/or 2021 
  • Cash Flow Statements for two years: 2019 and 2020 and/or 2021 
  • Ledgers for two years: 2019 and 2020 and/or 2021 
  • Taxes from 2019 and 2020 and/or 2021 
  • Bank Statements from 2019 and 2020 and/or 2021 
  • Receipt Records from 2019 and 2020 and/or 2021 
  • Reports from POS (point-of-sale) systems from 2019 and 2020 and/or 2021
  • Evidence of loss of contracts or clients that demonstrates COVID impacts to revenues. It is helpful to see documents from 2019 and 2020 to compare income loss.
  • Other: the above list is not exhaustive. You can work with your navigator to find other credible evidence if the above evidence is not reasonably available to you.

How do I submit a strong application?

Award sizes will be determined based on your business size, the degree to which COVID impacted your business, and how strong your application is. All applications  must provide clear, credible proof of eligibility. Work with your navigator to determine what is the best documentation to provide that will help you submit a strong application. Priority will be given to businesses that have suffered a significant decline in sales or revenue from the COVID pandemic and to micro, small, and very small businesses.

What is the award size? 

Businesses will be eligible for the following awards based on their business size, COVID-19 impacts, and the strength of their application: 

  • Micro business (defined as a business with annual revenues less than $50,000)
    • Eligible for $7,000 grant
  • Very small business (defined as a business with annual revenues between $50,001 and $100,000)
    • Eligible for $15,000 grant
  • Small business (defined as a business with annual revenues between $101,000 and $1 million)
    • Eligible for $25,000 grant

What does  “annual revenues” mean?

  • Annual revenues only include sales, receipts and/or income from the applicant’s business. Annual revenues do not include applicants personal income. For example, if the applicant has income from a different job or source, this is not included in annual revenues.

What are some examples of a COVID or health and safety order impacts?

  • Increase in costs (for example increased expenses from purchasing Protective Personal Equipment, cleaning supplies, additional costs for meeting social distancing requirements, etc.)
  • Loss of clients
  • Loss of revenues and/or decline in sales after February 1, 2020
  • Required closures that have impacted revenues
  • If the business is still under mandate to remain closed due to State COVID restrictions

What community based organizations are participating? 

Navigators from the following organizations will be assisting applicants to complete their application.

We will try to assign you a navigator that is closest to your location, but it may not be possible.