Every figure below was read off innovative.msme.gov.in, the scheme's own site, on 22 September 2026. Not from a press release, and not from an aggregator. Scheme terms change, so check the portal again before you plan around any of it.
What MSME Innovative, incubation component publishes today
Run by Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Government of India.
| What | Published figure |
|---|---|
| Financial assistance | Up to Rs 15 lakh per idea |
| Who pays what | The Ministry funds 85 percent of the approved cost, the incubatee 15 percent. Students pay nothing |
| How you apply | Through an approved Host Institute, which shortlists ideas and uploads them on the portal. There is no direct application |
| Release | 70 percent on approval and agreement with the host, 30 percent after 60 percent of the first tranche is spent and verified |
| Indicative budget | Rs 10 lakh technology and materials, Rs 3 lakh mentoring, Rs 2 lakh travel and overheads, with 25 percent movement allowed between heads |
| Guidelines | MSME Innovative guidelines 2021-22, still the version on the portal |
The Rs 15 lakh is paid to the host institute, not to you
Every summary of this scheme reads as if a founder receives Rs 15 lakh. The guidelines say the assistance is provided to the Host Institute, which spends it on developing your idea and files the utilisation certificate. You get machine time, materials, mentors and a prototype, not a bank transfer, and you put in 15 percent of the approved cost yourself unless you are a student. It is still good money. It is just not the kind you can pay salaries from.
Also worth knowing
The same portal also runs the design component, up to Rs 40 lakh for an MSME design project with a Udyam registration, and IPR reimbursement of up to Rs 5 lakh for a foreign patent and Rs 1 lakh for an Indian one. Those two need Udyam; the incubation component is the one open to an individual with an idea and a willing host.
Before you apply
Open innovative.msme.gov.in and confirm the numbers above still stand. Portals update quietly and news stories do not. If they have changed, the portal is right and this page is out of date, and we would rather you found that out here than in a rejection.
To see which schemes fit your startup rather than reading them one at a time, run your profile through the grant catalog.
Source
Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Government of India: https://innovative.msme.gov.in/. Checked 22 September 2026.
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