A business plan for an SBA microloan application should include a specific funding request, a use-of-funds list that stays inside the program's allowed purposes, your recent financial statements and a month-by-month cash flow projection showing the payment gets covered. SBA's microloan page and regulations don't prescribe a plan format. The nonprofit intermediary that makes the loan sets its own checklist, so this outline follows SBA's own business plan sections, scaled to a loan of $50,000 or less.
Who reads the plan, and what do the program rules require?
SBA doesn't make microloans itself. Its microloans page, read on October 6, 2026, says the agency funds intermediary lenders, which are "nonprofit community-based organizations," and that these lenders "make all credit decisions and set all terms for your microloan." The regulation adds, at 13 CFR 120.707, that "SBA does not review Microloans for creditworthiness."
So we found no single official list of plan requirements. Neither the page nor the microloan regulations (13 CFR 120.700 to 120.716) set a page count, a projection period or a template. Five program rules still shape any microloan plan:
| Program rule, as of October 6, 2026 | What it means for the plan |
|---|---|
| Loans up to $50,000; SBA puts the average at about $13,000 | Ask for what the numbers support |
| Proceeds "may be used only for working capital and acquisition of materials, supplies, furniture, fixtures, and equipment" | Every use-of-funds line fits one of these |
| Proceeds "cannot be used to pay existing debts or to purchase real estate" | No refinancing, no property |
| Above $20,000, the borrower must demonstrate it is "unable to obtain credit elsewhere at comparable interest rates and that it has good prospects for success" | Explain why a microloan, and support the forecast |
| Repayment "within seven years"; SBA says rates generally run 8% to 13% | Model the payment inside that term and range |
SBA's Microloan Program SOP 52 00 B adds that underwriting requirements "are determined by the Intermediary," which may or may not require collateral or owner equity and may require training or counseling during the application. The SOP dates from July 1, 2018 and still shows a six-year maximum term where the regulation now says seven, so confirm details with the intermediary.
What should a business plan for an SBA microloan application include?
SBA's Write your business plan guide says of the traditional format that "Lenders and investors commonly request this plan," and adds that you "don't have to stick to the exact business plan outline." For a loan of $50,000 or less, that points to a short traditional plan: every section present, most of them brief. The middle column quotes the guide as read on October 6, 2026. The right column is our suggestion, which the intermediary's checklist overrides.
| Section | SBA's wording | At microloan scale |
|---|---|---|
| Executive summary | "why it will be successful" | Half a page: amount, purpose, payment, repayment source |
| Company description | "the problems your business solves" | Legal name, start date, location, customers, licenses |
| Market analysis | "your industry outlook and target market" | Local demand, named competitors, their prices |
| Organization and management | "who will run it" | Owners and percentages, your experience |
| Service or product line | "what you sell" | Price list and margin per unit or job |
| Marketing and sales | "attract and retain customers" | Contracts, letters of intent, repeat accounts |
| Funding request | "how you'll use your funds" | Use-of-funds table tied to vendor quotes |
| Financial projections | "match them to your funding requests" | Monthly cash flow for year one, assumptions listed |
The funding request also asks you to "Specify whether you want debt or equity, the terms you'd like applied, and the length of time your request will cover." For a microloan that takes one sentence, such as a $35,000 fixed-rate loan repaid monthly over five years. Attach vendor quotes, because SOP 52 00 B has the intermediary keep evidence, such as joint payee checks or invoices marked paid, that proceeds went to the purpose applied for.
Which financial statements and projections do microlenders ask for?
We found no official SBA financial projections requirements written specifically for a microloan business plan. The closest official text is SBA's general plan guide, applied as each microlender sees fit. The guide says an established business should "include income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements for the last three to five years" and should forecast those statements "for the next five years," with quarterly or even monthly figures for the first year.
On a small request most of the weight usually falls on year one. This package covers what small-loan underwriters commonly request, so swap in the intermediary's list where it differs:
- History: tax returns or year-end statements, a year-to-date profit and loss statement and recent bank statements.
- Projections: a 12-month cash flow by month, annual totals for later years if asked, and a page of assumptions.
- Break-even: the "Calculate your startup costs" part of the same SBA page says this analysis "is usually a requirement in order to take on investors or debt."
- Debt schedule: what you already owe and the monthly payments, since the microloan can't pay those off.
- Owner's side: a personal financial statement or household budget, because the business has to pay you as well as the lender.
A startup has no history, so projections and the owner's finances carry more of the file. Our business loan documents checklist covers the supporting paperwork.
A worked example: a $35,000 microloan request
Every figure in this example is an assumption: a two-year-old screen-printing shop buying an automatic press for two new wholesale accounts. Because the request tops $20,000, the plan also needs the credit-elsewhere paragraph.
| Use of funds | Amount | Backup in the plan |
|---|---|---|
| Used automatic press | $17,500 | Vendor quote |
| Conveyor dryer and flash unit | $6,500 | Vendor quote |
| Blank apparel and ink inventory | $5,500 | Supplier price list |
| Screens, racks and shop fixtures | $2,500 | Itemized list |
| Working capital | $3,000 | Cash flow table |
| Total request | $35,000 |
At an assumed 10% fixed rate (inside SBA's general 8% to 13% range) and 60 monthly payments (inside the seven-year limit), the payment is $743.65 a month, or $8,923.80 a year, with about $9,619 of interest over the term (see how business loan payments work). Intermediary fees and closing costs are left out.
The cash flow assumes $5,000 of opening cash ($2,000 on hand plus the $3,000 of working capital), materials at 45% of sales, $2,700 of fixed monthly costs, an owner's draw of $1,800 a month and a payment rounded up to $744.
| Month | Sales | Costs and owner's draw | Cash before loan payment | Ending cash after $744 payment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $8,000 | $8,100 | -$100 | $4,156 |
| 2 | $8,500 | $8,325 | $175 | $3,587 |
| 3 | $9,000 | $8,550 | $450 | $3,293 |
| 4 | $10,000 | $9,000 | $1,000 | $3,549 |
| 5 | $11,000 | $9,450 | $1,550 | $4,355 |
| 6 | $11,500 | $9,675 | $1,825 | $5,436 |
| 7 | $10,500 | $9,225 | $1,275 | $5,967 |
| 8 | $12,000 | $9,900 | $2,100 | $7,323 |
| 9 | $12,500 | $10,125 | $2,375 | $8,954 |
| 10 | $13,000 | $10,350 | $2,650 | $10,860 |
| 11 | $14,000 | $10,800 | $3,200 | $13,316 |
| 12 | $12,000 | $9,900 | $2,100 | $14,672 |
| Year | $132,000 | $113,400 | $18,600 | $14,672 |
Coverage is $18,600 of cash before loan payments divided by $8,928 of payments (12 times $744), or 2.08 times, after the owner has been paid. Cash bottoms out at $3,293 in month 3 after a combined shortfall of $1,707, and that dip is what the $3,000 working capital line is sized to carry. Break-even, using SBA's formula of fixed costs divided by contribution margin and counting the draw and the payment as fixed outlays, is $5,244 ($2,700 plus $1,800 plus $744) divided by 0.55, or about $9,535 of monthly sales, which the forecast passes in month 4.
Then stress it. With sales 10% lower in every month, cash before payments falls to $11,340 and coverage to 1.27 times. Show that case and what you'd cut first, then ask the intermediary what coverage it wants, since each sets its own yardstick.
Questions a microloan officer is likely to ask
We found no official script. These follow from the program rules above and ordinary small-loan underwriting.
| Likely question | Where the plan answers it |
|---|---|
| What will the money buy, and from which vendors? | Use-of-funds table with quotes attached |
| Above $20,000: have you tried a bank or credit union? | A paragraph on why comparable credit isn't available elsewhere |
| Where do the sales numbers come from? | Assumptions page: capacity, prices, signed orders |
| What do you need to take home each month? | Owner's draw line and a household budget |
| Who owns the business, and what can you pledge? | Ownership list and available collateral |
On the second question, SOP 52 00 B counts factors such as needing a longer maturity than is available or collateral that doesn't meet other lenders' requirements, and says a letter of denial "is not required but may be used."
Where to get the plan reviewed before you apply
SBA's list of microlenders filters by state, and 13 CFR 120.701 defines an intermediary as an entity that also "provides marketing, management, and technical assistance to its borrowers," so ask whether it will review a draft. SBA's resource partners can help too: SCORE mentors "offer area-specific advice at no cost (financing, human resources, business planning)," and Small Business Development Centers and Women's Business Centers provide counseling and training.
A clean plan doesn't secure a loan. The intermediary still assesses credit and repayment ability, and approval and terms vary by lender.
If the need runs past $50,000, or involves refinancing debt or buying property, look at SBA 7(a) and 504 loans or commercial real estate financing, which have their own rules. EQ Funding isn't a lender. We route one application to lenders who compete for the business, and the use-of-funds table and cash flow you built carry over.