About this programme
NASA's Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer (SBIR/STTR) program is part of America's Seed Fund, the federal government's largest source of early-stage, non-dilutive funding for innovative technologies. NASA is one of eleven federal agencies that run SBIR/STTR programs under a common statute, and it directs its share toward technologies that advance NASA missions in aeronautics, human exploration, science, and space technology.
The program funds small businesses to research, develop, and demonstrate technologies through a phased structure. SBIR is open to small businesses working alone; STTR requires a formal partnership between the small business and a U.S. research institution (a university, federally funded R&D center, or nonprofit research organization) on the funded work.
Because the funding is a contract for R&D work rather than an investment, NASA takes no equity and the company keeps the resulting intellectual property, subject to the government's standard data rights. For Program Year 2026, NASA moved its SBIR/STTR solicitations to a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) format, replacing the earlier annual solicitation cycle.
How it works
Phase I is the concept-validation stage: small businesses can receive up to $225,000 to establish the scientific, technical, and commercial merit and feasibility of a proposed innovation. Performance period is 6 months for SBIR awards and 13 months for STTR awards (the longer STTR window accounts for the research-institution partnership).
Phase II is the development stage, open only to companies that were awarded a Phase I contract in the topic they are proposing under. Awards go up to $1,275,000 over a 24-month performance period for both SBIR and STTR, plus up to $50,000 in optional Technical and Business Assistance (TABA) funding to support commercialization planning.
Post Phase II / Phase II-Extended (Phase II-E) is a contract option for companies with an active NASA Phase II contract (excluding Phase II Sequential contracts) to further mature the technology toward commercialization. It requires the company to secure at least $25,000 in outside investor or customer funding, which NASA matches 1:1 up to a maximum of $375,000. Performance period is 6-12 months, selections are made roughly every two months, and applications must close 60 days before the original Phase II contract's end date; the window opens after the 6th month of performance for SBIR Ignite awards or the 12th month for other Phase II contracts.
Phase III covers further development and commercialization of a technology that received Phase I/II funding, potentially through non-SBIR/STTR federal or private-sector contracts, and does not carry program funding ceilings in the same way as Phase I/II.
NASA also runs supplementary tracks referenced on its SBIR/STTR site: SBIR Ignite (an accelerated commercialization track), I-Corps (entrepreneurship/customer-discovery training), and TABA (technical and business assistance funding attached to Phase I and Phase II awards).
Who can apply
SBIR applicants must be small businesses (for-profit, majority U.S.-owned and operated, with fewer than 500 employees including affiliates) proposing to perform the research themselves.
STTR applicants must be a small business of the same type, formally partnered with a U.S. research institution (university, FFRDC, or nonprofit research organization) that performs a defined share of the work under a written cooperative agreement.
Phase II is restricted to small businesses that already hold a NASA Phase I award in the relevant topic — a company cannot apply directly for Phase II without having completed Phase I.
Phase II-E is restricted to companies with an active NASA Phase II contract that is not a Phase II Sequential contract, and requires committed outside matching funds before NASA will match them.
How to apply
- Review the current NASA SBIR/STTR solicitation documents, published under the Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) structure NASA adopted for Program Year 2026, for the open topic areas, eligibility rules, and proposal instructions for that cycle.
- Register on ProSAMS (Proposal Submissions and Awards Management System) at prosams.nasa.gov, the system NASA uses for most SBIR/STTR solicitation submissions and contract management.
- Prepare the proposal using the templates and sample deliverables in NASA's Firms Library, addressing the technical, commercial, and team-qualification content the solicitation calls for.
- Submit the proposal through ProSAMS before the solicitation's stated closing date and time; NASA's recent Phase I cycle, for example, opened April 21, 2026 and closed May 21, 2026 at 5 p.m. ET.
- For Phase II, submit only after holding a Phase I award in the same topic, following the Phase II-specific instructions in the current solicitation (a recent Phase II Sequential cycle opened August 12, 2026 and closed September 11, 2026).
- Awarded companies can separately request Phase II-E consideration once their Phase II contract reaches the eligible performance month and they have secured the required matching funds.
Documents you’ll typically need
- Technical and commercialization proposal content as specified in the current BAA solicitation for the relevant SBIR or STTR track
- For STTR: a written cooperative research agreement with the partnering research institution
- Company eligibility and size representations (small-business status, U.S. ownership) as required on ProSAMS
- For Phase II-E: evidence of committed outside investor or customer matching funds
Frequently asked
What is the difference between NASA SBIR and STTR?
SBIR funds a small business working on its own. STTR requires the small business to formally partner with a U.S. research institution — a university, federally funded R&D center, or nonprofit research organization — which performs a defined share of the funded work.
How much can a NASA Phase I award be worth?
Up to $225,000. The performance period is 6 months for an SBIR award and 13 months for an STTR award.
Can a company apply directly for NASA SBIR/STTR Phase II?
No. Only small businesses that already hold a NASA Phase I award in the relevant topic are eligible to apply for Phase II. Phase II is not open to companies that have not completed Phase I.
What is Phase II-E (Post Phase II) and who can apply?
Phase II-E is a contract option for companies with an active NASA Phase II contract (excluding Phase II Sequential contracts) to further develop the technology toward commercialization. The company must secure at least $25,000 in outside investor or customer funding, which NASA matches 1:1 up to $375,000.
Does NASA take equity or IP rights in exchange for SBIR/STTR funding?
No. SBIR/STTR awards are R&D contracts, not investments, so NASA does not take equity. The company retains the resulting intellectual property, subject to the government’s standard data rights under the SBIR/STTR statute.
What system is used to submit a NASA SBIR/STTR proposal?
NASA runs most SBIR/STTR solicitation submissions and contract management through ProSAMS (Proposal Submissions and Awards Management System) at prosams.nasa.gov, supported by proposal templates and sample deliverables in NASA’s Firms Library.
Is TABA funding automatic with a Phase I or Phase II award?
TABA (Technical and Business Assistance) funding is optional and requested as part of the proposal — Phase II awardees can request up to $50,000 in TABA support for commercialization planning; it is not added automatically.
Reviewed 2026-08-16. Programmes change — confirm current eligibility, amounts and deadlines on the official page before you apply. CapEasy is a private consultancy and is not affiliated with any government authority.