CDFI Fund Opens the FY 2026 Small Dollar Loan Program Funding Round

CDFI Fund Opens the FY 2026 Small Dollar Loan Program Funding Round

The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) opened the fiscal year (FY) 2026 funding round for the Small Dollar Loan Program (SDL Program) today. SDL Program funding is intended to expand consumer access to financial institutions by providing alternatives to high-cost small dollar lending. The SDL Program funding is also intended to help unbanked and underbanked populations build credit, access affordable capital, and allow greater access into the mainstream financial system. For this program, small dollar loans cannot exceed $2,500.

Through the SDL Program, the CDFI Fund provides:

1. Grants for Loan Loss Reserves (LLR): The awards enable a Certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) to establish a loan loss reserve fund to cover the losses on small dollar loans associated with establishing or expanding a small dollar loan program.
2. Grants for Technical Assistance (TA): The awards support technology, staff support, and other eligible activities to enable a Certified CDFI to establish or expand a small dollar loan program.

Up to $9 million in awards is available through the FY 2026 round of the program. This round of the SDL Program will consist of funding provided under the Full-Year Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2025 (Pub. L. 119-4).

Organizations must be Certified as CDFIs as of the date of publication of the Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA) in the Federal Register to be eligible to apply for the FY 2026 SDL Program. Currently Certified CDFIs that are waiting for the CDFI Fund to render a final decision on their CDFI Certification Application per the revised CDFI Certification requirements are eligible to apply. Applicants should review the NOFA to learn more about eligibility requirements to apply for and receive an SDL Program award.

Certified CDFIs may apply for SDL Program awards individually; through a partnership between a Certified CDFI and any Federally Insured Depository Institution (FIDI) with a primary mission to serve targeted Investment Areas (for LLR only); or through a partnership between two or more Certified CDFIs (for TA only). SDL Program awards may not be used to provide direct loans to consumers.

Please review the Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA) to learn more about the SDL Program. Additional details on how to apply to the program are available below.

Application Materials

Reference copies of the SDL Program NOFA and all application materials can be found on the SDL Program page on the CDFI Fund's website.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to closely review all application materials.

Required Application Systems

All applicants must be registered and have active accounts in SAM.gov, Grants.gov, and the CDFI Fund's Awards Management Information System (AMIS) to apply for funding by July 23, 2026 or their application will be considered ineligible. All applicants are also required to have the correct Employer Identification Number (EIN) and Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) attached to the relevant SAM.gov and AMIS accounts by July 23, 2026. To avoid potential application problems, all organizations should either create a new account, if one does not exist, or confirm that the existing account is up to date. Applicants are encouraged to create/update their accounts as soon as possible.

Deadlines

• Applicants must submit their SF-424 electronically via Grants.gov and create an AMIS account before 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on July 23, 2026. SDL Program Grants.gov Funding Opportunity Number: CDFI-2026-SDL.
• The complete SDL Program Application must be submitted electronically through AMIS before 11:59 p.m. ET on July 30, 2026.
• The CDFI Fund strongly encourages all materials be submitted at least three days before each corresponding deadline for Grants.gov and AMIS.

Please see the FY 2026 SDL Program NOFA and the Application Instructions for more information on submitting the SDL Program Application.

Questions

The CDFI Fund will answer questions about the FY 2026 SDL Program application until 5:00 p.m. ET on July 28, 2026. Contact the SDL Program by submitting a Service Request through your AMIS account; by e-mail to [email protected]; or by phone to (202) 653-0421 (please note this is not a toll-free number).

The CDFI Fund's IT Support (AMIS) will be providing technical support for AMIS questions about the FY 2026 SDL Program application until 5:00 p.m. ET on July 30, 2026. Contact IT Support (AMIS) by submitting a Service Request through your AMIS account; by e-mail to [email protected]; or by phone to (202) 653-0422 (please note this is not a toll-free number). Technical support for AMIS will not be available after 5:00 p.m. ET on July 30, 2026.

To learn more about the CDFI Fund and its programs, please visit https://www.cdfifund.gov.