Matching Grant Scheme

What was the Matching Grant Scheme?

Matching Grant Scheme was a start-up incentive framed by the Startup Promotion Cell (SPC) of the Department of Information Technology, Electronics and Communications, Government of Goa, under the Goa Start-up Policy 2017. The policy's stated objective was to make Goa an aspirational geographical and human resource base for start-ups, to invite the best entrepreneurial minds and to build a robust start-up ecosystem in the state.

The scheme addressed a specific moment in a start-up's life: the point just before a product reaches the market, when a founder has convinced an outside investor to commit money but still needs more runway to get to launch. Under the Matching Grant Scheme the Government of Goa would put in a proportion of what the private investor had already put in, in effect using the investor's own diligence as a signal.

Unlike most of Goa's start-up incentives, this was not a reimbursement. The grant was made "at proportionate ownership of stock", which means the state took equity in exchange. That single phrase is the most important thing a founder needs to understand about this scheme.

How much did the Matching Grant Scheme pay?

Clause 3.1 of the scheme document set the benefit precisely. Start-ups that raised funds from a registered or recognised funding source prior to the product launch phase would be provided 25% of the matching funds, or a maximum benefit of INR 25 lakh, at proportionate ownership of stock, subsequent to due diligence by the Startup Promotion Cell.

In practice that meant a start-up raising Rs 40 lakh from an angel investor could expect Rs 10 lakh from the state, and a start-up raising Rs 2 crore would compute Rs 50 lakh but receive Rs 25 lakh, because the cap applied.

Clause 3.2 limited the benefit to 20 start-ups each year, selected by the SPC as per its due diligence and guidelines. Clause 3.3 carried the standard warning that under no circumstance shall the benefits be considered an entitlement, and that the SPC reserved the sole right to accept or reject applications.

Who was eligible for the Matching Grant Scheme?

A start-up could apply if:

• The start-up was certified by the Startup Promotion Cell and held a valid start-up certificate number.
• The product for which the benefit was claimed had not previously been made available in the market.
• The applicant filed at least 1 to 3 months prior to product launch. This was a narrow window: too early and the launch was not imminent, too late and the product was already out.
• The bank accounts of the directors of the company were linked to Aadhaar.
• The expenditure was incurred after the notification of the Goa Start-up Policy 2017, fell within its validity, and was paid digitally. Where digital payment was not possible, the SPC could still admit the expenditure after due diligence.
• Funds had been raised from a registered or recognised funding source, which excluded informal borrowing from friends and family.

A start-up was not eligible if:

• Its product had already launched or was already available in the market.
• It applied outside the one-to-three-month pre-launch window.
• It held no valid Goa start-up certificate number.
• The money it had raised did not come from a registered or recognised funding source.

Individuals could not apply. Neither could an idea-stage founder with no external funding, because the whole scheme was built on matching money that someone else had already committed.

How to apply for the Matching Grant Scheme

The procedure set out in clause 5 of the scheme document ran as follows. It is recorded here because the same sequence governs most SPC incentives, but note the scheme's status before using it.

1. Obtain start-up certification from the Startup Promotion Cell and note the start-up certificate number.
2. Raise the funding from a registered or recognised funding source, before the product launch phase, and retain the documentation.
3. Submit the application form to the SPC along with the requisite set of documents. The form and the documents were to be emailed or submitted on the web portal to the cell.
4. Undergo due diligence. The SPC evaluated the application, and the approved amount was then disbursed at proportionate ownership of stock.
5. Await the decision within 45 days. Applications received under the scheme were to be evaluated, and approval or rejection notified, within 45 days from receipt by the SPC.
6. Receive disbursement within 60 days of approval. Once approved, the approved amount was to be disbursed within 60 days from the date of approval.

Clause 5.4 allowed the applicant to apply at any time of the financial year, and clause 5.3 made the SPC the sole competent authority to accept or reject an application, with its decision final and binding.

Why did the scheme take equity?

Most of Goa's start-up incentives are reimbursements. The state refunds money the start-up has already spent on rent, internet, salaries, patents or trademarks, and takes nothing back. Matching Grant Scheme worked differently, and a founder reading the clause needs to see the difference clearly.

The words "at proportionate ownership of stock" mean the state received shares in return for the grant, in proportion to what it put in. A start-up that raised Rs 40 lakh from an investor and received Rs 10 lakh from the state was, in substance, issuing stock to two parties in the same round rather than receiving a subsidy.

That structure has consequences a reimbursement never has. It changes the capitalisation table, it puts a government holding on the register that a later investor will ask about, and it makes the state's due diligence, which clause 3.1 required before the grant. A genuine gate rather than a document check. It also explains the tight annual limit of 20 start-ups: taking equity positions is far more administratively demanding than processing invoices.

Founders comparing Goa's schemes today should read the Seed Capital Scheme in the same light. Under the current policy the Seed Capital Scheme is described as a one-time grant of up to Rs 10 lakh, while the state's Venture Capital "Fund of Funds" invests up to Rs 1 crore explicitly in lieu of equity. Those are two different instruments, and which one applies determines whether your ownership changes.

What is the current status of the Matching Grant Scheme?

Matching Grant Scheme does not appear among the schemes the Startup and IT Promotion Cell currently lists on its Startup Incentives page, which runs from the Co-Working Spaces Subsidy Scheme through Salary Reimbursement, Reimbursement of Expenses for Startups Operating from Leased or Privately Owned Premises, Seed Capital, IPR Reimbursement, Trademark Reimbursement, Grant for Incubation Centers within Educational Institutes, R&D Reimbursement and the Skill Development Promotion Scheme. The Department of Information Technology's Policies and Schemes page likewise lists twelve Startup Policy 2025 schemes, and this is not one of them.

There is a further trap for anyone searching. The Goa Startup Policy 2025 does use the words "matching grant" — but in a completely different sense. Clause (d) of its access-to-finance section provides that for start-ups whose workforce comprises 60% locals, "a matching grant of up to 25% of the salary of the local workforce will be reimbursed, subject to a cap of Rs. 10,000 per month per recruit, for a maximum period of three (3) years." That is a salary reimbursement, delivered through the Salary Reimbursement Scheme, and it has nothing to do with matching an investor's cheque or with equity.

Anyone who arrived at this page looking for money to match a funding round should read the Seed Capital Scheme instead. A one-time grant of up to Rs 10 lakh for start-ups with a promising idea or minimum viable product, available to 100 start-ups a year, and the state's Venture Capital "Fund of Funds", which under the current policy can invest up to Rs 1 crore in lieu of equity in promising start-ups, with the aim of funding at least 25 start-ups.

Where to check the position

• Startup and IT Promotion Cell helpline: 1800-233-5060
• Email: spc-dit.goa@gov.in
• Office: IT HUB, 2nd Floor, Altinho, Panaji, Goa 403001, Monday to Friday, 10:00 am to 5:30 pm
• Current incentives: startup.goa.gov.in/StartupIncentives
• Historical scheme text: the Matching Grant Scheme document is published in StartupGoaSchemes.pdf on startup.goa.gov.in, alongside the IPR, R&D and other Start-up Policy 2017 schemes

Before acting on any figure on this page, ask the cell in writing whether the Matching Grant Scheme is operative. A scheme that has fallen out of the policy is not revived by an old PDF remaining online.

How to check your application status

Matching Grant Scheme never ran through a centralised online tracker with a login and a status dashboard. The scheme document routed everything through the Startup Promotion Cell (SPC) directly, so checking on an application meant following up with the cell itself rather than logging into a portal.

For anyone who filed under the scheme while it was still operative, or who is trying to trace an old application:

1. Call the SPC helpline at 1800-233-5060 and quote the start-up certificate number used on the application. The cell can look up the file against that number.
2. Email the cell at spc-dit.goa@gov.in with the application reference, the date it was submitted, and the certificate number. Because applications were emailed or submitted on the web portal rather than tracked with a ticket system, a written follow-up is the more reliable trail than a phone call alone.
3. Visit the office in person if a written and phone follow-up produce no response. The SPC is at IT HUB, 2nd Floor, Altinho, Panaji, Goa 403001, open Monday to Friday, 10:00 am to 5:30 pm.
4. Track the two statutory clocks the scheme document set. Clause 5 required the SPC to notify approval or rejection within 45 days of receiving an application, and to disburse an approved amount within 60 days of approval. An applicant past either window without word from the cell has grounds to escalate the follow-up in writing.

Because Matching Grant Scheme does not appear among the Startup and IT Promotion Cell's current Startup Incentives, there is no live intake to check the status of today. Anyone assuming they have a pending application under this specific scheme name should confirm with the SPC in writing that the scheme is even accepting filings before waiting on a decision.

Common reasons for rejection

The scheme document gave the Startup Promotion Cell sole discretion to accept or reject applications, and clause 3.3 stated plainly that the benefit was never an entitlement. Within that discretion, most rejections traced back to a handful of concrete, avoidable gaps:

• Product already in the market. The grant was for start-ups raising money before launch. An application filed after the product was already available for sale failed the core eligibility test, regardless of how strong the funding round was.
• Filed outside the 1-to-3-month pre-launch window. Applying too early, before a launch date was fixed, or too late, after the product had shipped, both fell outside the narrow window clause 5 required. The fix is to time the filing against a firm, documented launch date.
• No valid start-up certificate number. The SPC required current certification as a threshold check. A lapsed, pending, or never-obtained certificate stopped the application before it reached the funding review.
• Funding not from a registered or recognised source. Money raised informally from friends, family, or an unregistered lender did not qualify as the "matching funds" the scheme was built to match. Only funds from a documented, recognised investor or institution counted.
• Missing digital payment trail. Because the benefit was calculated against verified expenditure and inflows, an applicant who could not produce digital payment records for the relevant transactions gave the SPC's due diligence nothing to confirm the numbers against. Where digital payment genuinely was not possible, the applicant needed to flag this and support the expenditure with alternative documentation, not leave it unexplained.
• Directors' bank accounts not Aadhaar-linked. This was a standing condition across Goa's start-up incentives, and an unlinked account was an easy, entirely avoidable rejection ground.
• The annual quota of 20 start-ups was already filled. Clause 3.2 capped the scheme at 20 recipients a year. An otherwise-qualifying application submitted after that quota was reached in a given year could be turned down purely on numbers, not on merit.
• Applying to a scheme that is no longer running. Since Matching Grant Scheme does not appear on the SPC's current Startup Incentives list or the Department of IT's Startup Policy 2025 schemes, a fresh application submitted today risks rejection simply because the scheme itself is not open, independent of how well the start-up otherwise fits the old criteria.