International Cooperation (IC) Scheme - Market Development Assistance (MDA)

What is the International Cooperation Scheme's Market Development Assistance?

The International Cooperation (IC) Scheme is a market-access programme of the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME). Its Market Development Assistance (MDA) component helps Indian MSMEs "gain global market access" by funding their participation in international exhibitions, trade fairs, buyer-seller meets and conferences. According to the scheme material on the NSIC portal, the revised IC Scheme has three sub-components:

• Market Development Assistance (MDA); in physical and virtual mode;
• Capacity Building of First Time Exporters (CBFTE); and
• a Framework for International Market Intelligence Dissemination (IMID).

The MDA component is the one most people mean when they refer to this scheme. It supports MSME delegations participating as exhibitors in international exhibitions and trade fairs, international conferences and workshops held in India on MSME-relevant themes, mega international exhibitions organised abroad by the Ministry, government-to-government events in India, and Ministry-led industrial delegations to international events.

Key features

• Delivered mainly through industry associations and government MSME organisations.
• Covers physical and virtual participation in international market events.
• Reimburses costs such as space rental, airfare and event organisation, within fixed budgetary ceilings.
• Administered by the Ministry of MSME with the NSIC IC Division and the Office of DC (MSME).

Who is eligible under the scheme?

Who can apply

• Registered industry/trade associations and chambers working for MSME promotion.
• State and Central government organisations engaged in MSME development.
• MSME units, for participation in international trade fairs under the MSME India stall.

How individual MSEs participate

• A micro or small manufacturing enterprise can participate in an international trade fair under the MSME India stall, applying through its MSME Development Institute (MSME-DI). The MSME-DI selects units based on the displayed product profile, the theme of the fair and space availability.

Who cannot apply / what to note

• This is not a personal cash grant. Individuals do not receive money to spend as they wish; support is tied to participating in, or organising, a specific international market event.
• A micro/small manufacturing unit can avail the fair-participation facility only once a year, and only one person of the unit is eligible for the airfare subsidy.
• Non-MSMEs and enterprises without valid MSME (Udyam) registration are not eligible.

How much assistance is provided?

Reimbursement ceilings under the IC Scheme are fixed per event in the relevant guidelines. For the closely linked MDA norms governing individual MSE participation in international trade fairs under the MSME India stall, the Government of India reimburses:

• 75% of economy-class airfare and 50% of space rental for general category micro and small manufacturing enterprises; and
• 100% of space rent and economy airfare for women, SC/ST and North Eastern Region entrepreneurs.

The total subsidy on airfare and space rental is restricted to about Rs 1.25 lakh per unit. General-category units pay 50% of the space-rental charges in advance; women, SC/ST and NER entrepreneurs pay it as a security deposit that is refunded after participation (and forfeited in case of non-participation).

Because the wider IC Scheme also funds associations organising conferences and delegations, those activities carry their own budgetary ceilings set in each event's sanction — so applicants should confirm the exact figures against the current guidelines rather than assume a single flat amount.

What documents are required?

How to apply under the scheme

The route depends on whether you are an association/organisation or an individual MSE.

For an industry association or government MSME organisation

1. Identify the international event. An overseas exhibition or trade fair, or an international conference in India on an MSME-relevant theme.
2. Prepare the proposal with the theme, dates, venue and budget, ensuring member enterprises hold valid Udyam registration.
3. Submit the application to the Ministry of MSME / NSIC IC Division within the timeline in the guidelines, and obtain sanction before the event.
4. Conduct the activity, then file the claim with the prescribed documents and a feedback report on business generated.

For an individual micro/small enterprise (fair participation)

1. Approach your MSME-DI to express interest in participating under the MSME India stall at an international trade fair.
2. Submit the application at least one month in advance of the event, with a copy of your valid MSME registration and a demand draft for your share of the space-rental charges in favour of PAO (MSME), New Delhi.
3. Get selected by the MSME-DI based on product profile, fair theme and space availability (offers are first-come, first-served subject to space).
4. Participate and manage your samples, then file the reimbursement claim within one month of returning to India, enclosing the pre-receipt bill, used air ticket and passport entries.

Help and where to verify details

The scheme is administered by the Ministry of MSME (msme.gov.in), with the International Cooperation Division of NSIC and the Office of DC (MSME) handling operations. The NSIC IC Division can be reached at 011-26926275 and at icdivision[at]nsic[dot]co[dot]in, and the scheme is listed on the national myScheme portal. Because the IC Scheme's reimbursement ceilings and eligible activities are revised periodically and are set per event, prospective applicants should confirm the current guidelines and application window with the Ministry of MSME or NSIC before committing to an event.

How to check your application status

There is no unified online tracker for the International Cooperation Scheme comparable to a portal dashboard, so status confirmation depends on which route the applicant used.

If you applied as an industry association or government MSME organisation

1. Track the file through the same channel it was submitted to, either the Ministry of MSME's IC Division or the NSIC IC Division, since sanction letters are issued directly to the applicant organisation rather than posted on a public tracker.
2. Call the NSIC IC Division at 011-26926275, or write to icdivision[at]nsic[dot]co[dot]in, quoting the proposal reference number, the event name and the date of submission.
3. Follow up with the Office of DC (MSME) if the proposal was routed through that office, since sanction for some categories of events is issued from there rather than from NSIC.
4. After the event, confirm that the claim (pre-receipt bill, feedback report and supporting bills) has been received and is under processing, since reimbursement is released only after the claim is scrutinised, not automatically after sanction.

If you applied as an individual MSE for fair participation through an MSME-DI

1. Contact the MSME-DI where the application was filed. Selection for a limited number of stall slots is communicated by the MSME-DI, not through a central portal.
2. If selected and the event has taken place, follow up on the reimbursement claim with the same MSME-DI or with the Office of DC (MSME), since airfare and space-rental reimbursement is processed after the claim documents (used air ticket, boarding pass or passport entries, pre-receipt bill) are submitted and verified.
3. Keep a copy of the acknowledgement or dispatch reference for the application and claim, since these are the only proof of submission dates in the absence of an online tracking number.

Because this scheme runs on a proposal-and-sanction model rather than a portal-based application, applicants should expect status updates to come by phone, email or letter from NSIC, the Office of DC (MSME) or the MSME-DI, rather than by checking a reference number online.

Common reasons for rejection

• Applicant lacks valid Udyam/MSME registration. Associations sometimes forget to confirm that every member enterprise proposed for participation holds current Udyam registration; an unregistered unit is dropped from the proposal or the claim for that unit is refused. Fix: verify Udyam status for every participating enterprise before submitting the proposal.
• Application submitted too close to the event date. For MSE participation under the MSME India stall, applications reaching the MSME-DI less than a month before the event are commonly turned away because sanction, space booking and logistics cannot be completed in time. Fix: apply well ahead of the stated lead time, not the week the fair is announced.
• Incomplete or vague event proposal. Proposals that do not clearly state the theme, dates, venue and a realistic cost estimate are sent back for revision or rejected outright, since sanctioning authorities need this detail to assess the request against budgetary ceilings. Fix: attach the event's official theme/dates/venue documentation and an itemised budget rather than a generic request letter.
• Missing demand draft or advance payment for space rental. Individual MSE applications for a fair stall are not processed without the required demand draft (or, for women/SC-ST/NER entrepreneurs, the security deposit) in favour of PAO (MSME), New Delhi. Fix: prepare the draft in the correct name and amount before submission, not after a follow-up query.
• Claim filed after the deadline or with missing documents. Reimbursement claims filed beyond the stipulated window after returning from the event, or missing the pre-receipt bill, used air ticket, boarding pass/passport entries, or the feedback report on business generated, are the most frequent reason a sanctioned participation still fails to get paid out. Fix: assemble all claim documents during the trip itself (keep boarding passes and bills) and file the claim within the prescribed period.
• More than one representative claiming airfare, or repeat participation within the same year. Since only one representative per unit is eligible for the airfare subsidy and a unit can use the fair-participation facility only once a year, claims outside these limits are disallowed. Fix: nominate a single traveller for the subsidy and check the unit's participation history before reapplying in the same year.
• Activity does not fit the scheme's defined categories. Proposals for events that are not international exhibitions, trade fairs, buyer-seller meets, MSME-relevant conferences or Ministry-led delegations, as recognised under the IC Scheme's sub-components, do not qualify for support. Fix: map the proposed activity explicitly to MDA, CBFTE or IMID before applying, and confirm fit with the NSIC IC Division if unsure.