Semicon India Programme / India Semiconductor Mission

What is the Semicon India Programme?

Semicon India Programme is a Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) programme to build a semiconductor and display manufacturing ecosystem in India, approved with a total outlay of Rs 76,000 crore. The programme is implemented by the India Semiconductor Mission (ISM), the nodal agency set up under MeitY for this purpose.

Be clear about who this is for: Semicon India funds companies, not individuals. Fabrication plants cost billions of dollars, and the programme's instrument is capital subsidy to firms willing to build them in India. There is no citizen application, subsidy or personal benefit under it.

According to the ISM portal, the programme covers "Silicon Semiconductor Fabs, Display Fabs, Compound Semiconductors / Silicon Photonics / Sensors (including MEMS) Fabs, Semiconductor Packaging (ATMP / OSAT) and Semiconductor Design".

Key objectives

• Establish domestic semiconductor and display fabrication capacity.
• Build the packaging and testing layer: ATMP and OSAT, that sits between chip fabrication and product assembly.
• Grow India's chip design capability from services into products and IP.
• Reduce strategic dependence on imported semiconductors.

Main features

• Original outlay of Rs 76,000 crore, with fiscal support of 50% of project cost on a pari-passu basis under the Modified Schemes.
• Semicon 2.0 approved subsequently with a fiscal outlay of Rs 1,27,500 crore across six pillars.
• ISM acts as the single-window nodal agency for appraisal and implementation.
• Support is pari-passu; released alongside the applicant's own investment, not upfront.

Who is eligible under the Semicon India Programme?

Companies can apply if they:

• Are companies or consortia proposing to set up a semiconductor fab, display fab, compound semiconductor or sensor fab, ATMP/OSAT packaging facility, or semiconductor design operation in India.
• Can demonstrate access to proven process technology, typically through a technology partner or licensing arrangement, for fab proposals.
• Have the financial capability to fund their share. Support is disbursed pari-passu, so the government's contribution matches the applicant's spending rather than preceding it.
• Meet the capacity, technology node and localisation commitments set out in the relevant scheme guidelines.

You cannot apply if:

• You are an individual, a student, engineer, researcher or job seeker. Semicon India has no individual application route of any kind.
• You are a company without the capital or technology access to meet the scheme's appraisal thresholds. Chip fab proposals are appraised on technical and financial credibility, and most applicants are rejected.
• Your proposal falls outside the notified categories of fab, packaging, equipment, materials or design activity.

Students interested in semiconductors reach this programme through their university, under the talent development pillar, not through a funding application to ISM.

How much fiscal support does Semicon India provide?

Semicon 1.0. The Modified Schemes. According to PIB, the Modified Scheme for setting up Semiconductor Fabs in India extends fiscal support of 50% of the project cost on a pari-passu basis for silicon CMOS-based fabs. The same 50% pari-passu support applies to display fabs, to compound semiconductor, silicon photonics, sensor and discrete semiconductor fabs, and to ATMP/OSAT facilities.

Semicon 2.0. The successor programme. The Union Cabinet approved Semicon 2.0 with a fiscal outlay of Rs 1,27,500 crore. Support rates published by the India Semiconductor Mission are:

The reduction from 50% to 40% under Semicon 2.0 reflects a shift in approach: the first phase was about proving India could attract fabs at all, the second about building the surrounding supply chain at sustainable subsidy levels.

What are the six pillars of Semicon 2.0?

India Semiconductor Mission sets out six pillars for Semicon 2.0:

1. Design; chip IPs, system design and innovation, with seed funding, IP tools and deployment-linked incentives aimed at startups and MSMEs.
2. Machines and materials; incentivising domestic manufacture and R&D of semiconductor equipment, specialty chemicals, industrial gases and critical substrates.
3. Fabs; silicon fabs, compound semiconductor fabs, discrete component fabs and display fabs.
4. ATMP and OSAT — advanced Assembly, Testing, Marking and Packaging, and Outsourced Semiconductor Assembly and Test units.
5. Research and development: moving beyond the 28 nm to 110 nm nodes India currently supports, towards advanced process nodes.
6. Talent development: training expanded across 320 universities, with around 70,000 students already trained according to ISM.

What has the Semicon India Programme achieved?

As of December 2025, 10 projects with a total investment of about Rs 1.60 lakh crore had been approved across six states, per PIB. These cover:

• Silicon fabrication units
• Silicon carbide fabs
• Advanced packaging and memory packaging facilities
• Specialised assembly and testing infrastructure

Government statements in 2026 have cited investment of the order of Rs 1.52 lakh crore and roughly 85,000 jobs associated with the programme. Figures vary across statements depending on the cut-off date and whether committed or realised investment is being counted, so treat any single number as point-in-time.

What documents does a company need for a Semicon India application?

How to apply under the Semicon India Programme

Individuals cannot apply. The steps below describe the company application route run by the India Semiconductor Mission.

1. Check the current scheme notification on ism.gov.in: Semicon 1.0 and Semicon 2.0 are listed separately, each with its own guidelines, eligible categories and application window.
2. Determine the applicable category, silicon fab, compound semiconductor or display fab, ATMP/OSAT, equipment and materials, or design; since fiscal support rates differ by category.
3. Prepare the detailed project report covering capacity, technology node, capital expenditure, phasing, localisation and employment commitments.
4. Secure and document the technology partnership or licensing arrangement, and evidence of funding tie-ups for the applicant's share of project cost.
5. Submit the application to the India Semiconductor Mission through the route specified in the relevant scheme notification, within the applicable window.
6. Respond to ISM's technical and financial appraisal, which examines technology credibility, promoter capability and the realism of the capex plan.
7. On approval, execute the agreement with MeitY/ISM and draw fiscal support pari-passu against verified project expenditure, alongside any state government incentive package.

For queries on the current application window, write to ism-dic@gov.in, scheme windows open and close by notification, and the ISM website does not always carry a live status indicator.

How do students and engineers benefit from Semicon India?

There is no individual grant, but the talent development pillar is the route for people rather than companies. ISM reports training expanded across 320 universities with around 70,000 students already trained. Access is through your institution's participation in ISM-supported programmes: chip design courses, EDA tool access and internship pipelines with beneficiary companies.

Jobs created by approved projects are filled through those companies' own recruitment, not through MeitY or ISM. Anyone claiming to secure you a job or a grant under Semicon India for a fee is not operating legitimately.

Where to get help with Semicon India

• India Semiconductor Mission: ism-dic@gov.in
• ISM office: 16th Floor, B-Wing, IFCI Tower, 61 Nehru Place, New Delhi 110019
• ISM portal: ism.gov.in; Semicon 1.0 and Semicon 2.0 scheme pages
• MeitY: gazette notifications and scheme guidelines

A note on sourcing: MeitY's own website and several PIB pages return access errors to automated retrieval. The figures in this guide were verified against the India Semiconductor Mission portal at ism.gov.in, PIB press releases accessible in indexed form, and the Prime Minister's Office announcement of the Semicon 2.0 cabinet approval. Investment and project-count figures shift between government statements, so this guide dates them where possible.