Uttar Pradesh Startup Policy 2026

What is the Uttar Pradesh Startup Policy 2026?

The Uttar Pradesh Startup Policy 2026 is the Government of Uttar Pradesh's policy for startups, incubators and Centres of Excellence. It is issued by the Department of IT and Electronics, with UP Electronics Corporation as the nodal agency for the Policy Implementation Unit (PIU). It replaces the Uttar Pradesh Startup Policy 2020 (First Amendment 2022), which stayed in effect until the 2026 policy was notified.

The policy remains in force for five years from its notification and is sector-agnostic: it applies to startups in every sector. It is run through the UP Startup Mission, a society set up under a government order of 10 July 2026 to implement the policy, manage grants and incentives and work with incubators, universities, investors and industry.

Related schemes: People who look up Uttar Pradesh Startup Policy 2026 often also check Uttar Pradesh Startup Policy Prototype Development Grant, Uttar Pradesh Startup Patent Cost Reimbursement, Uttar Pradesh Startup Policy Seed Capital and Marketing Assistance, Shravan Kumar Shramik Parivar Tirth Yatra Yojana, Uttar Pradesh State Tourism Awards, Uttar Pradesh Semiconductor Policy 2024, Uttar Pradesh Swami Vivekananda Youth Empowerment Scheme, Uttar Pradesh Scholarship Scheme (Pre-Matric and Post-Matric) and Uttar Pradesh Social Welfare Department Free Coaching Scheme for Civil Services. See also all Uttar Pradesh government schemes.

The money for startup and incubator incentives comes from a corpus at Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Technical University (AKTU). The Rs 150 crore corpus of the 2020 policy continues, and the 2026 policy adds Rs 250 crore, taking the total to Rs 400 crore.

What incentives do startups get?

Additional 50 percent. The prototype and seed grants go up by 50 percent for startups founded or co-founded by EWS, women, Divyangjan or transgender founders with at least 51 percent shareholding, startups with registered offices in Purvanchal or Bundelkhand, and startups in agri-tech, circular economy, rural impact, waste management, sustainability, renewable energy or climate change.

Deep-tech startups recommended by a Centre of Excellence, Deep Tech Hub or Innovation Hub can get up to twice the standard prototype and seed grants, a royalty-based R&D matching grant of up to 40 percent of verified R&D spending (repaid as a 3 percent royalty only after annual revenue passes Rs 1 crore, and not repaid if the product fails), and compute reimbursement of 50 percent of data centre or cloud spending above Rs 50,000, up to Rs 2 lakh a year. Up to four deep-tech startups a year identified by Navratna incubators can get Patience Capital of up to Rs 40 crore each, within Rs 100 crore a year, approved by the Cabinet.

Incubators and Centres of Excellence also get support: operational expenditure grants for recognised incubators, and up to Rs 12 crore over five years for each Centre of Excellence.

Who is eligible?

A startup must meet the Government of India definition in notification G.S.R. 108(E) of 4 February 2026:

• It is a private limited company, registered partnership firm, LLP, multi-state cooperative society or registered cooperative society.
• It is within 10 years of incorporation or registration (20 years for a recognised deep-tech startup).
• Its turnover in any year since incorporation has not exceeded Rs 200 crore (Rs 300 crore for deep-tech).
• It works on innovation in products, processes or services, or is a scalable business with high potential for jobs or wealth creation.

Under the UP policy it must also be incorporated in Uttar Pradesh, be recognised by DPIIT, and be registered on the StartinUP portal. Startups up to the scaling stage must be incubated at a StartinUP-recognised incubator and bring its recommendation when applying. For the matching grant only, a startup registered outside UP but with more than half its business operations in the state can also apply.

Who cannot apply?

• An entity formed by splitting up or reconstructing an existing business.
• A company older than 10 years (20 for deep-tech) or above the turnover limit.
• A startup without DPIIT recognition or StartinUP registration.
• For the prototype grant, startups offering only basic websites, information portals or simple mobile apps without substantial technical innovation.
• For the matching grant, startups funded under the UP Startup Fund or counting prize money or rewards as funding.
• For PF/ESI reimbursement, companies operating for more than 3 years on the date of application.
• Startups already approved under the 2020 policy, which remain under that policy's terms.

How to apply under the UP Startup Policy 2026

1. Get DPIIT recognition on the Startup India portal.
2. Register on StartinUP. Use "Apply for Recognition" on the UP Startup Mission site, which leads to registration on startinup.up.gov.in, and get your startup recognised by the nodal agency.
3. Join a recognised incubator and get its recommendation for the incentive you want, unless you are at the scaling stage or beyond.
4. Apply for the incentive on the portal according to your actual stage, with the proposal and documents it asks for. Events and accelerator programmes need prior approval from the PIU.
5. Expert evaluation. The sector-specific Startup Review Committee of Experts (SRCE) evaluates the application and recommends it to the nodal agency.
6. Approval and payment. After the nodal agency, the PIU gives final approval and the money is transferred directly to the startup's bank account.

The PIU notifies detailed guidelines for selection and disbursement, which can be amended on the recommendation of the Empowered Committee.

How is the policy governed?

A four-tier structure runs the policy: a Steering Committee chaired by the Chief Minister, an Empowered Committee chaired by the Chief Secretary, the Policy Implementation Unit chaired by the Additional Chief Secretary or Principal Secretary of IT and Electronics, and the expert Startup Review Committees. Recognised startups may be inspected for three to five years from incorporation.

Contact

Department of IT and Electronics, Government of Uttar Pradesh, with UP Electronics Corporation as nodal agency, 10 Ashok Marg, Lucknow 226001. Phone 0522-2286808, 2286809, 2286812; email info@itpolicyup.gov.in. The UP Startup Mission website, startupmission.up.gov.in, carries the policy, recognition, incentive applications and news of committee meetings.