The Tennessee Export Initiative (TEI) at Belmont University, in partnership with the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), the Tennessee District Export Council, and the U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Commercial Service Tennessee is offering eligible Tennessee small businesses the opportunity to participate in the State Trade Expansion Program (STEP). Belmont University has been awarded the STEP grant, which is a federal grant administered by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) whose goal is to create economic growth by expanding Tennessee's export trade. Under the grant, TEI offers eligible Tennessee small businesses a variety of services and programs to help new companies become exporters and help existing exporters expand their international business.

To be eligible to receive financial assistance under the STEP Tennessee grant, companies are required to complete the following forms, including the SBA Self-Representation Form.

Please review the program guidelines before starting your application. This application should take about 15-20 minutes to complete, and we only need 1 or 2-sentence answers when required.

If you have questions or need help, please contact:
Jeffrey Overby, Director, Tennessee Export Initiative, TEl@belmont.edu

If you answered "No" to any of eligibility questions 1-9 you are NOT eligible for the STEP program. Please skip to Page 6 to find more information on how to become eligible.

If you believe you are eligible for the STEP program, please click "Next" to continue to the next page.

If NTE (New to Export):

Please complete the external Export Readiness Assessment. Once you receive your results, please upload the pdf report below:

If ME (Market Expansion):

Export Strategy

The authorized representative MUST be a member of the senior management team. With this signature, the information presented in this document is accepted as an accurate representation of the company's activities for the purpose of evaluating the success of the activities as they relate to the STEP Program.

The applicant certifies that:

• To the best of my knowledge, the data in this application is correct and supporting documentation will be available to TEI for review upon request. I understand that submitting false or misleading information may result in being found ineligible for reimbursement and permanent disqualification from any future participation in this program.
• I understand that information in this application will be shared with the TEI Office, District Export Councils of Tennessee, and the U.S. Commercial Service Tennessee.

For more information or assistance, please contact:
Jeffrey Overby, Director, Tennessee Export Initiative, TEI@belmont.edu