Small Business Loan Checklist, Form, Process

With the easy availability of financial solutions and various lending options,  business owners can quickly get a lot of financial help. However, before taking your business to the next level, ensure it moves in the right direction and is set to achieve the estimated targets. Before getting your loan sanctioned from the financial provider, you should think about compiling all the documents together. 

The number of online small business loans available in the market is increasing, requiring very minimal documentation. Though the loans have become quicker, you should keep all your documents ready when you don’t want them to eat up on your time. A small business loan is typically got for taken for expanding your business, purchasing your inventory, buying machinery, or funding for your working capital requirement. 

Finding the right small business loan at a reasonable interest rate will require more research. Always ensure your financial capacity before getting a quotation for a business loan amount. It will provide you with a better edge for getting a business loan. Small business loans can be applied online with the best financial provider at a reasonable interest rate. 

Whether you apply for an online or offline mode, you will still require documents to apply for a small business loan. Firstly, you should complete the loan application form with the required and valid information. You will need to provide a passport size photograph and another required document as per the requirement of your financial provider and the loan type you get.

For getting a small business loan, you should submit the documents depending on whether your loan is secured and unsecured loans. For instance, when you get a secured loan, you will have to get the collateral that means you should provide any asset you own for getting the loan. However, unsecured loans will not require you to submit your collateral but require some documents with the loan application.

Here are the documents listed that you require to submit along with your small business loan application form:

  • ID Proof:
    You will have to provide the identity proofs for providing along with your loan application form. The ID proof can be anything like passport, PAN card, voter’s ID card, driving license, etc.
  • Residential Proof:
    Another crucial requirement for a small business loan is residential proof. You should provide proof of residence like ration card, telephone bill, electricity bill, passport, lease agreement, trade license, sales tax certificate, etc.
  • Age Proof:
    You will need to submit proof of age supported by passport, voter’s ID, PAN card, etc.
  • Financial Documents:
    You should get copies of IT returns for the past two years along with the latest bank statement for the last six months. Profit and loss statements, balance sheets for the last two years. The profit or loss statement needs to be audited by a chartered accountant.
  • Understand Your Credit Score:
    You should know your credit score before applying for a small business loan. The financial provider will take a note of your credit score as it is very vital. When a person’s credit score is higher, it means they have maintained all their finances well. Whereas, when an individual has a bad credit score, he has too much debt or doesn’t repay his debts on time. A good credit score will upsurge your chances of getting your loan approved.
  • Get Your Documents In Order:
    You should organize all the documents you require to apply for a small business loan. Those documents include ID proofs, address proofs, business documents and permits, balance sheets, income statements and cash flow statements, which are all mandatory. These documents provide credibility for the financial provider about the ability of the borrower to service the loan on time. 

Financial providers require the loan borrower to provide documents for a business loan and the same application form. The entire loan approval process will make it easy through easy online processing and with minimal documentation. You can ensure that the loan processing is smooth when you have all the documents ready before applying. 

Doing things before you apply for a loan will allow the financial provider to process your loan application quickly. When you consider getting a more manageable business loan, ensure you meet all the requirements, including documents. Maintaining recent copies of KYC, bank statements, and other documents required for small business loans is always essential. 

When you worry about documents and checking other loan qualifications at the last minute. It will highly increase the chances of providing you with higher interest loans or get your loan application rejected. Whereas, when you have everything ready in advance, you can save the precious time and opportunity your business gets. So always ensure that you note the commonly required documents for each loan type and prepare them well in advance.