Business Grants in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland offers unique business funding opportunities through Invest NI, local councils, and cross-border programmes with the Republic of Ireland. Belfast and other NI businesses can access support for innovation, exports, and growth.
Invest NI Funding
Invest Northern Ireland is the main business development agency for NI. They provide grants, loans, and support for businesses looking to grow, innovate, or export. Their programmes cover R&D, capital investment, skills development, and market entry.
Local Council Support
Northern Ireland's 11 councils offer their own business support programmes. Belfast City Council, Derry City and Strabane, and other councils run grant schemes for local businesses, particularly SMEs and startups.
Cross-Border Programmes
NI businesses can also access cross-border funding programmes with the Republic of Ireland and EU-funded initiatives. InterTradeIreland supports cross-border trade and innovation projects.
Northern Ireland Business Grants
225 grants found
Up & Running Grants 2026
Grant scheme supporting young entrepreneurs and businesses investing in the next generation, aiming to empower emerging talent shaping the UK's future.
Collaborate with the UK Human Functional Genomics Initiative
Apply for an Academic and Industry Partnership award as part of the UK Human Functional Genomics Initiative’s (FGx) Innovation and Collaboration fund. The awards will enable the development of links between industrial partners and the FGx. These awards can be used to support feasibility, pilot or initial studies to provide preliminary experiments to explore ideas and generate initial data which could support the development of competitive collaborative grant proposals for longer term projects.
Large Grants
Funding to support Christian places of worship with major urgent repairs costing over £80,000 or the installation/upgrade of kitchen and accessible toilet facilities costing over £30,000.
Engineering Biology Collaborative R&D: Round 3
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £8.5 million to develop and scale Engineering Biology platforms, products and services. This funding is part of UKRI’s Engineering Biology Programme.
Focal award: EPSRC and MHCLG Fire Engineering Skills Hub
Funding for a skills hub to deliver high quality, cohort based doctoral training, and design of high-quality postgraduate level taught programmes in fire engineering.
EPSRC-Defra Reimagining Circularity: full stage
Funding to develop a NetworkPlus that builds new capacity, strengthens community, and enhances research to innovation capabilities focused on the circular economy in data and metrics, or textiles, using the 'Plus' element to accelerate impact.
UKRI: Integration of AI/HPC with quantum computing
Apply for funding to expose and overcome critical bottlenecks associated with the implementation of quantum computing within classical computational workflows. This investment will strengthen the UK’s capability to achieve accessible, UK-based quantum computers that deliver benefits beyond classical supercomputers across key sectors of the economy.
Advancing innovation in accelerated cancer diagnosis
Funding to support innovative CR&D projects focused on the clinical validation and evaluation of early cancer diagnostic technologies and devices, particularly for less common cancers.
DRIVE35 Scale-up Fund drawdown five
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £150 million to create scale up manufacturing facilities for zero emission vehicle technologies. DRIVE35 (Driving Research and Investment in Vehicle Electrification) is a BIST-led programme aimed at transforming the UK’s automotive industry.
UKRI translation: MRC proof of concept: stage two
Apply for funding to develop and test novel therapeutics, medical devices, diagnostics and other interventions across any stage of the developmental pathway, from prototype development, through pre-clinical refinement, to early-phase clinical studies (up to phase 2a).
FOAK Builder: Programme Entry Expression of Interest
Support to develop a Climate Tech First-of-a-Kind (FOAK) project towards Final Investment Decision (FID). Selected companies receive expert advisory, technical assistance, mentoring, and upskilling support, with potential opportunity to apply for Phase 2 grant funding.
Funding opportunity: Expression of interest: First-of-a-Kind (FOAK) builder: programme entry
Expression of interest competition for UK-registered businesses to apply for support to develop a climate tech FOAK commercial project. Successful applicants could be invited to apply for a larger grant through FOAK builder phase two.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about business grants in Northern Ireland