TANSEED — StartupTN's ₹10 Lakh to ₹15 Lakh Seed Grant with a One-Year Accelerator
Tamil Nadu's annual seed competition
TANSEED — the Tamil Nadu Startup Seed Grant Fund — is StartupTN's flagship early-stage funding round. The eighth edition opened in December 2025 and closed on 30 January 2026. It offers equity-linked grants of up to ₹10 lakh to early-stage startups, and up to ₹15 lakh where the startup works in green technology, has a rural impact, or is women-led. Selected founders also enter a one-year accelerator with mentoring, priority access to StartupTN events and national and international delegations.
StartupTN runs TANSEED through the Tamil Nadu Startup and Innovation Mission, with an Emerging Sector Seed Grant for priority domains and a network of regional hubs. Registration on the StartupTN portal is the precondition for all of it.
What a TANSEED winner receives
| Item | Position |
|---|---|
| Grant | Up to ₹10 lakh; up to ₹15 lakh for green-tech, rural-impact and women-led startups |
| Instrument | Equity-linked support on StartupTN's standard terms — the grant carries a nominal equity or convertible component |
| Accelerator | One-year programme: mentoring, investor connects, event and delegation access |
| Disbursement | Tranches against milestones after the agreement with StartupTN |
Mission and jury
StartupTN screens applications and convenes jury panels of investors, entrepreneurs and domain experts for the pitch rounds. The mission sanctions the grant and runs the accelerator.
Three registrations, early stage
- •Registered in Tamil Nadu — private limited company, LLP or registered partnership with its registered office in the state
- •Listed with StartupTN on the state portal
- •DPIIT-recognised
- •Early stage with a prototype or MVP; the edition's guidelines set the incorporation-age limit
- •For the ₹15 lakh categories: verifiable green-technology focus, rural-impact deployment, or majority women ownership and leadership
What the application and agreement need
- •Certificate of Incorporation; proof of Tamil Nadu registered office; StartupTN and DPIIT certificates
- •Shareholding pattern — for the women-led category, evidence of majority women ownership and a woman in the top leadership role
- •Pitch deck, product demo, and traction data
- •Milestone plan and budget for the grant amount sought
- •Founder KYC; team profiles
- •Financial statements or bank statements; declaration of other government support
- •Bank account details and board resolution for the agreement at sanction stage
Questions founders ask about TANSEED
StartupTN has run the round annually, with the last three editions opening between November and December. Registering with StartupTN now is the practical preparation.
It is described by StartupTN as an equity-linked grant: the state takes a small equity or convertible position in return for the support. The terms are standard across the cohort.
No. A registered company, LLP or partnership is expected, along with DPIIT recognition, which itself requires one of those forms.
StartupTN's Emerging Sector Seed Grant and its regional hub programmes run outside the TANSEED calendar, and central schemes such as NIDHI-PRAYAS remain available meanwhile.