Businesses applying for Small Business Administration loans often have to wait weeks or even months for funding, but with an SBA Express line of credit, funding can be in their hands in as quickly as 36 hours. An SBA Express loan is a specialized form of the SBA 7(a) loan designed for small for-profit businesses that meet the specific set of qualifications established by the SBA.

The Small Business Administration itself doesn't make loans. Instead, this organization authorizes lending institutions across the country to fund SBA loans. Taking that one step further, the SBA only allows lending institutions with a proven track record of writing SBA loans to be certified SBA Express lenders.

When determining whether to apply for an SBA Express loan, you should:

1. Understand exactly what the SBA Express loan is so you can determine whether your business qualifies for one of these expedited lines of credit.

2. Find members of the SBA's Certified Lenders Program, as these are the only financial institutions allowed to fund SBA Express loans.

3. Apply for an even more specialized SBA Loan: SBA Express Patriot loan or an SBA Express Export loan.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Review the most up-to-date SBA Express loan information to determine whether you qualify

The Small Business Administration began the SBA Express loan program as a way for small businesses to gain expedited access to SBA 7(a) loans. The SBA will back only 50% of the loan principal for SBA Express loans and requires collateral from borrowers requesting larger loans; collateral is not required for lower-end loan amounts.

I recommend: The Small Business Administration provides SBA Express loan information as well as details on qualifications for the 7(a) loan for which businesses must first qualify. Biz Buy Financing provides info on SBA Express loans including specifics on qualifying, eligible business types and general interest rates and dollar amount levels.

Shop for an SBA Express lender for your SBA express loan

Certified SBA Express lenders can be found all over the country, whether located within a specific region or spread out across the country with branches in multiple states.

I recommend: Wells Fargo is a certified SBA Express lender with more than 3,000 branches spread across the western two-thirds of the US. UMB Financial Corporation is a smaller SBA Express lender with branches in central states including Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Wisconsin. Flagship Bank is one of the smaller providers of SBA Express loans with several branches in Massachusetts.

Apply for more specialized SBA Express loans if you meet special qualifications

Certified SBA loan/SBA Express institutions can also make more specialized loans such as the SBA Patriot Express loan and the SBA Express Export loan in addition to the regular SBA Express loan.

I recommend: Bank of America is one of America's top and largest lenders from which to secure an adequate SBA Express line of credit, including the SBA Patriot Express loan. The Patriot Express loan offers higher loan amounts, lower interest and quicker turn-around time than the regular Express loan. This loan is available to US veterans, active-duty military, Reservists and National Guard, as well as spouses and widows of these groups. Chase Bank can help secure SBA Express Export loans for small business that have the potential for exporting their products, but need to secure financing for producing or providing goods or services they can export.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  SBA lending institutions won't consider applications made for SBA Express loans by ineligible businesses, so make sure you qualify before spending time preparing your application. Those ineligible include speculative or illegal activities, pyramid sales plans, lending projects and non-profit or charitable organizations.