Company Assistance (HiSTEP-CA)

The Hawaii State Trade Expansion Program – Company Assistance (HiSTEP–CA) is designed to increase exports of Hawaii produced goods and services by assisting individual Hawaii companies  with export market development activities such as participation in trade shows and missions.

HiSTEP is supported by a grant through the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).

The RFP for the 2025 HiSTEP Company Assistance program is coming soon – stay tuned for more details!

Deadline to apply is Wednesday, January 15, 2025, 4:00 P.M., HST.

Funding for HiSTEP-Company Assistance is divided into two categories:

  1. New to Export (NTE) Company:  Company has no export experience, or has an ‘accidental’ or ‘occasional’ export, or has not exported in over 18 months. Applicants may apply for up to $5,000.
  2. Market Expansion (ME) Company:  Company is an active or recent (within the last 18 months) exporter that is expanding into a new country market, OR expanding into a new region or new population target segment or new product line within an existing market. Companies may apply for up to $15,000. Companies in this category should have at least $200,000 in annual revenue.  If you do not meet this requirement you should download and review the New to Export RFP (see below).

INELIGBLE COMPANIES:

Companies that received HiSTEP-Company Assistance awards in the same category (ME or NTE) for three (3) years in the last five (5) years are not eligible to apply. Ineligible companies must sit out one year before being eligible to apply for HiSTEP-CA again.

A NTE company that received an award for three (3) years in the NTE category may apply for funding in the ME category as long as the company meets the $200,000 annual revenue required for ME applicants.

However, a ME company that received an award for three (3) years in the ME category may not apply for funding in the NTE category because it is expected that companies receiving HiSTEP funding will increase export sales, thus either graduating from a NTE company to a ME company or growing as a ME company.

We have upgraded to a new online application format, so please follow these steps:

Step 1. All companies applying for Company Assistance must first complete the 2025 HiSTEP Registration form. (if you haven’t registered yet. Only one (1) submission needed for the 2025 HiSTEP program.)

Step 2.  If you are a NTE company: Download and review the Request For Proposal (RFP) for 2024 HiSTEP-CA New to Export and any addenda to become familiar with the requirements, and how you will submit your application and required forms.

If you are a ME company: Download and review the Request For Proposal (RFP) for 2024 HiSTEP-CA Market Expansion and any addenda to become familiar with the requirements, and how you will submit your application and required forms.

Step 3. Review the online submission form to understand what sections of the RFP you must download, complete and upload. Note: NTE and ME companies will use the same online submission form.

Step 4. Prepare EXPORT PLAN (SECTION FOUR, Part C of the RFP) and EXPORT BUDGET (SECTION FOUR, Part D of the RFP) and upload in appropriate section.

Step 5. Download the APPLICANT FORM, AF-1, from the Online Form in APPLICATION PREPARATION  section.

Step 6. Fill out the online submission form, upload the completed documents from Steps 4 and 5, and submit the form. You will see a confirmation page if you are successful.

Click here to read our Frequently Asked Questions.

You should also review the How to Prepare page so you can prepare your business for exporting.

Mahalo for your participation!

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Funded in part through a Grant with the U.S. Small Business Administration