Title: Starting a business when you’re young and not in work (2026) > For 16 to 24 year olds in the US: WIOA youth entrepreneurship training at American Job Centers, free SBDC and SCORE mentoring, SBA microloans, and how business hours count for SNAP and Medicaid. Source: https://pontia.xyz/us/young-people/ Checked: 25 September 2026 For young people # Between school and work? Build something that’s yours. If you’re 16 to 24 and not in school or work right now, you can start something of your own. There’s free training and mentoring near you, and rules that count the hours you put into it. [Sign up free](https://pontia.xyz/us/start/?from=youth-hero)[Start a business on unemployment: your state](https://pontia.xyz/us/self-employment-assistance-calculator/) Free forever · No card · No hidden charges 1 in 10 > young Americans aged 16 to 24 are between school and work right now (about 4.1 million, 2023 data). Plenty of them are working on an idea. [Measure of America, 2025](https://measureofamerica.org/youth-disconnection-2025/) ## Schemes you can use Official schemes and who they’re for. The ones only for young people come first. - Advice & support ### SBDC, SCORE and Women’s Business Centers Free business advice and mentoring near you: Small Business Development Centers, SCORE volunteer mentors, Women’s Business Centers and Veterans Business Outreach Centers. - Free or low-cost, before you start and after - SCORE mentors by email, phone or video - Veterans and military spouses: Boots to Business [Official site](https://www.sba.gov/local-assistance)Checked Sep 25, 2026 - Loan ### SBA Microloan Loans of up to $50,000 (about $13,000 on average) through nonprofit lenders, repaid within 7 years, often with business training. - Up to $50,000; about $13,000 on average - Up to 7 years to repay; the lender sets the rate within SBA caps - Not for existing debt or real estate - SBA gives no start-up grants: treat “free government grant” offers as a scam signal [Official site](https://www.sba.gov/loans/microloans)Checked Sep 25, 2026 - Advice & support ### SNAP and Medicaid work rules when self-employed Hours on your business count towards the new SNAP and Medicaid work requirements, so log them. Medicaid expansion adults need 80 hours or $580 a month of net income, from 1 January 2027 at the latest. - SNAP adults without young children: 80 hours a month, now up to age 64 - Medicaid expansion adults aged 19–64: 80 hours or $580 net a month (earlier in some states, e.g. Nebraska from May 2026) - CMS counts starting or running a business as work - Property essential to your self-employment doesn’t count towards SNAP resources [Official site](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2026-06-03/html/2026-11094.htm)Checked Sep 25, 2026 - GrantCheck first ### State Vocational Rehabilitation: self-employment If you have a disability and self-employment is your goal, your state VR agency can fund business planning, equipment and start-up costs. Caps and rules vary by state. - Federal rules count self-employment as an employment outcome - Market analysis and business plan help, then purchases under your Individualized Plan for Employment - Caps, matching and waitlists vary by state - Veterans with a service-connected disability: the VA VR&E Self-Employment track [Official site](https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/34/361.48)Checked Sep 25, 2026 - Keep an incomeJob search required ### Unemployment insurance while you look for work Your state pays unemployment insurance while you look for work. You search for work every week and report any earnings. In most states, starting to run a business ends your eligibility, so use this time to plan, and ask about Self-Employment Assistance if your state has it. [What is this, and what do I have to do? →](https://pontia.xyz/us/guide/ui-searching/) - Weekly work search is required; how many contacts depends on your state - Report all earnings every week when you certify - In most states self-employment means you are not unemployed: Pennsylvania counts the “first positive step”, such as advertising or buying equipment - Fraud adds a penalty of at least 15% on top of repaying the overpayment [Official site](https://www.careeronestop.org/LocalHelp/UnemploymentBenefits/find-unemployment-benefits.aspx)Checked Sep 25, 2026 Summaries are simplified. Always check the official source before you apply. ## Who to talk to first Free, and they help people in your position every day. - ### American Job Center (WIOA Youth) Ages 16–24 Local youth programs must offer entrepreneurial skills training, including help getting small loans or grants. Find your nearest center. [Official page](https://www.careeronestop.org/LocalHelp/AmericanJobCenters/find-american-job-centers.aspx) - ### SBDC and SCORE Free business advice and a volunteer mentor, before you start and after. [Official page](https://www.sba.gov/local-assistance) - ### Vocational Rehabilitation Have a disability? Your state VR agency can fund business planning and start-up costs when self-employment is your goal. [Official page](https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/34/361.48) ## Age rules that change your numbers - The SBA gives no grants to start a business. Anyone offering you a “free government grant” is a scam signal. [Official page](https://www.sba.gov/loans/additional-funding-opportunities/grants) - Hours on your business count as work for the new Medicaid requirement (80 hours or $580 net a month), so log them. [Official page](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2026-06-03/html/2026-11094.htm) - On SSI? A PASS lets you save for a business without SSI counting it, and business property doesn’t count towards the $2,000 limit. [Official page](https://secure.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0500870001) [Try the numbers firstStart a business on unemployment: your stateSee what your state allows, and what Self-Employment Assistance adds up to.](https://pontia.xyz/us/self-employment-assistance-calculator/) ## Put it all into one plan Pick your schemes, add your figures and see your living and start-up budgets side by side. It takes about 2 minutes. [Sign up free](https://pontia.xyz/us/start/?from=youth-end) Free forever · No card · No hidden charges Sources, checked September 25, 2026 Estimate and guidance only. Confirm with your benefit office, the official website or an adviser. Rules change, and your situation changes the outcome. Not a government service. Not financial, tax or legal advice. Cite this page "Starting a business when you’re young and not in work (2026)", Pontia, https://pontia.xyz/us/young-people/ (updated September 25, 2026) ## Related guides and tools - [Start your business without risking your benefits](https://pontia.xyz/us/) - [Your unemployment work search log, done in minutes](https://pontia.xyz/us/unemployment-work-search-log/) - [Start a business on unemployment: your state](https://pontia.xyz/us/self-employment-assistance-calculator/) - [US Unemployment Work Search Index 2026](https://pontia.xyz/us/datasets/us-work-search-index/) - [US federal support for starting a business in figures, 2026](https://pontia.xyz/us/datasets/us-startup-support/) - [Unemployment insurance while you look for work vs Self-Employment Assistance Program (SEAP), New York](https://pontia.xyz/us/compare/ui-searching-vs-sea-ny/) - [Unemployment insurance while you look for work vs Self-Employment Assistance, Oregon](https://pontia.xyz/us/compare/ui-searching-vs-sea-or/) - [Unemployment insurance while you look for work vs Self-Employment Assistance Program, Mississippi](https://pontia.xyz/us/compare/ui-searching-vs-sea-ms/) - [Unemployment insurance while you look for work vs Pathway to Work (self-employment), New Hampshire](https://pontia.xyz/us/compare/ui-searching-vs-sea-nh/) --- Pontia is free and independent. 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