Navajeevan employment assistance scheme for senior citizens Navajeevan
An interest-free loan of up to ₹50,000, with 25% paid back as a subsidy, for people aged 50 to 65 who are registered at an employment exchange and want to start a small business.
Last updated on
- Cost to apply
- Free
- Status
- Open
- Run by
- National Employment Service (Kerala), Department of Labour and Skills, through the employment exchanges
What you get
- Interest-free loan up to ₹50,000
- 25% of the loan is reimbursed as a government subsidy, credited to the loan account
- Repay over 60 months (Kerala Bank)
- Suggested businesses include tailoring, DTP and photocopying, provision stores, readymade garment outlets and internet cafes
Who can apply
- New businesses, or people about to start one.
- Nano enterprises.
- Age 50 to 65.
- The most on offer is ₹50,000.
- Registered at an employment exchange in Kerala
- Aged 50 to 65
- Personal annual income up to ₹1 lakh
- A quarter of the loans are reserved for women, with widows over 55 and persons with disabilities first, and a quarter for families below the poverty line
How to apply
- Register at an employment exchange if you have not already
- Get the Navajeevan form from the exchange or the Employment Department website
- Submit it with an income certificate and details of the business you plan
In person, the employment exchange where you are registered, or a Kerala Bank branch
In Kerala, the employment exchange where you are registered, then a bank or co-operative bank for the loan
Worth knowing
Set up by G.O. No. 59/2020/Labour dated 28 December 2020. Kerala Bank still lists the KB Navajeevan loan in November 2026.
Where we found this
- Strategy for formation of 1 lakh enterprises in 2022, Booklet 3, popular subsidy schemes, Directorate of Industries and Commerce (external site) Official
- NAVAJEEVAN, Employment Department (external site) Official
- KB Navajeevan loan, Kerala Bank (external site) Official
- Govt courses and schemes to support upskilling, Onmanorama 2021 (external site) Other source
An independent guide by The Company of Four, not a government website. Schemes change often, so check every detail on the official website before you apply. Links marked ↗ open external websites that we do not run, and we are not responsible for their content. Seen something out of date? Tell us and we will look into it.