As of the publication of this message, a government shutdown appears to be imminent as Republican and Democratic Congressional leaders remain at an impasse as to how to pass a short-term funding extension, or Continuing Resolution (CR), to keep the government open beyond the midnight deadline tonight. The Senate voted just recently on both the House-passed Republican-backed CR and the Democratic counter CR, with both failing to pass.
Given the current state of play, all federal agencies are currently in the process of issuing guidance on shutdown protocol, including SBA. In particular, SBA’s Office of Capital Access is providing guidance to lenders regarding the impact that a possible government shutdown would have on 7(a) and 504 program operations. This guidance is consistent with that provided during previous government shutdowns.
As indicated by SBA, IF there is a shutdown after 11:59 PM ET on September 30, 2025, due to a lack of appropriations, SBA will be closed until further notice, and the following conditions will apply:
SBA will close its Capital Access Financial System (CAFS) so new loan applications for both the 7(a) and 504 loan programs will not be accepted in E-Tran. CAFS will remain open for general servicing actions; however, there will be no loan increase or reinstatement capability until SBA offices reopen. SBA 504 debenture sales will continue as scheduled.
Based on the language provided, SBA will not be establishing an application queue. But while lenders will not be able to submit loans to SBA via E-Tran, they can continue to work with loan applicants and to complete their internal approval processes so that their loans will be ready to transmit to SBA after the shutdown ends.
Earlier today, SBA provided a separate communication providing information regarding the operations of the Secondary Market during the period of any government shutdown. Essentially, that guidance established a cutoff of 5 PM ET September 30, 2025, (with no exceptions) for loans to be entered into CAFS in order to be eligible for Secondary Market sales prior to any shutdown. Please see the earlier message for complete details regarding Secondary Market operations during any shutdown period. NAGGL encourages members to follow public media and to watch for additional messages from NAGGL regarding what happens next.
