ALINA SELYUKH, NPR — For decades, immigrants who were legal permanent residents in the United States could obtain loans through the Small Business Administration, a core pillar of U.S. small-business lending. That access is no longer available. In March, the SBA announced a policy change: loans will be approved only for businesses fully owned by U.S. citizens, effectively excluding green card holders and other permanent residents. The abrupt shift has left many small-business owners in a difficult position, especially those who relied on SBA funding to expand, hire, or weather downturns.
Sayuri Tsuchitani, who built a small salon business with the help of an SBA loan after moving to the U.S. from Japan 28 years ago, represents the pathway many immigrants pursued. Her enterprise, Japanese Headspa, grew from a single location to multiple sites, with initial SBA support helping to hire staff and scale operations. Today, Tsuchitani cannot pursue new SBA-backed financing because she is a permanent resident with a green card. She notes that the policy change not only affects her but also the broader immigrant entrepreneur community—people who have started businesses, created jobs, and paid taxes. The SBA’s position is that permanent residents should not benefit from government programs funded by American taxpayers, even though permanent residents contribute to federal taxes just as citizens do.
The SBA’s leadership argues the move directs finite resources toward citizens, a policy stance that dovetails with broader political narratives around immigration and public benefits. The agency maintains that the revised rules will ensure more resources reach American citizens, though it acknowledges the unintended consequences for many immigrant-owned businesses. Within the industry, stakeholders say the change may reduce the number of affordable loan options for immigrant entrepreneurs and raise the cost and risk of expansion plans not backed by SBA financing.
Even small-business advisers, who had been helping clients navigate loan underwriting, describe the shift as abrupt. They warn that removing the SBA’s financing channel could push borrowers toward riskier or more expensive lending, potentially slowing growth for those who previously relied on SBA terms. While the policy aims to concentrate limited resources on citizens, critics argue it could blunt the entrepreneurial energy that immigrant owners have contributed to many local economies.
Data from the SBA state that roughly 4% of SBA loans last year went to businesses involving permanent residents. While that share is small, its impact is sizable for the businesses involved and the communities they serve. Among the affected entrepreneurs is Cristina Foanene, a Romanian-born business owner who runs a Fresno-based glass company that designs, manufactures, and installs windows and doors. Foanene’s firm has benefited from multiple SBA loans over the years, enabling expansion, space acquisition, and job creation—an effort that now faces a funding constraint grounded in citizenship status.
Foanene notes that she and her husband, who began the enterprise years ago, have grown to employ about 30 people and have a long-tenured workforce. She views the policy as a turning point that could slow the business’s future plans if SBA funding remains unavailable. She emphasizes that her path to citizenship—achieved after years of investment and entrepreneurship—has been part of the realization of the American dream she sought when she moved with investment capital from Romania.
For many observers, the policy reflects a broader political debate on migration, federal support programs, and the allocation of government resources. The SBA’s decision to redefine eligibility—as described by agency officials—reframes who benefits from federal small-business financing, and it is prompting questions about the future of immigrant entrepreneurship in the United States.
Legal scholars and industry observers say the change could curtail access to capital for a significant segment of immigrant-owned ventures, potentially impacting local economies, job creation, and the pace of business formation outside traditional citizen-owned firms. The policy’s full implications remain to be measured as entrepreneurs adjust to new financing landscapes and lenders rethink underwriting in light of the SBA’s updated stance.
As communities adapt, stories of immigrant business owners highlight both resilience and the challenges posed by the SBA’s revised lending eligibility. The transformation puts attention on how the United States will balance fiscal constraints with the ongoing contributions of immigrant entrepreneurs who have long been recognized as engines for innovation, employment, and growth.
Alina Selyukh, NPR News. © 2026 NPR.
