Although the Federal grant is free for everyone to apply for, not everyone is eligible for applying for government grants. Understanding the eligibility can save a lot of time and money spent while completing the process involved in applying for free government grants. Grants can be applied on behalf of an organization or an individual. The organizations that are eligible for receiving free government grants are as follows:

Government-run organizations

• State Government
• County Government
• District Government
• City Government
• Federally recognized Native American tribal government
• Non-recognized Native American tribal government

Educational organizations

• Independent District Schools
• Higher education institutions controlled by the public and the state
• Privately run higher education institutions.

Other organizations and individuals that can apply for free government grants

• Public Housing Organizations which include the public housing authorities and the Indian housing authorities are eligible toward applying for free government grants.
• Non Profit Organizations with and without a 501(c)3 status having an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) excluding the higher education institutions are eligible for receiving free government grants.
• Organizations other than small businesses are eligible for receiving grants.
• For small businesses, the Government has established SBA that is a small business administration which determines the size standards before allocation of Federal grants.
• Individuals: Individuals who aspire to receive Federal grants can submit their applications on their own behalf. An applicant applied with an individual profile can apply for a grant which is only open for the individuals. Majority of the funding assistance provided by the government are for organizations and institutions so individual applicants need to keep a check of the grant programs to find other forms of Federal funding before applying for free government grants.
• Foreign applicants: Like any local applicant, a foreign applicant which may be an individual, an institution or even an organization has to complete the process with an additional process. The legislature which authorizes the grant and the policy of the agency determines the provision of the Federal grants to foreign applicants. The applicant has to file tax returns to the U.S. Government depending on the usage of the grant. Filing tax returns should be with TIN number commonly known as Employee Identification Number (EIN). If the foreign applicant is using the fund to perform activities out of the country, then TIN or the EIN is not necessary. The activities include scholarship, fellowship and achievement awards.