To qualify for MBE Certification, a business must be at least 51% owned, operated, and controlled by an American ethnic minority group member that is a U. S. citizen, physically located in the Chicagoland area and Northwest Indiana, and authorized by the State and County to do business. Minority status constitutes anyone belonging to one of following ethnic groups:

• Asian-Indian*
• Asian-Pacific*
• Black*
• Hispanic*
• Native American*

For purposes of NMSDC’s program, a minority group member is an individual who is a U.S. citizen (not a green card holder) with at least 1/4 or 25% minimum (documentation to support claim of 25% required from applicant) of the following:

Ethnic Groups	Eligible
Asian-Indian	A U.S. citizen whose origins are from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
Asian-Pacific	A U.S. citizen whose origins are from Japan, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan, Korea, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, the Philippines, Thailand, Samoa, Guam, the U.S. Trust Territories of the Pacific or the Northern Marianas.
Black	A U.S. citizen having origins in any of the Black racial groups of Africa.
Hispanic	A U.S. citizen of true-born Hispanic heritage, from any of the Spanish-speaking areas of the following regions: Mexico, Central America, South America and the Caribbean Basin only. Brazilians shall be listed under Hispanic designation for review and Certification purposes.
Native American	Native American A person who is an American Indian, Eskimo, Aleut or Native Hawaiian, and regarded as such by the community of which the person claims to be a part. Native Americans must be documented members of a North American tribe, band or otherwise organized group of native people who are indigenous to the continental United States and proof can be provided through a Native American Blood Degree Certificate (i.e., tribal registry letter, tribal roll register number).

**NMSDC’s definition of Sole Proprietorship is a company owned/operated 100% by one (1) individual or married couple. Split ownership does not constitute Sole Proprietorship. *Groups NOT certifiable (not limited to):

Region	Not Eligible
Iberian Peninsula	Spain, Portugal
Asia Minor Region	Peninsula between the Black Sea & the Mediterranean
Persian Gulf	Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, etc. (e.g. Middle East)
Europe	Entire European continent
Northern Africa	Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Algeria, etc. (e.g. Saharan region)

Yes. An applicant must be an U.S. citizen either by birth or naturalization and must have the appropriate documentation. A permanent resident or a “Green Card” holder does not qualify.

No. The NMSDC guidelines require that an applicant must be a US citizen. Green card holders are not US citizens.