Oral route has been considered as most convenient route but restricted to only hydrophilic compounds having GI stability and greater dissolution. The delivery of lipophilic compounds has been area of interest since most of the drugs under discovery shows limited bioavailability. Self-emulsifying delivery systems (SMEDDS) has drawn a greater attention in the formulation of poorly soluble compounds where increase in the absorption and permeation of the drug has observed. The self-emulsification which occurs in the case of SMEDDS has shown a potential advantage over conventional emulsion due to the fine globules formed upon dilution. The recent trends such as dry emulsion, s-SMEDDS, SNEDDS thoroughly investigated. This article, attempts to present the overview of the SMEDDS along with its formulation, application and characterization.