Small businesses bidding for covered U.S. federal contracts must have their System for Award Management registration completed when they submit an offer or quotation, under revised instructions published September 26, 2018. The final rule takes effect October 26 and retains exceptions under the Federal Acquisition Regulation, or FAR. For a firm entering federal procurement, the relevant milestone is the bid submission—not the hoped-for contract award. [S1]

The Defense Department, General Services Administration and NASA describe the change as a clarification, not a new registration requirement. Some existing FAR language said registration was needed before award. Other provisions already required businesses to complete annual representations and certifications through SAM when submitting an offer. The final rule brings those instructions into line. It does not establish that businesses were previously free to wait until they won. [S1]

Starting the application is not the same as being registered. Revised FAR provision 52.204-7 tells unregistered offerors to consider applying immediately upon receiving a solicitation and to allow for processing time. The contracting officer must verify registration at offer or quotation submission unless an exception applies. The revised provision also requires registration to continue through award, performance and final payment. [S1]

The registration record also determines how the business is identified in the contract. The agencies’ same-day Small Entity Compliance Guide highlights the requirement to use the name and physical address recorded in SAM for the supplied unique entity identifier. The rule specifies the legal business name or doing-business-as name and tells contracting officers not to alter the data retrieved from SAM. A supplier’s registration details therefore feed the contract paperwork, not just a directory listing. [S1][S2]

The scope matters. In their response to comments, the agencies say subcontractors and consultants to prime contractors are not required to register in SAM under this rule. For an eligible award without full and open competition because of unusual or compelling urgency, the contracting officer uses Alternate I rather than the ordinary registration provision. That exception is not a general extension for a supplier running late. FAR 4.1103 sets the delayed-registration deadline at 30 days after award or at least three days before the first invoice is submitted, whichever comes first. [S1]

After award, the revised maintenance clause keeps responsibility for current, accurate and complete SAM information with the contractor and requires review and updating at least annually to remain registered. It also draws a useful boundary: changing the SAM record does not change the contract’s terms or replace a properly executed contractual document. [S1]

Source documents

  1. Federal Acquisition Regulation: System for Award Management Registrationhttps://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2018-09-26/html/2018-20706.htm
  2. Federal Acquisition Regulation: Federal Acquisition Circular 2005-101; Small Entity Compliance Guidehttps://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2018-09-26/html/2018-20710.htm