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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

WHAT IS A SAM REGISTRATION?

The System for Award Management (SAM.gov) is an official website of the U.S. Government, for which there is no cost to use. The SAM.gov site can be used to:

  • Register to do business with the U.S. Government.

  • Update, renew, or check the status of your entity registration.

  • Search for entity registration and exclusion records.

  • Search for assistance listings (formerly CFDA.gov), wage determinations (formerly WDOL.gov), contract opportunities (formerly FBO.gov), and contract data reports (formerly part of FPDS.gov). v. View and submit BioPreferred and Service Contract Reports. vi. Access publicly available award data via data extracts and system accounts.

WHAT INFORMATION DO I NEED TO CREATE A NEW SAM REGISTRATION?

You will need a wide array of information to establish your SAM.gov registration. It’s possible you will need to work with your Company Executives and/or Accounting department in order to get all of the necessary information. The core items needed for a SAM.gov registration are as follows: 

  • Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number,  

  • Your entity’s Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN)  

  • Your entity’s Financial Information (U.S. bank Electronic Funds Transfer) for Federal government payment purposes

  • Foreign entities do not need to provide EFT information

  • Executive compensation information 

  • At least one NAICS code that fits your company’s capabilities

  • Your entity’s size metrics

  • The contact information for at least one company POC that can serve as the Electronic Business POC and the Government Business POC  

HOW DO I CHECK MY CURRENT SAM REGISTRATION?

Do you not know if you need to renew SAM registration? Are you unsure if you are registered at all? Or do you simply want to see how your record appears in the public database? In any of those cases, you need to know how to view your entity (the term used within SAM for any organization or company within its database). There are three different processes for viewing records, based on your registration circumstances, as follows:

Scenario 1: You were previously elected for public registration, and it is currently live.

  1. Go to www.sam.gov.

  2. Click on “Search Records” at the top left.

  3. Search the records using your Entity Name, DUNS Number, or CAGE Code.

Scenario 2: You previously elected for public registration, but your registration has expired.

  1. Go to www.sam.gov.

  2. Click on “Search Records” at the top.

  3. Click on “Advanced Search – Entity” at the right.

  4. Look for the “Registration Status” line. Click the “Inactive” checkbox.

  5. Click the “Entity” checkbox.

  6. Search the records using your Entity Name, DUNS Number, or CAGE Code.

Scenario 3: You previously declined inclusion in public search.

While you cannot view your record in the public database, in this case, you can view your privately listed registration information as follows:

  1. Go to www.sam.gov.

  2. Log in with your username and password.

  3. Migrate your roles.

  4. Click “Register/Update Entity.”

  5. Click “Complete Registrations.”

HOW OFTEN DO I NEED TO RENEW A SAM REGISTRATION?

At least every year, you need to revalidate and renew your SAM registration within the system. That means you typically have 365 days from the most recent date you registered your organization. However, if any of the details for your company change during the year, you must update SAM registration right away.

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