SAM Registration: How to Register on SAM.gov Step by Step (2026)

SAM registration, the process of registering your business on SAM.gov, is free and takes five steps: create a Login.gov account, choose the right registration type, validate your business to get a Unique Entity ID (UEI), complete the registration sections, then submit and wait for it to go active. Plan on at least 10 business days after you submit, and longer if SAM.gov asks for documents to confirm your business. Once you're active, you must renew every 365 days.

Why you need to register

SAM.gov (the System for Award Management) is the federal government's official system for businesses that want to work with it. It's run by the General Services Administration (GSA). If you're new to it, start with what SAM.gov is and how it's organized.

You need an active registration to bid on a federal contract as a prime contractor. The rules require you to be registered when you submit an offer or quote, and again when the contract is awarded. After that, you have to stay registered until you receive your final payment. If you're a small business, your registration also feeds your profile in the SBA's Small Business Search, where contracting officers look for small businesses during market research.

SAM registration checklist: what you need before you start

Many registrations that stall do so because something doesn't match exactly. Gather everything on this list first, and copy names and numbers exactly as they appear on official documents.

You don't need an LLC or a corporation to register. Sole proprietors, partnerships, and nonprofits can all register, and a sole proprietor can use a Social Security number as the taxpayer ID.

It also helps to have a scanned copy of a document from the last five years that shows your legal name and physical address together, like a bank statement, a utility bill, a state business license, or a certificate of good standing. You'll only need it if SAM.gov can't confirm your business automatically, but having it ready saves time.

Step 1: Create a Login.gov account

SAM.gov uses Login.gov for sign-in. Go to SAM.gov, choose to sign in, and follow the prompts to create a Login.gov account with your work email. Login.gov only handles signing in. It doesn't store any of your business information.

Two rules matter here:

• Everyone gets their own account. Each person who works in your SAM.gov registration needs their own Login.gov account. Never share sign-in details.
• The first person to register your business becomes its Entity Administrator. That person controls who else can view or edit the registration. It should be an owner or a trusted employee, not an outside consultant. Paid registration services aren't allowed to hold the administrator role anyway.

Step 2: Choose UEI only or full registration

SAM.gov offers two paths, and it's worth knowing which one you need before you click anything.

If your goal is federal contracts, choose full registration for All Awards. Both paths start with the same validation step, so you can get a UEI first and finish the full registration later.

Two common questions at this stage:

• Do subcontractors need to register? Some only need a Unique Entity ID, which the UEI-only option provides, because the prime contractor has to report it. Ask the prime what it requires.
• What about grants? If you're after grants rather than contracts, you'll still register on SAM.gov, but you'll find and apply for grants on Grants.gov.

Step 3: Validate your business and get your UEI

Before anything else, SAM.gov confirms that your business exists by checking your legal business name and physical address. Most businesses match immediately, and SAM.gov assigns a Unique Entity ID. This is a 12-character ID that replaced the old DUNS number, and it never expires.

If there's no automatic match, you'll upload documents for a manual review by the Federal Service Desk (FSD). Simple cases can be resolved in as few as five days, and complicated ones can take several weeks. As of February 2025, the FSD said the average manual review took two business days. Replies come from fsdsupport@gsa.gov, so watch your inbox and spam folder.

Documents most often get rejected for these reasons:

• The name or address doesn't exactly match what you typed into SAM.gov.
• The address is a P.O. box or a mailbox store.
• A bank statement or utility bill is more than five years old.
• It's not an official document. Screenshots of IRS.gov or SAM.gov, forms you never filed, and papers you typed yourself don't count.
• The copy is blurry, cut off, or missing pages.
• It isn't in English and has no certified translation.

Step 4: Complete the registration sections

With your UEI in hand, you'll work through the full registration. SAM.gov refreshed these screens between June 2025 and March 2026, so button names may differ from older guides, but the information required didn't change. You'll go through these sections:

1. Core data. Your business information, taxpayer ID and consent for the IRS check, ownership details, bank account for electronic payments, and questions about executive pay and legal proceedings. U.S. businesses don't need a CAGE code beforehand. SAM.gov sends your details to the Defense Logistics Agency, which assigns one for free.
2. Assertions. Your NAICS codes (mark one as primary), optional product and service codes, your size information, and a few optional listings.
3. Representations and certifications. A series of formal statements about your business, including your size and any socioeconomic status, like women-owned or veteran-owned. Businesses that will bid on Defense Department work answer an extra set of questions. Reps and certs are legal statements, so read each one carefully and answer truthfully.
4. Points of contact. The required contacts from your checklist, plus optional ones like a past performance contact.
5. SBA profile (if you're small). This page feeds your profile in the SBA's Small Business Search, which contracting officers use to find companies. Fill it out fully, with a clear description of what you do.

During registration you'll also create a Marketing Partner ID Number (MPIN). It works as your electronic signature for the IRS consent, and you'll need it for future updates, so store it somewhere safe.

Step 5: Submit and wait: how long does SAM registration take?

After you submit, SAM.gov runs outside checks, including the IRS taxpayer ID match and CAGE code assignment. Here's how long each stage usually takes, based on official estimates:

If it's been more than 15 business days and your status looks the same everywhere, the FSD suggests calling the CAGE office at 877-352-2255. If your status looks different in different places, contact the Federal Service Desk at fsd.gov.

How to check your SAM.gov registration status

Sign in to SAM.gov and open your workspace, or use SAM.gov's entity status check. You'll see one of a few statuses:

Always check your status on SAM.gov itself. Emails that claim your registration is about to lapse and link somewhere else are a common scam tactic.

Common reasons SAM.gov registrations get delayed

If your registration is stuck, it's almost always one of these:

• Your name or address doesn't exactly match your IRS records or documents. Even "ACME Company" versus "ACME, Inc." can get documents rejected. Use exactly what's on your IRS records.
• Your EIN is too new. Wait five weeks after the IRS issues it.
• You used a P.O. box or a mailbox store. Your physical address has to be where the business operates.
• Your documents were rejected. Check the list in step 3 and resubmit clearer or more official copies.
• You missed an email. The FSD may be waiting on a reply from you. Check for messages from fsdsupport@gsa.gov.

SAM registration renewal and updates

Your UEI is permanent, but your registration isn't. You must renew every 365 days. If you miss it, your status becomes "Inactive Registration," and no awards or payments can be processed until you renew. That includes payments on contracts you've already won.

A few habits keep you out of trouble:

• Put the renewal date on your calendar. Start the renewal a month or two early in case something needs fixing.
• Update your registration whenever something changes. A new bank account, address, or point of contact should go into SAM.gov right away.
• Check your status yourself. Use SAM.gov's entity status check instead of trusting emails about your registration.
• Keep more than one person with access. If your only Entity Administrator leaves, getting access back requires a notarized letter signed in person in front of a notary. Notarized letters aren't needed for a normal registration.

Where to get free help

You don't need to hire anyone to register. If you get stuck, these are free:

• The Federal Service Desk at fsd.gov is the official help desk for SAM.gov.
• APEX Accelerators offer free one-on-one help with registration and bidding across the country. Find your nearest one at apexaccelerators.us.
• Small Business Development Centers offer free counseling on getting ready for government work.

Next steps

While your registration is processing, get the rest of your groundwork done. Confirm your NAICS codes, write a one-page capability statement, and learn how to find government contracts that fit your business. Or follow the whole sequence in our 90-day plan to win your first federal contract.

This guide is general information, not legal or financial advice. Rules and thresholds change, so confirm details on SAM.gov and the official agency sites linked above before you act. FedReady is an independent company and is not affiliated with any government agency.