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

If you need to know how to register on SAM.gov, you're in the right place. SAM.gov (opens in a new tab) (System for Award Management) is the federal government's official system for organizations that want to receive federal funding, and registration is a hard prerequisite before your organization can apply for or receive a federal grant. Under 2 CFR 25.200 (opens in a new tab), every federal funding notice has to require applicants to be registered before they submit and to stay registered while an award or application is open.

This guide walks through every step, including what the official documentation doesn't tell you, the most common failure points, and realistic timelines based on the official guidance.

What You Need Before You Start

According to the Federal Service Desk quick start guide, a grant registration needs about 7 pieces of information: legal business name, physical address, entity start year, taxpayer identification number (TIN), banking information, points of contact, and a CAGE code if you already have one. Gather all of it before you sign in. A registration you start and don't submit is held as "Work in Progress" for up to 90 days, then SAM.gov deletes it (opens in a new tab).

Your Legal Business Name (Exactly as It Appears on IRS Records)

This is a frequent source of registration failures. The Federal Service Desk's TIN article (opens in a new tab) says the TIN and taxpayer name you enter must match the IRS's records for your most recent tax year exactly. Don't type the name from memory or copy it from your website.

Your authoritative sources are the original IRS notice that assigned your EIN (the CP-575), your most recent federal tax return, or another recent IRS notice. If you can't find any of them, call the IRS Business & Specialty Tax Line at 800-829-4933 to confirm your name and EIN or request a 147C verification letter, per the IRS EIN page (opens in a new tab). Your articles of incorporation and bank records aren't what SAM.gov checks against.

Your EIN/TIN, and a Warning About New EINs

You need your Employer Identification Number (EIN) or other TIN. If you just received your EIN, wait 5 weeks before you register. The Federal Service Desk says it takes the IRS 5 weeks to fully process a new or updated TIN or taxpayer name, and SAM.gov (opens in a new tab) can't recognize it until it reaches the IRS Master File. Registering earlier mostly buys you a failed TIN check and a resubmission.

A Physical Address That USPS Can Recognize

Your registered address must be a physical location. The Federal Service Desk says (opens in a new tab) P.O. boxes aren't accepted as a physical address in SAM.gov or for a DLA CAGE code. Use your actual street address, formatted the same way everywhere, rather than a mail-forwarding or virtual office address.

EFT (Banking) Information

You need your bank routing number and account number so federal payments can reach you. Have a voided check or bank letter ready.

NAICS Codes (Only If You Also Want Contracts)

NAICS (North American Industry Classification System) codes describe your line of work. A grants-only "Financial Assistance" registration doesn't include the section where you enter them. If you choose an "All Awards" registration so you can also bid on contracts, look up your codes at census.gov/naics (opens in a new tab) before you start.

A Second Person You Trust

The person who registers becomes the Entity Administrator. The quick start guide (opens in a new tab) tells you to give the same role to at least one other person, so pick that person now.

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Step-by-Step: How to Register on SAM.gov

The Federal Service Desk's grant registration guide breaks the process into 2 stages: entity validation, which gets you a UEI, and entity registration, which makes you eligible to apply. Here are the 12 steps in order.

Step 1: Create a Login.gov Account

Go to login.gov (opens in a new tab) and create an account if you don't already have one. Login.gov manages usernames and passwords for SAM.gov. Set up multi-factor authentication, which is required. An authenticator app is a better choice than SMS if your phone number might change.

Step 2: Access SAM.gov and Link Your Credential

Go to SAM.gov (opens in a new tab), select "Sign In," accept the U.S. Government System terms, and sign in through Login.gov. The first time, you'll agree to the terms of use and complete a profile with your name and phone number.

Use an email inbox that receives automated mail. According to the Federal Service Desk's one-time passcode article (opens in a new tab), SAM.gov emails a one-time passcode you must enter to submit the registration, and organization email filters are the usual reason it doesn't arrive. Ask your IT contact to allow donotreply@sam.gov before you start.

Step 3: Start a New Entity Registration

In your Workspace, find the "Entities" section and select "Get Started," then "Create New Entity." When asked your goal, choose "Directly with the U.S. federal government," then "Apply for federal financial assistance." SAM.gov (opens in a new tab) should suggest a Financial Assistance registration. Pick "All Awards" instead only if you'll also bid on contracts.

If SAM.gov (opens in a new tab) alerts you that your entity already exists, stop. Someone registered it before. Ask your current Entity Administrator for a role instead of creating a duplicate.

Step 4: Enter Your Legal Name and Physical Address for Validation

Enter your legal business name, any "doing business as" name, and your physical address. SAM.gov (opens in a new tab)'s entity validation service checks that your organization exists, where it is, and that it isn't already registered. If it can't find a match, you'll be asked to upload documents proving your legal name, address, start year, and state of incorporation, and you'll wait for the validation service to update your record before you can continue.

Step 5: Receive Your Unique Entity ID

Once validation passes, choose whether your record is publicly displayed, certify that you're authorized to act for the entity, and select "Receive Unique Entity ID." Your 12-character UEI appears on screen. Write it down. Your status is now "ID Assigned," which isn't the same as registered.

Step 6: Complete Core Data

Select "Continue Registration." A Financial Assistance registration has 3 sections: Core Data, Representations and Certifications, and Points of Contact. Core Data covers your TIN, banking information, fiscal year end, entity type, and similar basics. You don't wait for the IRS here: the TIN check runs after you submit.

Step 7: Assertions and NAICS Codes (All Awards Only)

If you picked an All Awards registration, you'll also complete Assertions: NAICS codes, business size, and socioeconomic categories such as woman-owned or veteran-owned. Be accurate. Size and status claims are used in contract awards, and false certifications carry legal consequences. Grants-only registrants skip this step.

Step 8: Complete Representations and Certifications

This is a series of legal compliance statements: that your organization isn't suspended or debarred, that it complies with federal requirements, and that what you've entered is accurate. Read each one instead of clicking through. Some certifications have real consequences if your situation changes after you certify.

Step 9: Designate Your Points of Contact, Including the EBiz POC

You'll name several points of contact. Two matter most for grants:

• Electronic Business Point of Contact (EBiz POC). Grants.gov (opens in a new tab) recognizes this person by the email address listed in SAM.gov, allows only 1 EBiz POC per UEI, and gives them the Expanded AOR role, which means they approve who can submit applications for you.
• Government Business POC. DLA emails this person with any CAGE code questions, and the FSD says they should watch their email, including the spam folder, while the IRS and DLA checks run.

Choose people who'll still be with your organization next year and who answer email. A common mistake is naming a board volunteer who checks a personal inbox once a week.

Step 10: Submit With the One-Time Passcode

Review every section, select "Submit," and enter the passcode SAM.gov (opens in a new tab) emails you. You should see a "Registration Submitted – Confirmation" message. If you don't see it, the quick start guide says you haven't submitted.

Step 11: Wait for the TIN and CAGE Checks

Your status changes to "Submitted" while SAM.gov (opens in a new tab) waits on the IRS TIN match and, where it applies, DLA's CAGE code assignment or verification. It changes to "Active Registration" when both pass. Only "Active Registration" lets you apply. If a check fails, SAM.gov emails instructions for fixing your information and resubmitting.

Step 12: Add a Second Entity Administrator

As soon as you're active, have the Entity Administrator use "Assign Role" in the SAM.gov (opens in a new tab) User Directory to give a second person the administrator role. It takes minutes now and saves you a notarized letter later.

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Timeline: What to Actually Expect

The Federal Service Desk (opens in a new tab) says the external checks take 10 to 15 business days after you submit, and longer if the IRS or DLA flags your information for manual review. Grants.gov (opens in a new tab) tells applicants to "allow up to 10 business days for SAM registration to become active," and warns that unverified information can stretch it to weeks or months. Here's how the pieces add up for a first-time registrant whose information verifies cleanly:

Fifteen business days is 3 calendar weeks. Add 2 days for the Grants.gov (opens in a new tab) handoff and a day or two for roles, and a clean registration takes about 3 to 4 weeks from the day you submit to the day you can submit an application. If you're working toward a specific deadline, start at least 4 to 6 weeks out.

For a hypothetical example, picture a new food pantry that receives its EIN notice on March 2. Following the FSD's 5-week rule, its earliest sensible start date is April 6. With 10 to 15 business days of checks, it should expect to be active somewhere between April 20 and April 27, and able to submit on Grants.gov (opens in a new tab) a couple of days after that. Any federal notice due before May 1 is a bad fit for that pantry this cycle.

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How Often a Grant's Whole Window Is Shorter Than Registration

Grantsights analysis of 2,223 Grants.gov (opens in a new tab) notices from fiscal year 2026 shows why "register when you find a grant" fails. Method: on October 19, 2026, Grantsights pulled every closed and archived opportunity from the public Grants.gov search API (opens in a new tab) whose close date fell in federal fiscal year 2026 (October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026), 2,223 notices in all, and subtracted each notice's posted date from its close date.

The median window was 45 days. So for about half of the fiscal year's notices, an organization that started SAM.gov (opens in a new tab) registration the day the notice was posted would have spent most of the window on registration alone. For the 16.0% with fewer than 30 days, a clean 3-to-4-week registration could eat the entire window.

Two limits on these numbers. First, the close date is the final close date, so deadline extensions make windows look longer than they first appeared, not shorter. Second, 57 of the 356 shortest notices were "invited to apply" or limited-competition notices meant for organizations the agency had already picked. That still leaves 299 open notices with fewer than 30 days.

Forecasts don't solve this. Only 38 of those 356 short-window notices had a Grants.gov (opens in a new tab) forecast posted first. For the rest, the posting itself was the first public notice.

Case in point: the Administration for Children and Families posted its Community Economic Development notice (opens in a new tab) (HHS-2026-ACF-OCS-EE-0026) on August 10, 2026, with applications due September 8, 2026: 29 days for awards of $100,000 to $800,000, open to nonprofit community development corporations with 501(c)(3) status. ACF had posted a forecast on May 5, 2026, so a CDC that registered when the forecast appeared had months. One that waited for the full notice had 29 days, which is about what the FSD's own estimate needs.

Microenterprise programs saw the same pattern. The SBA posted its FY 2026 PRIME notice (opens in a new tab) (SB-OCAPR-26-001), which funds microenterprise development organizations, on July 15, 2026, with a due date of August 12, 2026: 28 days for awards of $75,000 to $400,000, and no forecast beforehand.

The decision this supports: if your organization might apply for any federal grant in the next year, register now and keep it active. Starting SAM.gov (opens in a new tab) registration inside the final two weeks before a deadline is a bad fit for any notice, because the FSD's 10-business-day minimum alone is 2 full weeks. To find programs worth registering for, run a free search on Grantsights' grant search.

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What the Official Guide Doesn't Tell You

The EBiz POC Has to Stay Reachable

Grants.gov (opens in a new tab) allows 1 EBiz POC per UEI, and that person approves every role request. A common mistake is naming an EBiz POC who doesn't check email, then discovering in deadline week that nobody can grant the AOR role. Check in with your EBiz POC the same day you submit, and again once you're active.

Name Mismatches Are a Common Failure Point

Even when you're confident your name is correct, the IRS TIN check can fail. Common reasons:

• Your EIN is less than 5 weeks old and hasn't reached the IRS Master File yet
• Your organization recently changed its legal name with the IRS, and the change hasn't fully processed (the FSD's 5-week rule covers updated names, too)
• A typo or wording difference between what you entered and what the IRS has on file

If the TIN check fails, SAM.gov (opens in a new tab) emails you instructions. Confirm your exact IRS name at 800-829-4933, correct the record, and resubmit.

Your UEI Is Assigned During Registration

Your Unique Entity ID is the 12-character alphanumeric code that GSA switched to on April 4, 2022 (opens in a new tab), replacing the DUNS number. You don't apply for it separately: SAM.gov assigns it the moment your entity passes validation, before you finish registration. It never changes, even through future renewals, and Grants.gov (opens in a new tab) fills it into your applications automatically.

You Don't Need a Notarized Letter, Unless You Lose Your Administrator

Older guides tell every new registrant to mail a notarized letter. That's out of date for normal registrations. The Federal Service Desk (opens in a new tab) now calls it an Entity Administrator Appointment Letter and says you don't need one for registering a newly ID-assigned entity, for updates or renewals, or for verifying your identity with Login.gov. You do need one in 3 situations:

• Your organization has an active or inactive registration but nobody holds the Entity Administrator role, for example because your administrator left
• You started a Work in Progress registration and lost access to the administrator's account
• You're registering a child entity and the parent organization's administrator hasn't answered your request within 5 business days

Assigning a second Entity Administrator in Step 12 keeps you out of the first two.

Leave a Buffer After Active Status

"Active" in SAM.gov (opens in a new tab) doesn't mean ready in Grants.gov. The FSD says it can take another 24 to 48 hours for the record to reach other systems, and your EBiz POC still has to create a Grants.gov account, add an organization applicant profile, and approve roles. Don't plan your first submission for the day your registration goes active.

SAM.gov Registration Is Completely Free

The FSD quick start guide says there's no charge to register, maintain, or update your entity record, and no charge for the UEI or CAGE code. According to the Federal Service Desk's fraud guidance (opens in a new tab), SAM.gov doesn't use social media or phone calls to solicit or make awards, and no government staff will ask you for money to be eligible for an award. Paid third-party registration services exist and are optional, not required. Emails that mimic SAM.gov but come from a non-.gov address are a red flag. Always go to sam.gov directly.

Your Registration Expires After 365 Days

SAM.gov (opens in a new tab) says you must renew every 365 days to stay active, and the FSD recommends starting 45 to 60 days before expiration. If your registration lapses, 2 CFR 25.205 (opens in a new tab) lets an agency make the award to another applicant, and an agency can't add new funds to an existing award until you're back in compliance. Grants.gov will show "SAM Registration is expired" on your workspace and block submission. Read more in our guide on how to renew your SAM.gov registration.

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UEI Only vs. Full Registration

Not every organization needs all 12 steps above. SAM.gov's registration page (opens in a new tab) offers 2 paths: register the entity, which assigns a UEI along the way, or get a UEI only. A UEI-only request needs just your legal business name and physical address, but SAM.gov says an entity with only a UEI can't apply directly for federal awards.

The subaward rule has teeth: under 2 CFR 25.300, a prime recipient can't make a subaward until the subrecipient has provided its UEI, and the prime has to tell potential subrecipients that up front. If you're a partner on someone else's proposal, get a UEI early even if you never plan to fully register. If you work through a fiscal sponsor, read what a fiscal sponsor does to sort out whose registration a federal application would use.

How to Find a UEI You Already Have

If your organization has ever registered or requested a UEI, you already have one, so look it up instead of requesting a new one. Three places to check:

• SAM.gov (opens in a new tab), signed in. Per the FSD's status guide, entity records are searchable by signed-in users, and your own record shows on your Workspace if you hold a role.
• Past applications. Your UEI is printed on the SF-424 cover form of any application you've submitted through Grants.gov (opens in a new tab).
• Your Entity Administrator. Whoever registered the organization can see the UEI and assign you a role.

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Common Error Messages and What They Mean

The FSD lists 8 registration statuses; most errors come down to which one you're stuck in. Here's what each common message means.

"Entity Not Found" in Grants.gov After SAM.gov Activation

This usually doesn't mean something went wrong. According to the Federal Service Desk activation article, an active record can take 24 to 48 hours to reach other government systems. Wait 2 days, then use the "Verify" button on your Grants.gov (opens in a new tab) workspace or contact the Grants.gov support center if it persists.

TIN Validation Failed

The 2 most common causes: your name doesn't match IRS records, or your EIN or name change is less than 5 weeks old. SAM.gov (opens in a new tab) emails instructions. Confirm the exact name with the IRS, correct it, and resubmit. For EIN questions, the FSD also lists the IRS at 866-255-0654.

"Your Entity Is Already in SAM.gov"

Someone in your organization, possibly years ago, already registered using the same name and address. Don't continue as a new entity. The FSD quick start guide warns that duplicates take longer to unwind than getting a role does. Ask the current Entity Administrator to assign you a role, or submit an Entity Administrator Appointment Letter if nobody holds that role.

CAGE Code Rejected

If your registration shows an alert that CAGE rejected it, that's DLA, not SAM.gov (opens in a new tab). The FSD says it can't resolve DLA verifications. Contact the DLA Customer Interaction Center at 1-877-352-2255, and use the same name and identically formatted address in both systems.

Registration Stuck in "Submitted" for More Than 15 Business Days

Check your Government Business POC's spam folder for IRS or DLA messages first. Then contact the Federal Service Desk (opens in a new tab) with your UEI and the date you submitted.

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After You're Registered: Next Steps

Once your SAM.gov (opens in a new tab) status shows "Active Registration," 5 tasks remain before your first application:

1. Note your UEI from your SAM.gov entity record
2. Leave 24 to 48 hours for the record to reach Grants.gov (opens in a new tab)
3. Have your EBiz POC sign in to Grants.gov (opens in a new tab) with the email listed in SAM.gov and add your organization applicant profile
4. Have your EBiz POC approve the AOR role for whoever will submit
5. Put your SAM.gov expiration date, minus 60 days, on your calendar

For a full walkthrough of the application process, see our guide on how to apply for federal grants on Grants.gov. For the Grants.gov workspace itself, read how to use Grants.gov in 2026.

If you want to understand how SAM.gov (opens in a new tab) and Grants.gov relate to each other, our SAM.gov vs Grants.gov comparison explains the full system. Once you win an award, plan for the audit threshold too: our Single Audit guide covers the $1,000,000 trigger.

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The SAM.gov Registration Pitfalls Nobody Warns You About

The official 10-to-15-business-day estimate assumes your information verifies cleanly. Here's what can slow it down.

TIN validation failure is usually a name problem. SAM.gov (opens in a new tab) validates your TIN against IRS records, and the FSD says the name and TIN must match exactly. Fixing a mismatch means correcting your record, resubmitting, and waiting for the checks again. Before you start, pull your CP-575 or most recent tax return and copy your legal name character by character.

The CAGE step can add time. Many U.S. registrants get a CAGE (Commercial and Government Entity) code from the Defense Logistics Agency at the end of registration, and the FSD says a CAGE delay can delay your whole registration. DLA contacts your Government Business POC by email if it has questions.

Email filters block the passcode. If your organization's mail system quarantines donotreply@sam.gov, you can't submit at all. Test it before deadline week.

Technical errors aren't always about your data. If you're hitting unexplained errors, try a current browser or another network before calling the Federal Service Desk. Call early in the day and well before your deadline, since support wait times vary.

Related Guides

• Grants.gov vs SAM.gov vs USASpending.gov
• How to Renew Your SAM.gov Registration
• SAM.gov vs Grants.gov

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Sources

• SAM.gov Entity Registration (opens in a new tab)
• FSD Quick Start Guide: Registration for Government Grants or Financial Assistance (KB0012054) (opens in a new tab)
• FSD: How long does it take until an entity registration is considered active? (KB0016357) (opens in a new tab)
• FSD: What is the TIN process? (KB0016540) (opens in a new tab)
• FSD: What if I do not know my Taxpayer name or TIN? (KB0016312) (opens in a new tab)
• FSD: What do the different registration statuses mean? (KB0029911) (opens in a new tab)
• FSD: When do I need an Entity Administrator Appointment Letter? (KB0065324) (opens in a new tab)
• FSD: What should I know about DLA's CAGE code? (KB0061654) (opens in a new tab)
• FSD: One Time Passcode troubleshooting (KB0094050) (opens in a new tab)
• FSD: Unsolicited contact from someone claiming to be a SAM.gov rep (KB0017709) (opens in a new tab)
• Grants.gov Applicant Registration (opens in a new tab)
• Grants.gov: EBiz POC Authorizes Profile Roles (opens in a new tab)
• 2 CFR Part 25 (eCFR) (opens in a new tab)
• IRS: Employer Identification Number (opens in a new tab)
• Grants.gov search API (opportunity data pulled October 19, 2026) (opens in a new tab)