8A Certification Program

The U.S. government dedicates 23 percent of its federal contracts to small businesses and reserves the other 33.7 percent of large contracts over $700,000 for small subcontracted companies. The 8(a) program is an essential instrument to financially help owners of economically disadvantaged small businesses to gain access to the economic mainstream of American society. The 8(a) program also helps thousands of entrepreneurs gain access to Federal Government contracting.

A diverse range of small businesses may qualify as disadvantaged. Here are some groups that may be eligible under SBA guidelines:

• Community Development Corporations
• Indian tribes
• Alaska Native corporations
• Native Hawaiian organizations
• Black American 
• Hispanic American 
• Pacific Islander
• Asian
• More!

Among other competitive advantages, 8(a) certified companies may also:

• Form strategic alliances through Joint Ventures (JV) and form teams under contractor teaming agreements (TAs) to bid for multimillion-dollar contracts. This improves the ability of companies with 8(a) certification to participate in larger contracts, mitigating the effects of contract bundling.
• Participants may qualify to receive sole-source contracts (e.g.- no-bid contracts) for a maximum of $4 million for services and $6.5 million each for manufactured goods.
• The SBA assigns and dedicates staff to companies to be more competitive, providing institutional procurement technical assistance through its mentoring and developmental programs.

Only 7,000 firms out of the 28 million in the US are part of this elite contracting program and $50 billion are distributed annually in exclusive contracts for those who are certified. The SBA Mentor-Protégé Program allows 8(a) certified companies to learn the characteristic traits of their industry from more experienced companies, leveraging their skills with accumulated experiences and officially approved resources, as well as supervised strategic alliances.

Reach out to us to learn more about the application process. We guide you through the process to save time and avoid headaches. Here are some of the key eligibility criteria, as defined by SBA:

• Own a small business
• Not be a previous 8(a) program participant
• Be at least 51 percent owned and controlled by one or more U.S. citizens who qualify as economically and socially disadvantaged
• Demonstrate good character and the potential for success
• Have $850,000 or less in personal net worth, $6.5 million or less in personal assets, and $450,000 or less in adjusted gross income