SDVOSB and VOSB recertification with SBA VetCert

SBA certifies SDVOSB and VOSB firms for three years at a time, and you can recertify as many times as you stay eligible. The recertification window opens 90 days before your eligibility period ends (13 CFR 128.306).

90 days, not 120. The window used to be 120 days. A rule that took effect January 16, 2025 shortened it to 90. Some older guides, including a few SBA help pages, still say 120.

Who this applies to

Any firm certified through SBA's Veteran Small Business Certification program (VetCert). SBA took over certification from the VA's Center for Verification and Evaluation on January 1, 2023 (SBA).

Since January 1, 2024, a firm needs SBA certification (or a pending application filed in time) to win SDVOSB set-aside and sole-source contracts at any agency.

Your dates

Date	What happens
End date minus 90 days	Recertification window opens. SBA emails the business contact listed in your SAM.gov profile.
End date	If you haven't recertified, SBA decertifies the firm.
Up to 30 days after	Recertify within 30 days and SBA reinstates your certification.

Check your end date. In May 2025, SBA gave every certified VOSB and SDVOSB an extra six months of eligibility. It didn't send individual letters, and it removed the expiration date from public profiles (SBA memo). If your firm was certified before then, your end date is probably later than three years from your certification date. Confirm it in MySBA Certifications.

How to recertify

Since November 1, 2025, renewals happen in MySBA Certifications (SBA memo).

1. Make sure the business contact in your SAM.gov profile is current, because that's where SBA sends the renewal notice.
2. When the window opens, sign in to MySBA Certifications and start the renewal.
3. Confirm that your firm still meets the requirements (below), and upload any documents SBA asks for.
4. Submit before your end date. Respond quickly to any follow-up questions from SBA.

There's no annual attestation for VetCert. Between renewals, your ongoing duty is to report material changes within 30 days.

What SBA checks

• Ownership: at least 51% owned directly and unconditionally by veterans, or by service-disabled veterans for an SDVOSB (13 CFR 128.202).
• Control: veterans manage and control daily operations (13 CFR 128.203).
• Size: small under the size standard for a NAICS code in your SAM profile (13 CFR 128.204).
• No exclusions: no active debarment or suspension in SAM, and no unpaid significant federal debt without a repayment plan (13 CFR 128.201).

If your certification lapses

Your existing contracts don't end. A decertified firm must still finish the work it was already awarded (13 CFR 128.310). But you can't win new SDVOSB set-aside or sole-source awards. The agency may also lose SDVOSB credit when it exercises an option, which can make it less likely to do so.

Official sources

• 13 CFR part 128: VetCert regulations
• SBA veteran contracting programs
• MySBA Certifications