How time flies. Seems like just last week we were explaining that the long awaited move of SDVOSB certification from the Department of Veterans Affairs to the U.S. Small Business Administration was imminent.
The time has come. The portal is up and running—and, honestly, it looks pretty slick.
It allows for veteran-owned small businesses to apply for certification by registering and starting an application. The SBA calls certification “VetCert”—because what’s a federal program without a new nonsense word?
It also allows one to search for VetCert entities with a natural language search and *gasp* have useful results returned. You can also search by Unique Entity ID (UEI) number, DUNS number, or by state/territory. A state search, for example, tells one that that are only 36 VOSBs and SDVOSBs in the entire state of Alaska.
The site has some other resources, including a summary of benefits and a support number.
The SBA also put out a handy Frequently Asked Questions article that provides, among other things, a summary of the documents needed, and an estimated application processing time. We won’t hide the ball from you: They’re shooting for a 30 day turnaround from completed application to decision.
If you have questions about the certification process. Please don’t hesitate to give us a call.