CAGE codes, explained

For a business inside the United States that registers for All Awards, the code is assigned as part of the registration, and on the Financial Assistance path some entities get one too; a Unique Entity ID Only entity gets none. You do not apply for it separately, and there is nothing to pay for it.

SAM.gov's help says a CAGE or NCAGE code is not required for Financial Assistance only, and is required to work with the Department of Defense or to bid on contracts; inside the United States, that is the code the registration assigns.

An entity outside the United States obtains the equivalent — an NCAGE code — before registering, from the NATO codification system, also free.

Because the code is assigned rather than chosen, it is not something you can reserve, buy, upgrade or transfer.

This is the clearest scam signal in the whole registration process. There is no fee for a CAGE code, and no third party is able to obtain one for you that you could not obtain yourself at no charge. Registration in SAM.gov is free at sam.gov.

An invoice for a CAGE code is not a government bill. If you already paid one, the money is gone to a private company rather than to an agency, and the thing to do next is stop any recurring payment and check your own record.

If your registration is public, the CAGE code is part of the public record. Run Firmenza's free health check with the legal name or the UEI — when the record is public, the health report shows the CAGE code next to the UEI, with a copy button, because it is one of the two values people are forever being asked to read out over the phone.

If the record has no CAGE code on it, that is worth a look rather than a panic: it can simply mean the registration has not reached the point where one is assigned.