WOSB Program

The Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) Federal Contract program was created to help level the playing field for these qualified businesses.

There are two separate certifications, one for WOSBs and one for Economically Disadvantaged Women-Owned Small Businesses (EDWOSBs). While self-certification was once an option for this, that is no longer the case. To qualify you must be registered and certified through the Small Business Association (SBA).

If a company is registered as an EDWOSB, they are automatically set as a WOSB.

Eligibility

To count as a WOSB and have the federal government count your company within that set-aside category, you will need to be certified.

To qualify as a WOSB, your company must meet these criteria:

• An active and compliant SAM registration.
• Be a small business within a set of specified NAICS codes for WOSB.
• Be majority owned (51%) and have the daily operations run by women who are U.S. citizens.

EDWOSB Eligibility

To qualify as an EDWOSOB, your company must meet these criteria:

• Must qualify as a WOSB.
• Each woman owner must meet specific net worth, gross income, and asset conditions (having these figures at or below $850,000; $450,000; and $6,500,000 respectively).

WOSB and EDWOSB NAICS Codes

Unlike some other small business criteria, your company can be small and run by women, but not all codes will allow your company to qualify. You can find those NAICS codes listed here.

As of 2022, there are currently 107 NAICS codes specified for EDWOSB only and 626 NAICS codes specific for WOSB which makes a total of 733 NAICS codes that are listed.

When bidding on contracts, the codes that your company qualifies for as a WOSB or EDWOSB will count for this set-aside. All other codes that are not specific to WOSB or EDWOWB industries will not count.

Both the WOSB and EDWOSB requirements are found within 13 CFR § 127.

Apply

You can apply for an EDWOSB or WOSB certification through SBA’s Certify website.

Every year, both programs require their participants to attest that they still qualify. This must be submitted yearly, within 30 days of the anniversary of their certification date. Every three years, the participants will need to go through a full reexamination to stay within the program.

If you do submit your application and you find that you were not prepared, your application can be rejected or denied. Once this happens, you will have to wait 90 days before you can reapply.

If you are unsure of what is needed or would like to speak with someone about your options, you can reach out to our Contractor Hotline at (855) 545-6604.