Applicant Registration

Important Info for Organizations 

If you're applying for a federal grant as part of an organization (like a school or nonprofit), that organization must register as an entity with SAM.gov first. Grants.gov uses SAM.gov to establish organizational authority for its users.  

Here’s how that works:

• Your organization must choose someone to be the main contact–called an Electronic Business Point of Contact in SAM.gov and EBiz POC in Grants.gov. 

• It will get a special ID number called a Unique Entity ID or UEI. This ID will automatically appear in your applications. 

• You must renew SAM.gov registration every year. 

• It’s free to register. 

• You can’t start applying in Grants.gov until your organization is registered in SAM.gov. 

Even if your organization has a federal tax ID, allow up to 10 business days for SAM registration to become active. If information isn’t available or verified, it could take weeks or months to complete SAM.gov registration.

Next Steps in Grants.gov

Once your organization is registered in SAM.gov:

• The main contact (EBiz POC) should create a Grants.gov account using the same email used for the Electronic Business Point of Contact in SAM.gov.

• They should add an organization applicant profile using the Unique Entity ID (UEI) from SAM.gov. 

Then, they can give access to other people to help with applications.  

Is my organization already registered at SAM.gov?

You can search on SAM.gov to see if your organization is already registered. To do this, you’ll need accounts with SAM.gov and Login.gov. 

If your organization is not registered at SAM.gov, get started at Entity Registration | SAM.gov.

Can I apply for Federal Grants as an Individual?

Most grants are for organizations, but some are open to individuals. 

To learn more, visit the Grants.gov Help page for individual applicants. 

Can I use one Grants.gov account for several organizations? 

Yes! After you create your Grants.gov account: 

• You can add a profile for each organization using their UEI from SAM.gov. 

• Go to the Manage Profiles tab on the My Account page to add more. 

How do I get access to work on an application?

When your organization signs up at SAM.gov, it must choose someone to be the main contact (called the EBiz POC). 

This person can give others permission to work on applications by assigning roles like: 

• Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) 

• Workspace Manager 

• Custom roles 

Once you’re given a role, you’ll be able to work on applications. Alternatively, a workspace owner can also invite you to participate. (They’ll need to know your username.)

How can I see if I have been assigned a role for my organization?

• Go to the Manage Profiles tab on the My Account page. 

• You’ll see your roles listed in the My Applicant Profile(s) table. 

How do I get notified about new/revised grants?

You can sign up to get daily emails from Grants.gov with new and revised grant opportunities. Go to Manage Subscriptions. 

You can choose which agencies and types of grants you want to hear about. All you need is an account.