Small business

The following information is related to researching contract features — specifically, those that focus on small business.

Small business size and socioeconomic status

In accordance with 13 CFR 121.404(a)(1)(i)(B), for all OASIS+ SB, OASIS+ HUBZone, OASIS+ SDVOSB, and OASIS+ WOSB task orders, a contractor’s business size and socioeconomic status defaults to their size or status shown in their OASIS+ master contract, notwithstanding their size or status shown in any other system at the time of task order award, unless an OCO requests a size recertification for a specific order. See below for applicability specific to OASIS+ 8(a)

OASIS+ Exceptions to the Fair Opportunity Process

In accordance with RFO-2025-16 FAR 16.507-2(a)(2), ordering activities shall give every OASIS+ contract holder within the OASIS+ contract, Domain, and NAICS code applicable to the task order a fair opportunity to be considered unless one of the statutory exceptions applies. Exceptions to fair opportunity for specific contractor(s) can be solicited by sending an e-mail directly to the contractor(s) with a copy to oasisplusmods@gsa.gov.

OASIS+ 8(a) SB competitive and/or sole source

Ordering activities seeking to satisfy their requirements through either 8(a) competitive or 8(a) sole source (direct) task orders must use the OASIS+ 8(a) contract vehicle.

The OASIS+ UR contracts were awarded as full and open competition. The OASIS+ SB contracts were awarded as 100% small business set-asides. The OASIS+ 8(a) program was awarded as a 100% set aside for exclusive competition among 8(a) participants, which was offered to and accepted by Small Business Administration under SBA requirement number IX1685025756D; therefore, offer and acceptance has already been completed for competitive 8(a) task orders issued under OASIS+. Reference Small Business regarding requirements for offer and acceptance to SBA for sole source/direct 8(a) task order solicitations and awards.

For BPAs awarded to 8(a)s, offer and acceptance must occur at the BPA level and is not covered by the master contract. Under RFO-2025-19 FAR 19.108-6 Basic ordering agreements and blanket purchase agreements: 

• (a) The contracting office must submit an offering letter for, and SBA must accept, each order under a basic ordering agreement (BOA) or a blanket purchase agreement (BPA) (see RFO-2025-16 FAR 16.507-2 and RFO 2025-12 FAR 12.201-1), in addition to the agency offering and SBA accepting the BOA or BPA itself.
• (b) SBA will not accept for award on a sole-source basis any order that would cause the total dollar amount of orders issued under a specific BOA or BPA to exceed the competitive threshold amount in 19.108-7.
• (c) Once an 8(a) participant’s program term expires, the participant otherwise exits the 8(a) program, or becomes other than small for the NAICS code assigned under the BOA or the BPA, SBA will not accept new orders under the BOA or BPA for the participant.

Competitive OASIS+ 8(a) SB task orders

Competitive task orders solicited and awarded under the OASIS+ 8(a) contract must:

• Follow similar procedures to competing orders (e.g., choose the domain and NAICS code).
• Allow competition at any dollar value.
• Include the SBA requirement number IX1685025756D, as all OASIS+ 8(a) SB master contracts have been offered to and the requirements have been accepted by SBA for the 8(a) program. There is no requirement for SBA acceptance to receive 8(a) credit for the task order.

Sole source (direct) OASIS+ 8(a) task orders

If the requirement is under the competitive threshold ($5.5 million) the OCO must first attempt to compete the order. Only if that approach is not successful, may the OCO proceed with an 8(a) sole source award (see RFO 2025-19 FAR 19.108-7(d)). Sole source task orders solicited and awarded under the OASIS+ 8(a) contract shall adhere to the following:

• Sole source 8(a) orders must each be offered to and accepted by SBA before award.
• The OCO should check the contractor’s 8(a) status at SBA Small Business Search before considering a sole source order. Per 13 CFR 124.503(i)(1)(iv)(A), a contractor must be a current 8(a) program participant at the time of task order award in order to receive a sole source order.
• Contractors who have exited from the 8(a) program are ineligible to receive an 8(a) sole source task order award.
• Follow the OCO agencies’ partnership agreement for offering the sole source order to SBA.
• Are limited to $5.5 million in accordance with RFO-2025-19 FAR 19.108-7(a)(2);
  • or, per RFO-2025-19 FAR 19.208-2(a)(1), $30 million if the requesting agency has completed a justification in accordance with the requirements of RFO-2025-06 FAR 6.104
  • Per RFO-2025-10 FAR 19.208-2(a)(6), Alaska Native Corporations (ANC), Indian Tribes, Native Hawaiian Organizations (NHO), or Community Development Corporations (CDC) may not receive an 8(a) sole-source award that is a follow-on contract to an 8(a) contract, if the predecessor contract was performed by another 8(a) participant (or former 8(a) participant) owned by the same ANC, Indian Tribe, NHO, or CDC (See 13 CFR 124.109 through 124.111)
• DoD only:
  • DoD may also issue sole source orders to 8(a) Native Hawaiian Organizations (NHO) (reference 13 CFR 124.506(b)(2)).
  • DFARS 219.808-1 increases sole source order limit to $100 million for ANC/Tribal Owned/NHO 8(a) concerns.

 Sole source (direct) OASIS+ 8(a) task orders to ANC/Tribal owned/NHO 8(a) concerns

Sole source task orders solicited and awarded to ANC/Tribal owned/NHO 8(a) concerns under the OASIS+ 8(a) contract shall adhere to the following:

• Notwithstanding the OASIS+ 8(a) IDIQ contract was awarded competitively, 13 CFR 124.506 (b)(1) and (2)’s “…if SBA has not accepted the requirement into the 8(a) BD program as a competitive procurement…” only applies to an order level requirement and may not be used as a rationale to prohibit allowing orders to ANC/Tribal/NHO 8(a) concerns on a sole source (direct) order basis above the RFO-2025-19 FAR 19.208-2(a)(2) $5.5 million threshold.
• An OASIS+ 8(a) order requirement that was initially solicited on a competitive basis may not be removed from competition and subsequently awarded to an ANC/Tribal/NHO 8(a) concern on a sole source (direct) order basis.