WOSB is a special program that is set by the government of the United States to encourage and empower female business owners in the country.
The program is designed with some specific goals by the federal government. The goal is to award a minimum of 5% of all the federal contracting dollars to businesswomen each year. The WOSB program specifically focuses on women who are in economically disadvantaged positions.
Remember, if a woman qualifies EDWOSB, then she will automatically qualify as a WOSB. It is because EDWOSB is a subset of WOSB. The WOSB program is run by the SBA also known as Small Business Administration. If your industry NAICS code is not listed then the WOSB program will not be able to benefit you. There is no additional cost to add to the WOSB. People who are eligible for the WBE can only obtain WOSB certification.
If you are willing to get registered with the WOSB then you have come to the right blog. We will be explaining the WOSB application process to help you get WOSB certification. So let’s figure out the important elements in the application process.
Types of certifications
Determine a suitable certification option for their businesses. There are two types of certifications and they are:
Self-certification.
Third-party certification.
Process of Women-owned small business registration
We have broken down the lengthy process into three simple stages, the information will help the readers to understand in a better way.
Choose a certification
The women who have economical disadvantages but run small businesses get help from the SBA. The purpose is to make these businesses recognized when they bid for any type of government contract.
The National Women Business Owners Corporation (NWBOC) and Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) are the two major players in getting certified. These two players offer a woman’s business WBE certification. WOSB is required for federal government programs. WOSB program limits certified organizations to specific NAICS codes whereas the WBE does not do that. In general, the WBE designation is accepted in most private companies and a few municipalities, on the other side, the WOSB certification is required to participate in the federal programs. So decide on a certification carefully.
Apply for certification
By filling out the form for WOSB certification you can get your application process done. The particular form is available on the Small Business Administration website. There are four SBA-approved organizations that certify women-owned small businesses. These organizations are mentioned below.
The Women’s Business Enterprise National Council.
The U.S. Women’s Chamber of Commerce.
The El Paso Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
The National Women Business Owners Corporation.
Register with the System for Award Management
Along with registering your business with a WOSB certification, you also need to get registered with the System for Award Management. It is for getting eligible for obtaining government contracts.
Conclusion
You can opt for certification through the self-certification method or you can get certification through a third-party organization. After receiving a certification to need to focus on other SBA requirements to participate in the WOSB federal contracting program.
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