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How to Get HUBZone Certification

HUBZone certification gives businesses in historically underutilized areas a real edge when competing for federal contracts.

What HUBZone is

HUBZone stands for Historically Underutilized Business Zone. The program steers federal contracting dollars to small businesses located in certain economically distressed geographic areas. The government has a goal of awarding at least 3% of all federal contracting dollars to HUBZone-certified businesses, and certified firms also get a 10% price evaluation preference when competing for contracts in full and open competition.

Important

Do NOT self-certify HUBZone in SAM.gov. HUBZone requires formal SBA certification first. Once you're certified, the status flows into SAM.gov automatically. Marking yourself as HUBZone in SAM.gov's R&C section without holding a real certificate is a federal misrepresentation and can carry serious penalties.

Eligibility: all three must be true

  1. 1

    Your principal office is located in a HUBZone

    Your main office (where the greatest number of employees work) must sit inside a designated HUBZone. Use the SBA map (below) to check your address.

  2. 2

    At least 35% of your employees live in a HUBZone

    At least 35% of your total workforce must have their primary residence in a HUBZone. They don't all have to live in the same zone; any qualified HUBZone counts.

  3. 3

    Your business is at least 51% owned by an eligible owner

    Ownership must be at least 51% by U.S. citizens, a Community Development Corporation, an agricultural cooperative, an Alaska Native Corporation, a Native Hawaiian Organization, or an Indian tribal government.

Check your address first

Before you do anything else, confirm your principal office is actually in a HUBZone. The SBA publishes an official interactive map: enter your address and it tells you instantly.

Open the SBA HUBZone map →

Certification, step by step

HUBZone certification goes through the SBA's official portal, MySBA Certifications at certifications.sba.gov. Here's the process:

  1. 1

    Create an account or log in at certifications.sba.gov

    Go to certifications.sba.gov (MySBA Certifications) and set up (or sign into) your account.

  2. 2

    Start the HUBZone application

    Enter your principal office address and the home addresses of your employees. The SBA uses these to verify both the office-location and 35%-of-employees requirements.

  3. 3

    Upload your required documents

    • A lease or deed for your principal office (proving you operate from that location)
    • Payroll records or employee addresses showing that at least 35% of your employees live in a HUBZone
  4. 4

    The SBA verifies your application

    The SBA checks your addresses against their official mapping system. It aims to make its decision within 60 calendar days of receiving a complete application.

  5. 5

    SAM.gov updates automatically

    Once you're certified, your HUBZone status flows into SAM.gov on its own. The SBA sends it over, so there's nothing more for you to do.

Tip

If you're close to the 35%-of-employees requirement, hire HUBZone residents before you apply. You have to actually meet the 35% threshold on the day the SBA decides your application. There is no catch-up plan for applicants who fall short. (The lower 20% "attempt to maintain" level you may read about kicks in only after you're certified and performing a HUBZone contract, not when you're applying.)

Keeping your certification active

HUBZone certification now runs on a three-year cycle. You recertify every three years that you still meet all the HUBZone rules (this replaced the old yearly re-certification in January 2025).

Between recertifications, you don't re-certify just because you move or your team changes. You do have to tell the SBA about a merger or acquisition (within 30 days), and you must still meet the principal-office and 35% employee-residency tests both at each three-year recertification and on the date you make an offer on any HUBZone contract.

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