CDFI Fund Transitions from DUNS to Unique Entity Identifier

Effective March 18, 2022, the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) will begin utilizing the new System for Award Management (SAM) issued Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) in its Awards Management Information System (AMIS).

What is the UEI?
Beginning April 4, 2022, the federal government will stop using the Dun & Bradstreet issued Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number to uniquely identify entities. At that point, entities doing business with the federal government will use a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) created in SAM.gov and will no longer have to go to a third-party website to obtain their identifier. This transition allows the government to streamline the entity identification and validation process, making it easier and less burdensome for entities to do business with the federal government. Entities will also be able to manage organizational information, such as legal business name and physical address associated with a UEI directly from SAM.gov.

What does this means for AMIS Users?
If you are registered in SAM.gov, your UEI has already been assigned and is viewable in your account. Your UEI is located below the DUNS number on your entity registration record. New registrants will be assigned a UEI as part of their SAM registration. More information about the UEI transition is available through the U.S. Government Services Administration’s website.

No action is required of AMIS users that have a SAM.gov account. The CDFI Fund will automatically populate your AMIS account with your UEI. The CDFI Fund anticipates that it will complete the process of updating AMIS user accounts with UEIs by March 18, 2022. The CDFI Fund will send out a separate communication indicating when this transition has been completed.

How will this impact my application for a CDFI Fund award?
Since DUNS will continue to be utilized and supported in SAM.gov until April 4, 2022, there will be no immediate impact on CDFI Fund program applications. Use of the UEI as part of CDFI Fund program applications will be required for those rounds that open subsequent to April 4, 2022. Applicants will be directed to refer to the applicable Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA), Notice of Guarantee Availability (NOGA) or Notice of Allocation Availability (NOAA) for information regarding SAM.gov registration deadlines.

Where can I get more information?
Questions about the conversion from DUNS to UEI should be directed to GSA. Information about the transition as well as contact information can be found on the GSA UEI transition webpage, here.

For questions about the UEI update in AMIS, contact the AMIS Help Desk via phone at (202) 653-0422, email at AMIS@cdfi.treas.gov, or Service Request in AMIS.