Josef Kamara, CPA, CISSP, CISA · Updated June 27, 2026 · 1 minute read

UEI

Unique Entity Identifier, the 12-character alphanumeric ID GSA assigns through SAM.gov and the federal government sole entity identifier as of April 4, 2022. The UEI replaced the Dun and Bradstreet DUNS Number on that date under the GSA Integrated Award Environment program, ending the long reliance on a proprietary identifier. The UEI is generated within SAM and stays with the entity even if the legal name or address changes. Every contractor, grantee, and subrecipient that does business with the federal government must have an active UEI.