FAR 52.232-33 — Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer—System for Award Management
What It Is
FAR 52.232-33 requires that contract payments be made by electronic funds transfer (EFT) and that the EFT banking information come from the contractor's registration in the System for Award Management (SAM). In practice it means the government routes your payments to the bank account on file in SAM, and it is your responsibility to keep that information current and accurate. If your SAM EFT data is missing, expired, or wrong, payment can be delayed or suspended until you correct it. The clause ties the contractor's payment mechanics directly to the accuracy of its SAM registration, which is also where size and SDVOSB representations live.
When It Applies
- Contracts that require EFT payment and rely on SAM for the contractor's banking information (the standard case).
- Throughout performance — the government pulls current EFT data from SAM each time it pays.
- Read with FAR 52.232-25 (Prompt Payment), which sets when payment is due once routing is in order.
Key Provisions
| Provision | What It Means |
|---|---|
| EFT is mandatory | Payments are made by electronic funds transfer; the contractor is paid to a bank account, not by check, in the ordinary case. |
| Banking data comes from SAM | The EFT information used to pay you is the banking data in your SAM registration — not separately submitted with each invoice. |
| Contractor keeps it current | It is the contractor's responsibility to maintain accurate, current EFT and SAM information; stale data can stop payment. |
| Bad data delays payment | Missing, expired, or incorrect SAM EFT information can suspend or delay payment until corrected — a SAM problem becomes a cash-flow problem. |
What It Means for an SDVOSB
This clause is the reason keeping SAM current is not just an eligibility chore but a cash-flow safeguard. Your payments route to whatever bank account SAM has on file, so an expired registration or a stale account number can stall payment even when your invoice is perfect under the Prompt Payment clause. Because SAM is also where your size and SDVOSB representations live, treat your annual SAM renewal as protecting both your set-aside eligibility and your ability to get paid.
Common Pitfalls
- Letting SAM registration lapse — an expired SAM can both jeopardize eligibility and suspend payment.
- Changing banks without updating SAM EFT data, so payments route to a closed or wrong account.
- Assuming a perfect invoice guarantees payment when bad SAM banking data can still hold it up.
Frequently Asked
Why does my SAM registration affect whether I get paid?
Because FAR 52.232-33 requires the government to pay by electronic funds transfer using the banking information in your SAM registration. The government pulls your EFT data from SAM rather than from each invoice, so if your SAM record is expired or your bank account information is wrong, payment can be delayed or suspended until you fix it — even if your invoice is otherwise proper under the Prompt Payment clause.
What should I do in SAM before invoicing to avoid payment delays?
Confirm your SAM registration is active (not expired), and that the EFT banking information — routing and account numbers — is current and matches an open account. If you have changed banks, update SAM before you invoice. Because SAM also carries your size and SDVOSB representations, keeping it current protects both your set-aside eligibility and your ability to be paid by EFT under FAR 52.232-33.
Primary Sources
- FAR 52.232-33 — Payment by EFT—System for Award Management
- FAR 32.1110 — Solicitation provisions and contract clauses (EFT)
Plain-English reference, not legal advice. Which clauses apply, and in which version, is set by the specific solicitation, and the FAR is periodically amended — always read the actual clause text in your solicitation and confirm its application with your contracting officer before relying on this.
Change log (1)
- LaunchedPublished the federal contract clauses reference covering the standard FAR Part 52 clauses an SDVOSB encounters in a set-aside contract — the SDVOSB set-aside clause (52.219-27), limitations on subcontracting (52.219-14), utilization of small business concerns (52.219-8), the reps-and-certs provisions (52.204-8 / 52.212-3), the commercial terms clauses (52.212-4 / 52.212-5), Changes (52.243-1), Termination for Convenience and Default (52.249-2 / 52.249-8), Prompt Payment and EFT payment (52.232-25 / 52.232-33), Service Contract Labor Standards (52.222-41), and basic cybersecurity safeguarding (52.204-21) — each with a key-provisions table, common pitfalls, an SDVOSB-specific angle, FAQPage, Legislation, Dataset, and BreadcrumbList structured data, primary-source FAR citations, and cross-links into the glossary, forms reference, contract types, regulation explainers, how-to guides, FAQ, and the limitations-on-subcontracting and price-to-win calculators.