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2026 Federal Assistance IDs: SAM.gov Updates in 2026

Explore how 2026 SAM.gov updates—FAID adoption, eSRS decommissioning, and subaward data integration—boost transparency and simplify federal assistance research.

Gov Contract Finder
•2 min read

Overview: 2026 Federal Assistance IDs on SAM.gov

In 2026, SAM.gov continues the GREAT Act-driven transition to Federal Assistance IDs (FAIDs) and integrates subaward reporting into a single platform. Since October 2025, agencies have begun issuing alphanumeric IDs replacing the old numeric Federal Assistance Numbers, enabling richer metadata, searchability, and lifecycle transparency.
[1][2]
1
Major FAID transition introduced (Oct 2025–2026)
Source: Federal Assistance Listing’s Changes Beginning October 2025 | SAM.gov

Key changes in 2026: FAID data structure and subaward reporting

The FAID system introduces alphanumeric identifiers, with examples such as 31.A1A, and expands data fields to support deeper program transparency and lifecycle tracking, aligning with GREAT Act data standards and M-24-11 guidance.
[1]
Meanwhile, the eSRS system is being decommissioned in early 2026, with the primary subcontracting reporting service migrating to SAM.gov. The transition is designed to centralize subaward data and improve accessibility via public APIs in 2026.
[3][4]
  1. Ongoing FAID rollout across existing and new listings (Oct 2025 onward).
  2. Subaward reporting migrated to SAM.gov with public APIs (FSRS→SAM.gov).
  3. Primary subcontracting reporting release targeted for Q2 FY 2026.
  4. SAM.gov data refreshed and back up listings maintained under retention policies (10-year retention).

Pro Tip

Plan SAM.gov registration updates at least two weeks before bidding windows open in 2026 to align with FAID rollout and subaward data integration.

Case Study: Mid-Sized Nonprofit Adapts to 2026 FAID and Subaward APIs

The Challenge

In 2026, a mid-sized nonprofit integrated FAID usage into their grant tracking and leveraged SAM.gov subaward APIs to streamline reporting. The organization completed migration from FSRS to SAM.gov and used FAID-aligned listings to standardize program references across multiple grants, improving data consistency and visibility for leadership and grantors.

Outcome

Improved data consistency and reporting efficiency

Source: New timeline for decommissioning eSRS.gov | SAM.gov
Getting started in 2026: begin by exploring the Assistance Listings catalog on SAM.gov and practicing searches using alphanumeric FAIDs, then leverage alpha.sam.gov for quick access to listings and catalogs. Finally, plan for eSRS decommissioning milestones and utilize the new subaward APIs to download and analyze subaward data.
[2][16][3]

Sources & Citations

1. Federal Assistance Listing’s Changes Beginning October 2025 | SAM.gov [Link ↗](government site)
2. Alpha SAM.gov Find Assistance Listings [Link ↗](government site)
3. https://taggs.hhs.gov/SearchSite [Link ↗](government site)

Tags

#government contracting#Grants Management#Data Transparency

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