If your firm cannot reach the OASIS+ qualification threshold alone (36 credits for small business set-asides, 42 for unrestricted), a Contractor Teaming Arrangement is how you get there. A joint venture lets a partner's experience count across almost the whole proposal. A proposed subcontractor counts only for projects and past performance, and its size can cost you the set-aside.
I spent eighteen years in federal acquisition as a Contracting Specialist and a Contracting Officer at GSA, IRS, DoD, DOI, HHS, FTC, and Energy, and I hold a FAC-C Level III. The teaming question is the one I get most from firms eyeing OASIS+ Phase II right now. The two routes look similar on a slide. They are not similar in the solicitation.
Why are so many firms teaming for OASIS+ Phase II?
Because the OASIS+ scorecard is a hard gate. You self-score against it, and a proposal below 36 credits (small business) or 42 credits (unrestricted) is rejected before anyone reads your narrative. Most credits come from Qualifying Projects scored on scale and complexity, and many capable small firms simply do not have enough large, complex projects on their own.
- Qualifying Projects (QPs): the largest source of credits, scored on dollar value and complexity against the domain scope.
- Federal Experience Projects: additional credit for federal prime or sub work.
- Systems, Rates, and Clearances: credit for an adequate accounting system, approved rates, and facility clearances.
- Certifications: credit for items such as ISO or CMMI.
Teaming lets you borrow credits from a partner. What you can borrow depends entirely on which structure you choose. GSA's OASIS+ program page links to the current solicitation and scorecard attachments for each domain.
What counts as a Contractor Teaming Arrangement on OASIS+?
OASIS+ uses the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Companion definition: two or more companies forming a partnership or joint venture to act as the prime, or a prime agreeing with other companies to act as its subcontractors on a specific contract. That gives you exactly two routes: a joint venture or a prime with proposed subcontractors.
The definition sits in FC 9.000 of the FAR Companion on acquisition.gov. Do not confuse it with the Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) version of the term. A MAS CTA is an arrangement between Schedule holders to meet one order's requirement. There is no new legal entity and no prime-sub relationship. Same acronym, different animal.
How do JV and proposed-subcontractor teaming compare side by side?
A joint venture can draw on either member's experience for nearly every scored section, but it requires a new legal entity with its own UEI. A proposed subcontractor arrangement keeps the award in the prime's name, but only projects and past performance can come from the sub, and every team member's size is tested.
| Proposal element | Joint venture | Prime + proposed subcontractors |
|---|---|---|
| Who is the offeror and awardee | The JV, registered in SAM.gov with its own UEI | The prime only |
| Qualifying Projects | JV or either member (mentor-protégé JVs need at least one protégé project) | Prime or proposed subcontractor |
| Federal Experience Projects | JV or either member | Prime or proposed subcontractor |
| Past Performance | JV or either member | Prime or proposed subcontractor |
| Systems, Rates, and Clearances | JV or either member | Prime only |
| Certifications | JV or either member | Prime only |
| Cost/Price submission | In the JV's name | Prime only |
| Required teaming documents | JV agreement plus the CTA qualifications template | A signed Letter of Commitment from each sub |
| Size test for set-asides | Applied to the JV under SBA JV rules | Prime and every proposed sub must qualify as small |
How does a joint venture work on an OASIS+ proposal?
The JV is a separate legal entity. It must be registered in SAM.gov with its own Unique Entity Identifier before you submit, and the proposal goes in under the JV's name. Experience from the JV or either member can support most scored sections, but cost/price must be submitted in the JV's name.
- Execute a written JV agreement that meets SBA's content requirements if you are pursuing a set-aside (13 CFR 125.8 for mentor-protégé JVs, 13 CFR 121.103(h) for size).
- Register the JV in SAM.gov and obtain its UEI. Budget weeks, not days, for SAM validation.
- For an SBA mentor-protégé JV, confirm at least one Qualifying Project comes from the protégé.
- State in the cost/price volume which member's accounting system produced the rates, then submit in the JV's name.
- Attach the JV agreement and complete the CTA qualifications template.
When I sat on the Contracting Officer side of the desk, the JV failures I saw were almost never about the concept. They were about the paperwork trailing reality. A JV agreement signed after the proposal date, or a UEI that did not match the offeror name on the cover page, turns a strong team into a responsiveness problem.
How do proposed subcontractors work on an OASIS+ proposal?
The prime submits in its own name and lists first-tier subcontractors. Only Qualifying Projects, Federal Experience Projects, and Past Performance can come from those subs. Everything in Systems, Rates, and Clearances, Cost/Price, and the General and Responsibility sections must belong to the prime. Each sub signs a Letter of Commitment.
The Letter of Commitment must include:
- Authorization: the sub's consent for the prime to use its experience and past performance.
- Commitment: a statement that the sub will support the prime on the contract.
- Limitations on Subcontracting acknowledgment (set-asides only): the prime will not pay more than 50 percent of the amount paid by the government to subcontractors that are not similarly situated entities, per 13 CFR 125.6 and FAR 52.219-14.
Put numbers on that last item. If a women-owned small business wins a $100,000 task order under the WOSB pool, no more than $50,000 can flow to subs that are not also WOSBs. A sub whose project carried your scorecard will usually expect real work share. Make sure the math still works on task orders before you sign.
What is the size-standard trap with proposed subcontractors?
Under the OASIS+ solicitation, an offer with proposed subcontractors is sized against the whole team, not just the prime. You can only receive awards where the prime and every proposed subcontractor qualify as small. One large sub brought in for its project value can knock you out of the set-aside you built the proposal for.
This is the mistake I would bet money on seeing in this on-ramp cycle. A small firm is short six credits. It finds a large business with a $40 million Qualifying Project and lists it as a proposed sub. The score clears 36. Then the size evaluation runs, and the offer no longer qualifies for the small business pool at all.
As a Contracting Specialist, I learned to read team rosters before I read narratives, because size problems end evaluations faster than weak writing. Run the size check on every proposed sub under the domain's NAICS code before you score a single one of its projects. SBA's size tables and the ostensible subcontractor rule in 13 CFR 121.103(h) are where that analysis starts.
Which teaming route should your firm choose?
Choose a joint venture when you need a partner's systems, clearances, or certifications, or when an SBA mentor-protégé relationship already exists. Choose proposed subcontractors when you only need project credits, your partner is similarly situated and small, and you want the award in your own name.
| Your situation | Better route | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Short on credits in Systems, Rates, and Clearances | Joint venture | Proposed subs cannot contribute to that section |
| Approved SBA mentor-protégé agreement in place | Joint venture | The mentor's experience counts, and the JV can still compete as small |
| Short only on Qualifying Project credits, partner is small in the NAICS | Proposed subcontractor | Faster to set up; award stays in your name |
| Only available partner is a large business | Mentor-protégé JV, or unrestricted | A large proposed sub fails the team size test for set-asides |
| No SAM-registered JV and the window closes soon | Proposed subcontractor | A new JV needs its own UEI before submission |
My opinionated take: if a JV would only be formed for this one proposal and neither firm has run one before, start with proposed subcontractors and a clean size check. A JV is a business you have to run for the life of the contract, with its own registrations, representations, and reporting. Form one because the partnership is real, not because the scorecard is short.
What should you do now?
- Self-score against the OASIS+ scorecard for your target domain and write down the exact credit gap by section.
- If the gap is in Systems, Rates, and Clearances or Certifications, only a joint venture can close it.
- Run the size check on every potential proposed subcontractor under the domain NAICS before you count its projects.
- For set-aside proposals, model the 50 percent Limitations on Subcontracting cap against realistic task orders.
- If you are going the JV route, get the JV agreement signed and the SAM.gov registration active well before the window closes.
- Collect signed Letters of Commitment early. A missing letter means the sub's projects do not count.
Across our 70+ GSA contract awards, the teams that win are the ones that pick their structure before they start writing. If you want a Contracting Officer's read on your scorecard gap and the right teaming route, talk to Blackfyre about your OASIS+ positioning.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a Contractor Teaming Arrangement on OASIS+?
OASIS+ uses the FAR Companion definition of a Contractor Teaming Arrangement (CTA): two or more companies forming a partnership or joint venture to act as the prime, or a prime agreeing with other companies to act as its subcontractors. In practice that means two routes into an OASIS+ proposal, a joint venture or a prime with proposed subcontractors.
How many credits do I need to qualify for OASIS+?
The OASIS+ scorecard sets the qualification threshold at 36 credits for small business set-aside proposals and 42 credits for unrestricted proposals. A proposal that self-scores below the threshold is rejected, and credits that fail verification can drop a proposal below it after submission.
Can a proposed subcontractor's projects count toward my OASIS+ score?
Yes, but only in limited sections. Under the OASIS+ solicitation, a proposed subcontractor can supply Qualifying Projects, Federal Experience Projects, and Past Performance. Systems, rates, clearances, cost/price, and all General and Responsibility items must be in the prime offeror's own name.
Does a proposed subcontractor affect my small business eligibility on OASIS+?
Yes. Under the OASIS+ solicitation, an offer that includes proposed subcontractors is evaluated against size for every team member, so the prime can only receive awards where the prime and each proposed subcontractor all qualify as small. One large subcontractor can remove you from the set-aside you were targeting.
Does a joint venture need its own UEI to submit an OASIS+ proposal?
Yes. The joint venture must be registered in SAM.gov with its own Unique Entity Identifier, and the proposal is submitted in the joint venture's name. The JV agreement is submitted with the proposal, and the cost/price submission must be in the JV's name even when a member's accounting system generated the rates.
What must a Subcontractor Letter of Commitment include for OASIS+?
Each proposed subcontractor signs a letter authorizing the prime to use its experience and past performance and committing to support the prime on the contract. For small business set-aside proposals, the letter must also acknowledge that the prime will not pay more than 50 percent of the amount paid by the government to subcontractors that are not similarly situated, the Limitations on Subcontracting rule in 13 CFR 125.6.
Is an OASIS+ CTA the same as a GSA Schedule CTA?
No. A GSA Multiple Award Schedule CTA is an arrangement between two or more Schedule holders to meet a specific order's requirement, with no new legal entity and no prime-sub relationship. An OASIS+ CTA follows the FAR definition and means either a joint venture or a prime with proposed subcontractors.