FAR 9.405-2 — Restrictions on subcontracting
Regulatory text. Not legal advice.
(a)
(a) When a contractor debarred, suspended, proposed for debarment, or voluntarily excluded, is proposed as a subcontractor for any subcontract subject to Government consent (see FAR Subpart 44.2), contracting officers shall not consent to subcontracts with such contractors unless the agency head states in writing the compelling reasons for this approval action. (See FAR 9.405 concerning declarations of ineligibility affecting subcontracting.)
(b)
(b) The Government suspends or debars contractors to protect the Government’s interests. Contractors are prohibited from entering into any subcontract in excess of 45,000, other than a subcontract for a commercially available off-the-shelf item, with a party that is debarred, suspended, proposed for debarment, or voluntarily excluded, as evidenced by the party’s having an active exclusion record in SAM (see FAR 9.404), a corporate officer or designee of the contractor is required by operation of the clause at FAR 52.209-6, Protecting the Government’s Interest when Subcontracting with Contractors Debarred, Suspended, Proposed for Debarment, or Voluntarily Excluded, to notify the contracting officer, in writing, before entering into such subcontract. For contracts for the acquisition of commercial products, the notification requirement applies only for first-tier subcontracts. For all other contracts, the notification requirement applies to subcontracts at any tier. The notice must provide the following:
(1) The name of the subcontractor;
(2) The contractor’s knowledge of the reasons for the subcontractor having an active exclusion record in SAM;
(3) The compelling reason(s) for doing business with the subcontractor notwithstanding its having an active exclusion record in SAM; and
(4) The systems and procedures the contractor has established to ensure that it is fully protecting the Government’s interests when dealing with such subcontractor in view of the specific basis for the party’s debarment, suspension, proposed debarment, or voluntary exclusion.
(c)
(c) The contractor’s compliance with the requirements of FAR 52.209-6 will be reviewed during Contractor Purchasing System Reviews (see FAR Subpart 44.3).
Citation history: [54 FR 19815, May 8, 1989, as amended at 56 FR 29127, June 25, 1991; 59 FR 67033, Dec. 28, 1994; 60 FR 33066, June 26, 1995; 60 FR 48237, Sept. 18, 1995; 68 FR 69251, Dec. 11, 2003; 69 FR 76349, Dec. 20, 2004; 71 FR 57366, Sept. 28, 2006; 75 FR 77740, Dec. 13, 2010; 76 FR 39238, July 5, 2011; 78 FR 37678, June 21, 2013; 80 FR 38296, July 2, 2015; 83 FR 48696, Sept. 26, 2018; 85 FR 27090, May 6, 2020; 86 FR 3678, Jan. 14, 2021; 86 FR 61021, Nov. 4, 2021; 90 FR 512, Jan. 3, 2025; 90 FR 41877, Aug. 27, 2025]
Source: eCFR • Pulled 2026-04-16