This is a common issue that many of our members bring up as causing confusion. It is crucial that any SDVOB understand the issues involved, particularly since there are entities out there capitalizing on the confusion and getting money from SDVOBs - either to pay for something that is free or paying them to issue some other 'certification'.
In the Federal contracting world, your status as an SDVOB is 'self-certifying', meaning that you check the block on your CCR registration to give yourself that status. A Contracting Officer can challenge your claim to being an SDVOB, at which point you would have to provide evidence of your VA status and ownership structure.
HOWEVER, to contract with the Veteran's Administration directly, your SDV status must first be 'verified' by the Center for Veteran's Enterprise (CVE), a component of the VA.
There is a growing trend among Contracting Officers who are not part of the VA to look for CVE verification when awarding work to SDVOBs.
IN FLORIDA, to represent yourself as a Service Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise (SDVBE) when pursuing contracts with the State, your status must be certified by the State's Office of Supplier Diversity.
Our advice is that you should complete the CVE verification and the State certification regardless of whether you intend to contract directly with the VA or with the State of Florida; it takes away any question of whether you are deserving of SDVOB status and strengthens our community in general by excluding those who are not who they say they are. Even if you don't feel that State certification would help you specifically generate business in Florida, it may improve your credibility and contracting opportunities in states that have similar programs or with Prime Contractors.
For VA/CVE verification, follow the directions here to fill out the simple form and submit it. You should receive electronic confirmation of receipt within a day or two. If you are not notified that verification is complete in about 90 days, call them directly to get to the root of the problem.
For Florida OSD certification, go here. There is much more documentation required and some businesses choose not to participate for that reason. The biggest issue often boils down to failing to submit an "occupational license" which you have to get through your individual county government. If you don't receive your status notification in about a month, call them.
The process for both of these is free, yet there are many who would require you to pay them to complete it.
