Getting Started: Contract with the City of New York

A. Establish Your Organization

Complete the following actions:

1. Apply for an Employer Identification Number (EIN) or Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
2. Register your organization with the New York State Department of State.
3. Nonprofits only: Register with the New York State Charities Bureau.
   For information on how to start a nonprofit, visit New York Council of Nonprofits Inc.

Foreign vendors must follow a different process. For details, contact the MOCS Service Desk.

Once you have established your organization, check out these resources:

• Start a Business
• Step-by-Step List of Requirements
• Operate and Grow
• Business Preparedness: Self-Assessment Tool and Digital Library

B. Create a PIP Account

A Payee Information Portal (PIP) vendor account is required to receive payments from the City of New York. In PIP, vendors can:

• Register for Electronic Funds Transfers/Direct Deposit
• View payments
• View financial transactions

Vendors should create a PIP account prior to setting up a PASSPort account.

Visit the PIP website for new vendor guidance and assistance.

C. Register a NYC.ID

A NYC.ID is a secure sign-in that provides access to online services at multiple NYC government agency websites, including PASSPort. Do not confuse NYC.ID with IDNYC.

To register a NYC.ID, check pages 1-5 of Guide: Requesting a Vendor PASSPort Account or watch this tutorial video (4 minutes).

If you are using HHS Accelerator, the same NYC.ID can be used to log in to PASSPort. Skip to page 6 of the Requesting a Vendor PASSPort Account guide as you already have an NYC.ID.

D. Request a Vendor PASSPort Account

Creating a PASSPort vendor account allows you to:

• Complete required vendor disclosures to do business with the City
• Search for and respond to contracting opportunities
• Sign a contract upon contract award
• Submit invoices
• View performance evaluations
• And more!

If your organization does not have a PASSPort account, you can submit a vendor account request on behalf of your organization. Use the same email address when registering the NYC.ID to submit a PASSPort account request.

For instructions on how to request a vendor PASSPort account, see pages 6-8 of Guide: Requesting a Vendor PASSPort Account or watch this tutorial video (4 minutes).

Once you receive an email from MOCS indicating approval of your account, you can log in to PASSPort using your NYC.ID credentials to access your organization's PASSPort account.

Before requesting a PASSPort account, please be aware that the vendor contact submitting the account request on behalf of the organization automatically becomes a Vendor Admin with full PASSPort account administration privileges, including updating business information and adding additional system users to the account. The Vendor Admin receives all PASSPort email notifications at the email address that was used when submitting the PASSPort account request.

E. Complete the Health and Human Services (HHS) Prequalification Application in PASSPort

Organizations providing Health and Human Services must complete a Health and Human Service Prequalification Application (HHS PQL Application) in PASSPort.

An approved HHS Prequalification is required to be eligible to respond to HHS solicitations (RFx) in PASSPort.

For instructions, watch Video: Submitting the HHS PQL Application (58 minutes). For additional details, see Guide: HHS Accelerator Prequalification.

HHS Prequalification is also a component of City Council Discretionary Funding Award Clearance. See also Video: Nonprofits Submitting Charities Filings in PASSPort (48 minutes).

F. Complete the PASSPort Vendor Enrollment

For City Agencies to be able to initiate any contracting action with a vendor in PASSPort, vendors need to complete their enrollment package in PASSPort.

Completing the enrollment package involves logging into PASSPort, completing questionnaires and disclosures relating to the organization, and submitting documentation, including:

• Business information
• Vendor questionnaires
• Principal questionnaires
• Parent/controlling entities identifications (if applicable)
• Certificate of Incorporation (or equivalent)
• An authorized representative's signature

The Vendor Profile status will update to Filed status upon successful completion of vendor enrollment in PASSPort, and PASSPort will send an email confirmation.

For instructions, watch Video: Completing the Vendor Enrollment Package (1 hour 3 minutes) or see Guide: Completing the PASSPort Vendor Enrollment.

Your organization's Filed status is valid for 3 years and if your organization is awarded a contract, you will be prompted to re-validate your disclosures in PASSPort. Once in Filed status, should your organization's disclosures need to be updated, see Guide: Submit a Change Request.

G. Nonprofits only: Apply for City Council Discretionary Funding

Each year, the New York City Council awards discretionary funds to nonprofit organizations to meet local needs.

Nonprofit organizations that wish to receive discretionary funding must submit a City Council Discretionary Funding Application. The Application is made available every year on the City Council's website, starting in early January and is typically available for a six-week period. Discretionary Award Process provides an overview of the process and additional resources.

To learn more about award clearance, watch Video: Award Clearance for NYC Council Discretionary Funding (22 minutes) or see Guide: Understanding New York City Council Discretionary Funding.

H. Nonprofits only: Complete Capacity Building Training

While the Capacity Building Training has been designed for nonprofit organizations receiving discretionary funding, it is a great resource for all types of organizations in NYC! We encourage all NYC vendors to benefit and complete the free of charge Capacity Building Training.

Nonprofit awardees that receive $750,000 or more in cumulative discretionary funding per fiscal year are exempt from completing City Council's Capacity Building Training.

Nonprofit awardees are required to complete City Council's Capacity Building Training and obtain certification if they receive less than $750,000 in cumulative discretionary funding per fiscal year.

For details, visit Capacity Building Training.

I. Get Certified with the City

Certifying with the City increases access to contracting opportunities. The City is committed to awarding $25 billion in City contracts to M/WBEs by the end of Fiscal Year 2025.

More than 11,000 businesses currently benefit from New York City Certification. New York City's business certification programs include:

• The Minority/Women-Owned Enterprise (M/WBE) Program
• The Emerging Business Enterprise (EBE) Program
• The Locally-based Business Enterprise (LBE) Program
• Learn more at NYC Business

Take advantage, Get Certified!

A. Enroll in Commodities

Enrolling in commodities (commodity codes) in PASSPort is a way for your organization to show the City of New York what goods and/or services it can provide.

City agencies can use a vendor's disclosed commodity codes when procuring goods and services – so enroll only in commodities reflect your organization's current capacity to deliver. Commodities enrollment can be updated in your PASSPort vendor profile at any time.

Show the City what your organization can do – enroll in commodities! For instructions, watch Video: Enroll in Commodities in PASSPort (42 minutes) and see the NYC Commodity Classification Directory.

Attention NYC Certified Businesses Vendors: In addition to your commodity code enrollment in PASSPort, keep your NYC Online Directory of Certified Businesses vendor profile current by reaching out to SBS.

B. Disclose NYC Business Certifications

Once certified with the City, vendors may self-disclose approved business certifications (Minority/Women-Owned Enterprise, Emerging Business Enterprise, or Locally-based Business Enterprise) in PASSPort to make them visible to City agencies.

For instructions, see page 34 of Guide: Vendor Account Management.

C. Have an Approved HHS PQL Application

The Health and Human Service (HHS) Prequalification (PQL) Application is collects information to verify an organization's ability to establish or maintain a business relationship with the City. An approved HHS PQL Application is required to be able to eligible to respond to HHS solicitations (RFx) in PASSPort. For more information and instructions, see section E in Get Ready To Do Business.

For Nonprofits Receiving a City Council Discretionary Award

If your organization has been awarded City Council Discretionary funding – congratulations!

The contract registration process for City Council Discretionary Awards is managed in PASSPort. PASSPort will send your organization's Vendor Admins a task notification email when it is time to start the contract document submission process.

Exception: Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA) awards are not processed through PASSPort; DCLA will contact their cleared awardees.

After the City Council makes an award designation, the Mayor's Office of Contract Services confirms the procedural requirements to clear an award for registration by the contracting City agency.

For instructions, visit the Discretionary Award Tracker and watch the Video: Award Clearance for NYC Discretionary Funding (22 minutes). See Guide: Understanding New York City Council Discretionary Funding.

We recommend reviewing the Award Milestones Tracker listed in the Overview tab of your pending contract in PASSPort. It allows both vendors and City agencies to view the status of a contract as it progresses from Award Creation to Contract Registration.

For Vendors Receiving a Contract Award

If your organization has been awarded a contract with the City of New York – congratulations!

Before you can begin your work and submit invoices, your contract must be registered.

For instructions, see Guide: Contract Registration for Vendors and watch Video: Completing Contract Award Tasks (57 minutes). (En Espanol: Video: Completar Tareas de Adjudicación de Contratos, 57 minutos).

We recommend reviewing the Award Milestones Tracker listed in the Overview tab of your pending contract in PASSPort. It allows both vendors and City agencies to view the status of a contract as it progresses from Award Creation to Contract Registration.

Once your contract is registered, you can start your work and begin invoicing.

• For contracts managed in PASSPort, invoicing takes place in PASSPort.
• For Health and Human Services contracts, PASSPort does not yet manage financials for all contracts. The funding City agency decides whether invoicing occurs in PASSPort. Contact your agency contract manager to determine whether your contract's financials will be managed in PASSPort.

Visit PASSPort Financials for learning resources, including guides, live webinar training options, and FAQ.

Requirements Contract has vendor invoicing guides to assist with your Requirements Contract.

To get paid and/or get reimbursed for goods delivered and services provided, a vendor must have a PIP vendor account. Direct deposit and other payment arrangements are set up and updated in PIP. See Guides listed on the PIP website.