FAR 52.225-9—Buy American-Construction Materials.
Plain-English Summary
FAR 52.225-9, Buy American-Construction Materials, is the core domestic-preference clause for construction contracts. It defines the key terms used to decide whether a construction material is domestic, including commercially available off-the-shelf (COTS) item, construction material, cost of components, critical component, critical item, and domestic construction material. It also explains how to treat materials purchased directly by the Government, how to evaluate preassembled items and emergency life safety systems, and how to calculate domestic content for both non-iron/steel materials and materials that consist wholly or predominantly of iron or steel. The clause is important because it determines whether the contractor may use foreign construction materials, whether an exception or nonavailability determination is needed, and how compliance is measured in practice. It also reflects the evolving domestic content thresholds, including the phased increase for non-iron/steel construction materials delivered in calendar years 2024 through 2029 and beyond. In day-to-day contracting, this clause drives sourcing decisions, subcontractor flowdown, material tracking, and documentation of component costs and origin. It is a compliance-heavy clause that can affect pricing, schedule, substitutions, and acceptance of installed materials.
Key Rules
Use domestic materials
The contractor must furnish only domestic construction materials unless an exception applies. The clause is the construction-specific Buy American rule and is intended to keep federally funded construction work supplied with U.S.-made or U.S.-sourced materials whenever required by the contract.
Know what counts as construction material
Construction material means an article, material, or supply brought to the site by the contractor or a subcontractor for incorporation into the building or work, including items brought preassembled. Materials purchased directly by the Government are supplies, not construction material, so they are not evaluated under this clause as contractor-furnished construction material.
Apply special treatment for COTS items
A COTS item is a commercial product sold in substantial quantities in the commercial marketplace and offered to the Government without modification in the same form as sold commercially. A construction material that is a COTS item can qualify as domestic under the clause even if it does not meet the component-cost test for manufactured construction materials.
Calculate component cost correctly
For purchased components, cost includes acquisition cost, transportation to the place of incorporation, and any applicable duty. For components manufactured by the contractor, cost includes manufacturing costs, transportation, and allocable overhead, but excludes profit; it does not include costs associated with manufacturing the final construction material itself.
Use the domestic content test for non-iron/steel materials
For construction materials that do not consist wholly or predominantly of iron or steel, a manufactured item is domestic if the cost of U.S.-mined, produced, or manufactured components exceeds the applicable percentage threshold, or if the item is a COTS item. The threshold is 60 percent generally, 65 percent for items delivered in calendar years 2024 through 2028, and 75 percent for items delivered starting in calendar year 2029.
Use the iron-and-steel test for steel-heavy materials
For construction materials that consist wholly or predominantly of iron or steel, the item is domestic if it is manufactured in the United States and the cost of foreign iron and steel is less than 5 percent of the cost of all components used in the material. The foreign iron and steel cost includes mill products, castings, forgings, and a good-faith estimate of other foreign iron or steel used in manufacture.
Treat unknown and nonavailable components carefully
Components of unknown origin are treated as foreign, while foreign components of the same class or kind for which a nonavailability determination has been made are treated as domestic. This means origin documentation and any applicable nonavailability determinations are critical to compliance.
Recognize critical components and items
Critical components and critical items are listed at FAR 25.105 and are identified as important to U.S. supply chain resiliency. These designations can affect domestic preference analysis and should be checked whenever the contract involves listed items.
Responsibilities
Contracting Officer
Insert the clause when prescribed, determine whether any exceptions or nonavailability determinations apply, and ensure the solicitation and contract clearly identify the domestic preference requirements. The contracting officer must also evaluate compliance issues, review proposed substitutions or exceptions, and enforce the clause through contract administration.
Contractor
Source and furnish domestic construction materials unless an approved exception applies, verify the origin and cost of components, maintain supporting documentation, and ensure subcontractors comply with the clause. The contractor must also distinguish between construction materials and Government-purchased supplies and must not substitute foreign materials without authorization.
Subcontractors
Provide compliant materials and accurate origin/cost information to the prime contractor, and flow down any applicable requirements to lower-tier suppliers as needed. Subcontractors must support the prime’s domestic-content certifications and traceability records.
Agency
Maintain and update the lists of critical components and critical items at FAR 25.105, and support policy implementation for domestic preference and supply-chain resiliency. The agency also may be involved in nonavailability or public-interest determinations where applicable.
Suppliers and Manufacturers
Provide accurate product-origin, component-cost, and manufacturing-location information so the contractor can determine whether a material qualifies as domestic. They should identify whether an item is a COTS item, whether it contains foreign iron or steel, and whether any components are of unknown origin.
Practical Implications
This clause can change sourcing decisions early in design and procurement, especially for items with mixed domestic and foreign components or complex supply chains.
Contractors need reliable documentation of component origin and cost; without it, components of unknown origin are treated as foreign, which can cause a material to fail the domestic test.
The phased increase in the domestic content threshold for non-iron/steel materials means a product that qualified in one delivery year may not qualify in a later year.
Steel-heavy products require a different analysis than other materials, and the 5 percent foreign iron/steel test is easy to misapply if teams use the wrong cost base or forget to include mill products, castings, or forgings.
Government-purchased materials are not treated as contractor-furnished construction material, so teams should not apply the clause to items the Government buys directly or assume those items satisfy the contractor’s Buy American obligations.
Official Regulatory Text
As prescribed in 25.1102 (a) , insert the following clause: Buy American-Construction Materials (Oct 2022) (a) Definitions . As used in this clause— Commercially available off-the-shelf (COTS) item — (1) Means any item of supply (including construction material) that is– (i) A commercial product (as defined in paragraph (1) of the definition of “commercial product” at Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 2.101 ); (ii) Sold in substantial quantities in the commercial marketplace; and (iii) Offered to the Government, under a contract or subcontract at any tier, without modification, in the same form in which it is sold in the commercial marketplace; and (2) Does not include bulk cargo, as defined in 46 U.S.C. 40102(4) , such as agricultural products and petroleum products. "Construction material" means an article, material, or supply brought to the construction site by the Contractor or a subcontractor for incorporation into the building or work. The term also includes an item brought to the site preassembled from articles, materials, or supplies. However, emergency life safety systems, such as emergency lighting, fire alarm, and audio evacuation systems, that are discrete systems incorporated into a public building or work and that are produced as complete systems, are evaluated as a single and distinct construction material regardless of when or how the individual parts or components of those systems are delivered to the construction site. Materials purchased directly by the Government are supplies, not construction material. Cost of components means — (1) For components purchased by the Contractor, the acquisition cost, including transportation costs to the place of incorporation into the construction material (whether or not such costs are paid to a domestic firm), and any applicable duty (whether or not a duty-free entry certificate is issued); or (2) For components manufactured by the Contractor, all costs associated with the manufacture of the component, including transportation costs as described in paragraph (1) of this definition, plus allocable overhead costs, but excluding profit. Cost of components does not include any costs associated with the manufacture of the construction material. Critical component means a component that is mined, produced, or manufactured in the United States and deemed critical to the U.S. supply chain. The list of critical components is at FAR 25.105 . Critical item means a domestic construction material or domestic end product that is deemed critical to U.S. supply chain resiliency. The list of critical items is at FAR 25.105 . Domestic construction material means— (1) For construction material that does not consist wholly or predominantly of iron or steel or a combination of both- (i) An unmanufactured construction material mined or produced in the United States; or (ii) A construction material manufactured in the United States, if– (A) The cost of its components mined, produced, or manufactured in the United States exceeds 60 percent of the cost of all its components, except that the percentage will be 65 percent for items delivered in calendar years 2024 through 2028 and 75 percent for items delivered starting in calendar year 2029. Components of foreign origin of the same class or kind for which nonavailability determinations have been made are treated as domestic. Components of unknown origin are treated as foreign; or (B) The construction material is a COTS item; or (2) For construction material that consists wholly or predominantly of iron or steel or a combination of both, a construction material manufactured in the United States if the cost of foreign iron and steel constitutes less than 5 percent of the cost of all components used in such construction material. The cost of foreign iron and steel includes but is not limited to the cost of foreign iron or steel mill products (such as bar, billet, slab, wire, plate, or sheet), castings, or forgings utilized in the manufacture of the construction material and a good faith estimate of the cost of all foreign iron or steel components excluding COTS fasteners. Iron or steel components of unknown origin are treated as foreign. If the construction material contains multiple components, the cost of all the materials used in such construction material is calculated in accordance with the definition of "cost of components". Fastener means a hardware device that mechanically joins or affixes two or more objects together. Examples of fasteners are nuts, bolts, pins, rivets, nails, clips, and screws. Foreign construction material means a construction material other than a domestic construction material. Foreign iron and steel means iron or steel products not produced in the United States. Produced in the United States means that all manufacturing processes of the iron or steel must take place in the United States, from the initial melting stage through the application of coatings, except metallurgical processes involving refinement of steel additives. The origin of the elements of the iron or steel is not relevant to the determination of whether it is domestic or foreign. Predominantly of iron or steel or a combination of both means that the cost of the iron and steel content exceeds 50 percent of the total cost of all its components. The cost of iron and steel is the cost of the iron or steel mill products (such as bar, billet, slab, wire, plate, or sheet), castings, or forgings utilized in the manufacture of the product and a good faith estimate of the cost of iron or steel components excluding COTS fasteners. Steel means an alloy that includes at least 50 percent iron, between 0.02 and 2 percent carbon, and may include other elements. "United States" means the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and outlying areas. (b) Domestic preference. (1) This clause implements 41 U.S.C. chapter 83 , Buy American, by providing a preference for domestic construction material. In accordance with 41 U.S.C. 1907 , the domestic content test of the Buy American statute is waived for construction material that is a COTS item, except that for construction material that consists wholly or predominantly of iron or steel or a combination of both, the domestic content test is applied only to the iron and steel content of the construction materials, excluding COTS fasteners. (See FAR 12.505 (a)(2)). The Contractor shall use only domestic construction material in performing this contract, except as provided in paragraphs (b)(2) and (b)(3) of this clause. (2) This requirement does not apply to information technology that is a commercial product or to the construction materials or components listed by the Government as follows: ________________________________________________[ Contracting Officer to list applicable excepted materials or indicate "none" ] (3) The Contracting Officer may add other foreign construction material to the list in paragraph (b)(2) of this clause if the Government determines that- (i) The cost of domestic construction material would be unreasonable. (A) For domestic construction material that is not a critical item or does not contain critical components . (1) The cost of a particular domestic construction material subject to the requirements of the Buy American statute is unreasonable when the cost of such material exceeds the cost of foreign material by more than 20 percent; (2) For construction material that is not a COTS item and does not consist wholly or predominantly of iron or steel or a combination of both, if the cost of a particular domestic construction material is determined to be unreasonable or there is no domestic offer received, and the low offer is for foreign construction material that is manufactured in the United States and does not exceed 55 percent domestic content, the Contracting Officer will treat the lowest offer of foreign construction material that exceeds 55 percent domestic content as a domestic offer and determine whether the cost of that offer is unreasonable by applying the evaluation factor listed in paragraph (b)(3)(i)(A) (1) of this clause. (3) The procedures in paragraph (b)(3)(i)(A) (2) of this clause will no longer apply as of January 1, 2030. (B) For domestic construction material that is a critical item or contains critical components . (1) The cost of a particular domestic construction material that is a critical item or contains critical components, subject to the requirements of the Buy American statute, is unreasonable when the cost of such material exceeds the cost of foreign material by more than 20 percent plus the additional preference factor identified for the critical item or construction material containing critical components listed at FAR 25.105 . (2) For construction material that does not consist wholly or predominantly of iron or steel or a combination of both, if the cost of a particular domestic construction material is determined to be unreasonable or there is no domestic offer received, and the low offer is for foreign construction material that does not exceed 55 percent domestic content, the Contracting Officer will treat the lowest foreign offer of construction material that is manufactured in the United States and exceeds 55 percent domestic content as a domestic offer, and determine whether the cost of that offer is unreasonable by applying the evaluation factor listed in paragraph (b)(3)(i)(B) (1) of this clause. (3) The procedures in paragraph (b)(3)(i)(B) (2) of this clause will no longer apply as of January 1, 2030. (ii) The application of the restriction of the Buy American statute to a particular construction material would be impracticable or inconsistent with the public interest; or (iii) The construction material is not mined, produced, or manufactured in the United States in sufficient and reasonably available commercial quantities of a satisfactory quality. (c) Request for determination of inapplicability of the Buy American statute. (1) (i) Any Contractor request to use foreign construction material in accordance with paragraph (b)(3) of this clause shall include adequate information for Government evaluation of the request, including- (A) A description of the foreign and domestic construction materials; (B) Unit of measure; (C) Quantity; (D) Price; (E) Time of delivery or availability; (F) Location of the construction project; (G) Name and address of the proposed supplier; and (H) A detailed justification of the reason for use of foreign construction materials cited in accordance with paragraph (b)(3) of this clause. (ii) A request based on unreasonable cost shall include a reasonable survey of the market and a completed price comparison table in the format in paragraph (d) of this clause. (iii) The price of construction material shall include all delivery costs to the construction site and any applicable duty (whether or not a duty-free certificate may be issued). (iv) Any Contractor request for a determination submitted after contract award shall explain why the Contractor could not reasonably foresee the need for such determination and could not have requested the determination before contract award. If the Contractor does not submit a satisfactory explanation, the Contracting Officer need not make a determination. (2) If the Government determines after contract award that an exception to the Buy American statute applies and the Contracting Officer and the Contractor negotiate adequate consideration, the Contracting Officer will modify the contract to allow use of the foreign construction material. However, when the basis for the exception is the unreasonable price of a domestic construction material, adequate consideration is not less than the differential established in paragraph (b)(3)(i) of this clause. (3) Unless the Government determines that an exception to the Buy American statute applies, use of foreign construction material is noncompliant with the Buy American statute. (d) Data . To permit evaluation of requests under paragraph (c) of this clause based on unreasonable cost, the Contractor shall include the following information and any applicable supporting data based on the survey of suppliers: Foreign and Domestic Construction Materials Price Comparison Construction Material Description Unit of Measure Quantity Price (dollars)* Item1: Foreign construction material _______ _______ _______ Domestic construction material _______ _______ _______ Item2: Foreign construction material _______ _______ _______ Domestic construction material _______ _______ _______ [* Include all delivery costs to the construction site and any applicable duty (whether or not a duty-free entry certificate is issued) ]. [ List name, address, telephone number, and contact for suppliers surveyed. Attach copy of response; if oral, attach summary. ] [ Include other applicable supporting information. ] (End of clause) Alternate I (Oct 2022) . As prescribed in 25.1102 (a)(3) substitute the following sentence for the first sentence in paragraph (1)(ii)(A) of the definition of “domestic construction material” in paragraph (a): (A) The cost of its components mined, produced, or manufactured in the United States exceeds __ percent of the cost of all its components. [ Contracting officer to insert the percentage. ]