FAR and DFARS › FAR Part 46: Quality Assurance › Subpart 46.2
FAR 46.202-1 Contracts for commercial products and commercial services.
The codified text (eCFR, as of 2026-10-02). Under the Revolutionary FAR Overhaul ↗, agencies follow class deviations with new text for many parts while the formal rules go through the Federal Register: check the solicitation and your contract's clauses, which rule.
In plain English
For commercial products and commercial services, the Government generally relies on the contractor's own quality assurance system instead of doing its own inspection and testing before the contractor tenders items for acceptance. Government in-process inspection is only used when customary market practice for that product includes it, and then it must follow commercial practice. This matters because it shifts responsibility for inspection and testing onto the contractor.
Applies to: Acquisitions of commercial products and commercial services
What it requires
- The contractor must accomplish all inspection and testing needed to ensure commercial services conform to contract requirements before tendering them to the Government.
- Any Government in-process inspection must be conducted consistent with commercial practice.
Key terms: commercial products · commercial services · quality assurance systems · in-process inspection · tender for acceptance
Written by AI from this section's text. A guide, not legal advice: the text below rules.
The text
When acquiring commercial products (see part 12), the Government shall rely on contractors' existing quality assurance systems as a substitute for Government inspection and testing before tender for acceptance unless customary market practices for the commercial product being acquired include in-process inspection. Any in-process inspection by the Government shall be conducted in a manner consistent with commercial practice. The Government shall rely on the contractor to accomplish all inspection and testing needed to ensure that commercial services acquired conform to contract requirements before they are tendered to the Government.
← 46.202 Types of contract quality requirements. · 46.202-2 Government reliance on inspection by contractor. →
Source: eCFR, 48 CFR chapters 1 and 2 (GPO GovInfo bulk data) ↗. Plain words for the terms: glossary.