48 CFR · Federal Acquisition Regulation and Defense supplement

FAR and DFARS navigator

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.

Ask the FAR

Try: · · ·

Clear

2 sections with “Retainer fees”

  • FAR 31.205-33 Professional and consultant service costs.
    …cted for or otherwise agreed to. (d) In determining the allowability of costs (including retainer fees) in a particular case, no single factor or any special combination of factors is necessarily determinative. However, the contracting off…
  • FAR 31.205-38 Selling costs.
    …ion of this subsection, sellers' or agents' compensation, fees, commissions, percentages, retainer or brokerage fees, whether or not contingent upon the award of contracts, are allowable only when paid to bona fide employees or established …

FAR (chapter 1)

DFARS (chapter 2, Defense)

Source: eCFR, 48 CFR chapters 1 and 2 (GPO GovInfo bulk data) ↗. Rule changes in progress: FAR, DFARS. Terms: glossary.