National Institutes of Health (NIH) Terms and Conditions Summary

As Issued by NIH

Updated: April 7, 2024

Use NIH terms where the NOA is silent. As with all federal awards, OMB’s Uniform Guidance also applies, except as modified by the sponsor-specific terms. 

Period of Performance Extensions

  • May incur pre-award costs 90 days prior to award without prior approval.
  • May extend award one time up to 12 months at no additional cost: notification of extension must be submitted prior to award expiration. 
  • Subsequent extensions, or extensions requested after award has expired, require NIH prior approval, and must be submitted in writing.

Personnel Changes

  • For PI or other Senior Key Personnel named in the NOA, prior approval required to reduce effort by 25% or more from the approved level
  • For PI or other Senior Key Personnel named in the NOA, prior approval required for absence or disengagement of 3 months or more

Restrictions on Allowable Costs

Rebudgeting Authority

  • Under expanded authorities,  NIH allows for automatic carry over of unobligated balances. Certain award instruments, grant programs, and types of recipients are routinely excluded from the authority to automatically carry over unobligated balances. This includes centers (P50, P60, P30, and others); cooperative agreements (U); Kirschstein-NRSA institutional research training grants (T).
  • Rebudgeting is usually allowable between otherwise reasonable, allocable, and allowable costs, unless it represents a change in scope or is prohibited in the notice of award

Equipment/Property

  • General purpose equipment typically not eligible for support. 
  • Title to property vests in MIT

Travel

  • Use of US Carriers required per the Fly America Act; exceptions may be made for certain airlines and routes under “Open Skies” agreements.

Subcontracting

  • Prior Approval required for any subcontracting that was not part of the proposal

Reporting

  • Research Performance Progress Report (RPPR) due annually prior to award anniversary date. 
  • A financial status report is due annually for awards that do not fall under expanded authorities (i.e., P50, P60, P30, T32 and others)
  • At the close, three reports are due 120 days after award expiration: Final Technical Report, Final Invention Statement, Final Financial Report. The PI can complete the Technical Report directly in eRA Commons.

Publications

  • Acknowledgment required:  Research reported in this [publication/press release] was supported by [name of the Institute(s), Center, or other NIH offices] of the National Institutes of Health under award number [specific NIH grant number(s) in this format: R01GM987654].
  • Disclaimer required: "The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health."
  • Copies to Sponsor: The PI is responsible for the submittal of all peer reviewed manuscripts, resultant from this award, to NIH's PubMed Central within 12 months of publication.