# Presentation: 075440

## Update on Electronic Grant Submission and Process for Foreign Investigators

- Mark Swieter, PhD
- Chief
- Training and Special Projects Review Branch
- Office of Extramural Affairs
- NIDA

## Grant Application Submissions

**Grant Application Submissions**

**PHS 398**

**SF 424**

**Notes:**
The goal is to give some insight on what happens between putting an application in a FedEx drop box and receipt of a summary statement many months later

What happens, who is involved, and things you can do.

## Why transition?  It’s the law...

- Public Law (PL) 106-107
- Federal Financial Assistance Management Improvement Act of 1999
- Improve the effectiveness and performance of Federal financial assistance programs
- Simplify Federal financial assistance** application **and reporting requirements
- Improve the delivery of services to the public
- President’s Management Agenda (2002)
- “Agencies to allow applicants for Federal Grants to apply for, and ultimately manage, grant funds online through a common web site, simplifying grants management and eliminating redundancies . . .”

## Why use Grants.gov?                     

- A cross-agency initiative involving
- 900 grant programs
- 26 grant-making agencies
- Over $350 billion in annual awards** **
- The Federal government’s single, online portal for any person, business, or State, Local and Tribal government to electronically:
_**Find**_** Grant Opportunities**
_**Apply**_** for Grants**

## Mechanisms/Activity Codes

- Research Grants
- R01	Research Project Grant
- R03	Small Research Grant
- R21	Exploratory/Developmental Grant
- P01	Program Project Grant
- P50	Specialized Center Grant
- Career Development Awards
- K01	Mentored Research Scientist Career Development Award
- K02	Independent Scientist Award
- K23	Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award
- K24	Mid-Career Investigator Award in Patient-Oriented Research
- Individual Fellowships
- F31	Predoctoral Individual RLK National Research Service Award
- F32	Postdoctoral Individual RLK National Research Service Award

## Slide 6

## Basic grant application concept # 1

- To apply for a grant from the NIH, the application must be sent in response to a Funding Opportunity Announcement.

## Funding Opportunity Announcements

- Program Announcement (PA)
- Program Announcement with money set-aside to fund applications (PAS)
- Request for Applications (RFA)

## Find FOA

**Select Funding Opportunities in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts.**

_**http://grants.nih.gov/grants/oer.htm**_

## Find FOA

**Enter search criteria**
**or**
**Select *****Advanced Search***

**Notes:**
You will automatically see the Basic Search screen with an option for Advanced Search.

You can enter your search criteria here, or select the Advanced Search option.

Click on the Advanced Search link.

## Find FOA

**The Advanced Search feature provides a lot of options to narrow your search.**
**Enter search criteria.**

**Notes:**
All applications to NIH must be in response to an FOA.

The Advanced Search option provides the most flexibility in searching for FOAs.  You can enter keywords, title text, search by Activity Code/Mechanism, or retrieve a list of “Parent” announcements.  

Parent announcements are for investigator-initiated (previously unsolicited) applications.  NIH will include the word “Parent” in all FOAs to be used for unsolicited, investigator-initiated applications.  There is also a search criteria on the page that will provide a list of ALL the Parent FOAs. 

Find R01 Parent announcement by clicking “Yes” in the Parent Announcement search criteria and clicking “Search” in the top right corner of the Advanced Search screen.

## Find FOA

**Select the FOA number to open the announcement.**

**Identify an FOA of interest and download the application package.**

**Notes:**
You’ll see that based on your search, “Parent” is included in the title.  Dates and Activity Codes have also been summarized for easy reference in the Search Results.  

Click on the Announcement Number to open the announcement.

Within the announcement, pay special attention to the Key Dates section.  Once posted an application package can be downloaded and started, but it cannot be submitted to Grants.gov until after the Opening Date. This is especially important for newly transitioned grant programs where the FOAs are typically posted at least 8 weeks in advance of the receipt date, but the Open date is 4 weeks in advance of the receipt date.

Any special application requirements that are unique to a particular FOA are found in Section IV. Application and Submission Information under Item 6 Other Submission Requirements.  The FOA instructions trump application guide instructions.  Be sure to read the full text of the announcement for details.

## Find FOA

**The FOA will indicate if an application is to be submitted electronically (SF 424) or on paper (PHS 398).  Link to apply electronically on face page of FOA is a big hint.**

**Notes:**

Click on the “Apply for Grants Electronically” button within the FOA.  You will automatically be redirected to the Grants.gov site and taken directly to the application package that is for the specific FOA you selected.

## Get 398 forms and instructions

_**http://grants.nih.gov/grants/oer.htm**_

## Basic grant application concept # 2

- The PI is not the applicant.  The PI’s institution/organization is the applicant.

## Basic grant application concept # 3

- Both the PI and the PI’s institution/organization must be registered with the NIH eRA Commons in order to successfully submit a grant application (regardless whether it is a paper 398 or electronic 424)

## eRA Commons

**Link to apply for an eRA Commons account**

- (_https://commons.era.nih.gov_)

## Registration in eRA Commons

- One time only process
- Register institutional Signing Official (SO) who has authority to sign on behalf of the institution
- Registration may be completed simultaneously with the Grants.gov registration (as soon as the DUNS # is obtained)
- Allow 2 – 4 weeks to complete
- Register and create separate accounts for individual Project Director/Principal Investigators
- Allow 4 - 5 business days to complete

**Notes:**
For registration in the Commons:
Register your institution – this is a one-time registration.
Determine who will be the Signing Official (SO) responsible for signing and submitting applications.  This role is equivalent to the AOR in Grants.gov, but does not have to be the same person.  The SO will create user accounts, register the institution and update profiles. The SO should create a separate account for the PD/PI.
Register the SO in Commons and then the SO can establish PI accounts and/or affiliate the PI with the organization.
As soon as you have your DUNS # for Grants.gov registration, you can go ahead and begin the registration process with Commons.
START EARLY – registration with Commons can take 2 – 4 weeks.  You’ll want to be sure to have plenty of time to complete the process prior to your application submission deadline.

Good Faith Effort – If you start your registration in eRA Commons a minimum of 2 weeks prior to the receipt date, NIH will consider this a “Good Faith Effort” and you will not be penalized if your registration is not yet complete.  

## Electronic Submission to NIH Through Grants.gov

**Prepare to Apply**

**Find Opportunity and Download Application Package**

**Submit Application to Grants.gov ****(AOR submits)**

**Prepare Application**

**Check**** ****Submission**** ****Status**** ****in Commons**

**Check Assembled Application**

**Submission Complete**

**Notes:**
In today’s session we will touch on each of these steps in the electronic submission process.

We will review registration requirements for both Grants.gov and eRA Commons.

We will find an opportunity and download the application form set. We’ll briefly look at the layout of forms pointing out some common gotcha’s. We’ll then work with a completed sample application and submit it to Grants.gov’s test facility.

We’ll take a short break and then the eRA team will walk you through checking for errors and warnings and viewing an assembled application image.  We’ll also go through a review of resources to assist you with the application process.

If we have time at the end of the session, we will quickly cover some additional Commons functionality.

Review contents of packet. 

## Prepare to Apply

**Registration – Grants.gov**
- Applicant Organization only (one time)
- Register the Authorized Organization Reps (AORs) who can officially submit on behalf of your organization
- There are several steps and entities in the process.  Registration can take 2 – 4 weeks; up to 8 weeks for newly established businesses
- PIs **do not** register with Grants.gov

**Notes:**
The first step in the process is for the organization to get registered with Grants.gov and with the eRA Commons.

In order to register with Grants.gov:
The applicant organization will first need to obtain an Employee Identification Number (EIN) from the Internal Revenue Service.
Contact Dun & Bradstreet to get a DUNS (Data Universal Numbering System) number.
Register with the Central Contractor Registry (CCR) – identifying the eBusiness Point of Contact (POC) who is responsible for managing grant activities for the organization.  
You will designate through the Grants.gov Credential Provider your Authorized Organizational Reps (AORs) who will have the authority to sign and submit grant applications on behalf of the organization.

This process can take several weeks to complete so START EARLY to ensure that all steps are completed prior to your submission date.  

## Prepare to Apply - Obtain Software

- PureEdge software is required for downloading application materials
- The software may be downloaded free from Grants.gov: _[http://](http://www.grants.gov/resources/download_software.jsp)__[www.grants.gov/resources/download_software.jsp](http://www.grants.gov/resources/download_software.jsp)_
- Options for Mac users outlined at: _[http://](http://era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/files/mac_options.htm)__[era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/files/mac_options.htm](http://era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/files/mac_options.htm)_
- Free Citrix service, PC Emulation, PureEdge viewer
- A few of the application form pages are PureEdge forms; most of the application will be submitted as PDF documents
- PDF Conversion Programs – non-PureEdge application attachments *must* be converted to PDF documents.
- List of programs: _[http://www.grants.gov/resources/download_software.jsp#pdf_conversion_programs](http://www.grants.gov/resources/download_software.jsp#pdf_conversion_programs)_

**Notes:**
     The required software has already been downloaded to the computers that you are using today; but you’ll need to do this at your institution in order to submit applications electronically.

 PureEdge – is required to view the online forms.  It can be downloaded for free from the Grants.gov site.  Unfortunately, the PureEdge software is not currently Mac compatible, but a PureEdge viewer for Macs is expected to be released soon.  For now, if you’re using a Mac, you can download a free Citrix server to remotely launch a Windows session and submit your application.  This is also available on the Grants.gov website on the Resources page, under “Download Software.”
 PDF Conversion Software – NIH requires that all application attachments be submitted as PDFs.  They may be created using any word processing program, however, they must be converted to a PDF prior to attaching to your application.  Exception: Attachments generated from the PureEdge forms (i.e. R&R SubAward Budget attachment form) should NOT be converted to PDF.
The Electronic Submission website has tips on creating PDF files that will be accepted by the eRA Commons system (e.g., no 0 byte attachments, no special characters in file names, no editable fields, no security features).

## Electronic Submission to NIH Through Grants.gov

**Prepare to Apply**

**Find Opportunity and Download Application Package**

**Submit Application to Grants.gov ****(AOR submits)**

**Prepare Application**

**Check**** ****Submission**** ****Status**** ****in Commons**

**Check Assembled Application**

**Submission Complete**

**Notes:**
In today’s session we will touch on each of these steps in the electronic submission process.

We will review registration requirements for both Grants.gov and eRA Commons.

We will find an opportunity and download the application form set. We’ll briefly look at the layout of forms pointing out some common gotcha’s. We’ll then work with a completed sample application and submit it to Grants.gov’s test facility.

We’ll take a short break and then the eRA team will walk you through checking for errors and warnings and viewing an assembled application image.  We’ll also go through a review of resources to assist you with the application process.

If we have time at the end of the session, we will quickly cover some additional Commons functionality.

Review contents of packet. 

## Find FOA

**Button added to the NIH Guide announcements allows access to the Grants.gov application package directly from the NIH Guide.**

**Notes:**

Click on the “Apply for Grants Electronically” button within the FOA.  You will automatically be redirected to the Grants.gov site and taken directly to the application package that is for the specific FOA you selected.

## Download Application Package

**Download FOA instructions and application package from Grants.gov **

**Notes:**
You are now on the Grants.gov site. 

NIH is populating the Competition ID field with the version of the application package. Currently, you may see nothing in the field (Version 1), “Version 2”, or “Version 2A”. Version 2 and 2A use the same application guide and differ only in the Sr./Key Person Profile form. Version 2A uses the Sr./Key Person (Expanded) form.

 As application packages are updated, the old packages are expired and are no longer accepted by Grants.gov.  It is critical that you pull the latest application package (forms and application guide) prior to filling out an application, especially when applying to opportunities with multiple receipt dates.

 To ensure you are using the application guide appropriate for the opportunity, download the application guide AND the application package at the same time.

Click “download” to get to the page with  the links to Download the Application Instructions and the Application Package.

## Download the application instructions and package from this location.

**Download the application instructions and package from this location.**

**Register to receive notification of changes.**

**Notes:**

 You have the option to sign up for notification of changes to the application package!  It is highly recommended that you sign up so you are always aware of changes to the package.  These changes could result in critical changes in submission requirements.

 When completing your application, you will download both the Application Instructions and the Application Package.  Be sure to save them to your computer’s hard drive, shared drive or other external location so that you can work on them.  
 The application guide includes both standard Grants.gov and agency-specific instructions. The NIH instructions are easily identified by the HHS bird logo.

 For purposes of this lab, we will only open the Application Package – click on the Download Application Package link to take a look at a Blank Application.

## Electronic Submission to NIH Through Grants.gov

**Prepare to Apply**

**Find Opportunity and Download Application Package**

**Submit Application to Grants.gov ****(AOR submits)**

**Prepare Application**

**Check**** ****Submission**** ****Status**** ****in Commons**

**Check Assembled Application**

**Submission Complete**

**Notes:**
In today’s session we will touch on each of these steps in the electronic submission process.

We will review registration requirements for both Grants.gov and eRA Commons.

We will find an opportunity and download the application form set. We’ll briefly look at the layout of forms pointing out some common gotcha’s. We’ll then work with a completed sample application and submit it to Grants.gov’s test facility.

We’ll take a short break and then the eRA team will walk you through checking for errors and warnings and viewing an assembled application image.  We’ll also go through a review of resources to assist you with the application process.

If we have time at the end of the session, we will quickly cover some additional Commons functionality.

Review contents of packet. 

## AOR receives emails
Rejection Notice – app is not accepted because of Grants.gov errors (*corrected application will need to be resubmitted)
Successful submissions must be received by Grants.gov by the application receipt date on the FOA or the application will be considered to be late
Grantor Agency Retrieval Receipt – app has been retrieved by the agency
Agency Tracking Number – app has been assigned a tracking number by the grantor agency (only for error-free applications that result in an image)

- Rejection Notice – app is not accepted because of Grants.gov errors (*corrected application will need to be resubmitted)
- Successful submissions must be received by Grants.gov by the application receipt date on the FOA or the application will be considered to be late
- Grantor Agency Retrieval Receipt – app has been retrieved by the agency
- Agency Tracking Number – app has been assigned a tracking number by the grantor agency (only for error-free applications that result in an image)

- Email Notifications – Grants.gov

## Electronic Submission to NIH Through Grants.gov

**Prepare to Apply**

**Find Opportunity and Download Application Package**

**Submit Application to Grants.gov ****(AOR submits)**

**Prepare Application**

**Check**** ****Submission**** ****Status**** ****in Commons**

**Check Assembled Application**

**Submission Complete**

**Notes:**
In today’s session we will touch on each of these steps in the electronic submission process.

We will review registration requirements for both Grants.gov and eRA Commons.

We will find an opportunity and download the application form set. We’ll briefly look at the layout of forms pointing out some common gotcha’s. We’ll then work with a completed sample application and submit it to Grants.gov’s test facility.

We’ll take a short break and then the eRA team will walk you through checking for errors and warnings and viewing an assembled application image.  We’ll also go through a review of resources to assist you with the application process.

If we have time at the end of the session, we will quickly cover some additional Commons functionality.

Review contents of packet. 

## Errors stop the submission process and must be addressed before the application can move on to Receipt & Referral.

Warnings may be fixed at the applicant’s discretion but do not require action for the application to move on.

If the PI corrects any Warnings or Errors, they should contact the AOR/SO.  The AOR/SO must submit the entire changed/corrected application again through Grants.gov.

**Warnings** may be fixed at the applicant’s discretion but **do not require action** for the application to move on.
- If the PI corrects any Warnings or Errors, they should contact the AOR/SO.  The AOR/SO must submit the entire changed/corrected application again through Grants.gov.

- Errors & Warnings

**Notes:**
 Warnings can be fixed at the applicant’s discretion but do not require action for the application to move on to Receipt & Referral.
 Errors must be addressed before the application can move on to Referral. 
 If the PI corrects any Warnings or Errors, they should contact the AOR/SO.  The AOR/SO must submit the entire changed/corrected application again through Grants.gov.

## Correction Window

- As everyone is learning the new process, NIH will allow changed/corrected applications to be submitted to address errors/warnings in the **five business days** after the receipt date.
- All registrations must be completed prior to initial submission
- Initial application submission to Grants.gov must have been made by 5:00 p.m. local time on receipt date
- Changes must be made in response to identified errors/warnings
- Cover letter required

- Limited Time Only

**Notes:**
 NIH currently has in place a grace period for Error Correction. NIH is allowing the one-week (5 weekdays) correction window to address errors and warnings but initial submission must be made on-time and the changes must be in response to errors/warnings (not extra time to tweak the application). This policy will change once all of the mechanisms have transitioned to Electronic Submission.

As a reminder: Any application submitted after the submission date (even if within the one-week correction window that NIH is allowing as we transition) must include a cover letter. The cover letter is not saved from one application submission attempt to the next, so the cover letter submitted with the final assembled application should include ALL the information that you want to convey to NIH. 

## Electronic Submission to NIH Through Grants.gov

**Prepare to Apply**

**Find Opportunity and Download Application Package**

**Submit Application to Grants.gov ****(AOR submits)**

**Prepare Application**

**Check**** ****Submission**** ****Status**** ****in Commons**

**Check Assembled Application**

**Submission Complete**

**Notes:**
In today’s session we will touch on each of these steps in the electronic submission process.

We will review registration requirements for both Grants.gov and eRA Commons.

We will find an opportunity and download the application form set. We’ll briefly look at the layout of forms pointing out some common gotcha’s. We’ll then work with a completed sample application and submit it to Grants.gov’s test facility.

We’ll take a short break and then the eRA team will walk you through checking for errors and warnings and viewing an assembled application image.  We’ll also go through a review of resources to assist you with the application process.

If we have time at the end of the session, we will quickly cover some additional Commons functionality.

Review contents of packet. 

## Opportunities for NIH grant support of research at non-US institutions

**An NIH grant to a foreign organization **
**A foreign component as part of an NIH grant to a domestic organization **
**An administrative supplement to an existing NIH grant**

## Frequently Asked Questions

**I am an applicant who lives outside the U.S. and am unable to access the Central Contract Registration (CCR) site. What should I do?**** **
- A few countries may have trouble accessing the _[CCR](http://www.bpn.gov/ccr/scripts/index.html)_ website. The applicant should contact the CCR support directly if they find this to be the case. The CCR support center is open 24 hours and can be reached via email at _[dlis-support@dla.mil](mailto:dlis-support@dla.mil)_ or by phone at 888-227-2423 (this number may not work from abroad) or 1-269-961-5757. Please email the NIH Electronic Submission mailbox at _[NIHElectronicSubmiss@mail.nih.gov](mailto:NIHElectronicSubmiss@mail.nih.gov)_ if you encounter this issue, so NIH can track the prevalence of this occurrence.

## Frequently Asked Questions

**Are International Organizations required to hold a DUNS and register in Grants.gov?**      Yes.
**Some of the data fields in the 424 (R&R) do not really apply to foreign organizations. How will this be handled?**
- 	For some of the data, special instructions for foreign organizations are included in the Application Guide.
**What about the foreign institutions that do not have zip codes or state designation, which are required fields in the electronic application.  What do they do?**In Grants.gov the field is large enough to include postal codes. At NIH, foreign addresses are accepted.

## Potential Unique International Issues

- Limited, slow, and/or costly Internet Access--Possible 3 service providers have been identified that would provide services (not including registrations) to foreign institutions at costs ranging from $200-$400—not settled.
- Difficulty with registration--for legal reasons service providers cannot provide the required institutional and investigator registrations required to submit applications , institutions will need to provide the web-based registrations that include: DUNS number (Institution), NCage number (Institution), Central Contractor Registration number (annual  Institution), Grants.net registration (Institution), NIH Commons (PI and Institution)

## Potential Unique International Issues

- Communication, training, and outreach is primarily conducted via the Web
- Deadlines may be difficult to meet– will have same deadlines as domestic institutions, but NIH will closely monitor problems

## Where to go for Help

- General information on Electronic Submission and the SF424 (R&R):  _[http://](http://era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt)__[era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt](http://era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt)_
- Forms transition and questions on NIH’s overall plan for electronic receipt: NIH GrantsInfo.gov or
- 	_[grantsinfo@nih.gov](mailto:grantsinfo@nih.gov)_  or phone: 301-435-0714
- eRA Commons registration and post submission questions on Commons functionality
- Support Page: _[http://era.nih.gov/commons/index.cfm](http://era.nih.gov/commons/index.cfm)_
- Help Desk: _[commons@od.nih.gov](mailto:commons@od.nih.gov)_ or: 1-866-504-9552   301-402-7469
- Grants.gov registration and submission questions
- Visit:  _[http://](http://www.grants.gov/CustomerSupport)__[www.grants.gov/CustomerSupport](http://www.grants.gov/CustomerSupport)_
- Grants.gov Customer Service: _[support@grants.gov](mailto:support@grants.gov)_ or 1-800-518-4726