Publication Identifier Syntax for

NIST Technical Series Publications 

Information Services Office

Management Resources

April 2022
i

Abstract

This document describes the final publication identifier (PubID) syntax used to uniquely identify 

all instances of a NIST Technical Series publication.

Keywords

NIST Technical Series publications; publishing; unique identifiers.

Acknowledgments

The authors – Katelynd Bucher, Jim Foti, and Kathryn Miller – would like to thank our NIST 

colleagues who reviewed earlier drafts of this proposal and provided useful feedback. We also 

thank Ronald Tse of Ribose, Inc., for his interest in NIST publications and suggestions for 

improving NIST’s approach to developing and publishing its Technical Series publications.
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Table of Contents

1 Introduction ............................................................................................................ 1

1.1 Purpose .......................................................................................................... 1

1.2 Scope.............................................................................................................. 1

2 Publication Identifier Syntax................................................................................. 1

2.1 PubID Elements.............................................................................................. 1

2.1.1 Publisher .............................................................................................. 2

2.1.2 Series ................................................................................................... 2

2.1.3 Report Number..................................................................................... 2

2.1.4 Part....................................................................................................... 3

2.1.5 Edition .................................................................................................. 3

2.1.6 Stage.................................................................................................... 4

2.1.7 Update.................................................................................................. 4

2.1.8 Translation............................................................................................ 5

2.2 PubID Formats................................................................................................ 5

2.2.1 Human-Readable PubID ...................................................................... 5

2.2.2 Machine-Readable PubID .................................................................... 6

2.2.3 Other PubID Formats ........................................................................... 6

2.3 PubID Examples ............................................................................................. 7

Appendix A— NIST Technical Series and Abbreviations .......................................... 9

A.1 Series Abbreviations ....................................................................................... 9

A.2 Special Publications Subseries..................................................................... 10

A.3 Part Type Definitions..................................................................................... 10

A.3.1 Part..................................................................................................... 10

A.3.2 Volume ............................................................................................... 10

A.3.3 Section ............................................................................................... 11

A.3.4 Supplement ........................................................................................ 11

A.3.5 Index................................................................................................... 11

A.4 Stage Definitions........................................................................................... 11

A.4.1 Work-in-Progress Draft (WD) ............................................................. 12

A.4.2 Preliminary Draft (PRD)...................................................................... 12

A.4.3 Public Draft (PD)................................................................................. 13

A.4.4 Final Publication ................................................................................. 13
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1 Introduction

1.1 Purpose 

This document describes a publication identifier (PubID) syntax– like those used by Standards 

Developing Organizations (SDOs) – that will facilitate simple, unique, and unambiguous publication 

referencing. The syntax can accommodate a variety of parameters that currently exist in existing 

NIST Technical Series publications and includes a structure that is flexible and can meet the future 

needs of additional series and document development models.

1.2 Scope

This PubID syntax shall be applied to all new NIST Technical Series publications starting April 

2022. The PubID will be used on cover pages, filenames, and DOIs. The PubID syntax may be 

applied to NIST Technical Series publications published before April 2022 on a case-by-case basis 

as determined by the NIST Information Services Office (NIST ISO).

The two PubID formats described in Section 2.2—Human-Readable PubID and Machine-Readable 

PubID—will be used by the NIST ISO in specific contexts. Authors and other organizations may use 

variations of these identifiers, but that is outside of this document’s scope.

2 Publication Identifier Syntax 

This section identifies the NIST Technical Series publications PubID syntax, including elements, 

structure, and examples.

2.1 PubID Elements

The PubID consists of the following elements:

• Optional elements are in brackets [ ]. 

• Alternatives are separated with a vertical bar |.

• Parentheses ( ) indicate element groupings.

• Quotation marks ′′′′ and braces { } identify allowed values.

In the (Human-Readable) examples, the underlined text highlights the element being described. See 

Sec. 2.3 for examples of both Human-Readable and corresponding Machine-Readable PubIDs.
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2.1.1 Publisher

<publisher> = ′′NIST′′ | ′′NBS′′

Description: The <publisher> element is REQUIRED. It identifies the publisher of the 

document at the time it was published. 

Scope Note: Refer to the document to identify the correct publisher name. Generally 

speaking, use ′′NIST′′ for 1988-present, and ′′NBS′′ for 1901-1988.

Example: NIST TN 2067

2.1.2 Series

<series> = ′′AMS′′ | ′′BH′′ | ′′BMS′′ | ... | ′′TN′′ | ′′TTB′′

Description: The <series> element is REQUIRED. It identifies the publication’s NIST 

series.

Scope Note: See Appendix A.1 for the current list of series abbreviations.

Example: NIST SP 1500-7r2

2.1.3 Report Number

<report-num> = ( <sequence-num> | 

( <subseries-num> [<subseries-id>]′′-′′<sequence-num>) )

<sequence-num> = {0-9} ; integer

<subseries-num> = {0-9} | yyyymmdd

<subseries-id> = ′′GB′′ ; GB used for SP 1190 Guide Briefs

Description: The <report-num> element is REQUIRED. It identifies a report’s position 

within a series or subseries. The <sequence-num> is an integer. The subseries number 

(<subseries-num>) may be an integer or a date, depending on the series.

Scope Note: See Appendix A.2 for the current list of subseries and each one’s subseries 

number (<subseries-num>). Currently, the only subseries with a <subseries-id> are

the SP 1190 Guide Briefs, SP 1190GB.

Examples: 

NIST SP 1190GB-12 NIST SP 1500-1 NIST CSWP 20200204-7
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2.1.4 Part

<part> = [<part-id>] ( [<part-type>][<part-id>] )

<part-id> = {A-Z0-9} ; Uppercase letters, and numbers

<part-type> = ′′pt′′ | ′′v′′ | ′′sec′′ | ′′sup′′ | ′′indx′′

Description: The <part> element is OPTIONAL. Each occurrence of <part-id> and 

<part-type> can appear no more than once.

Scope: Sometimes a <part-id> consists only of an uppercase letter that follows 

<report-num>. Usually, a <part-type> is identified as a “Part” (′′pt′′), “Volume” 

(′′v′′), “Section” (′′sec′′), Supplement (′′sup′′), or Index (′′indx′′). In rare instances, a 

<part> may consist of two part identifiers. See A.3 for descriptions of the different 

<part-type> values.

Examples: 

NIST SP 800-137A NIST SP 800-57pt3 NIST IR 8011v3

NBS NSRDS 3sec11 NIST SP 955sup2010 NBS NSRDS 63indx

NIST IR 8183Av1

2.1.5 Edition

<edition> = <edition-type><edition-id>

<edition-type> = ′′-′′ | ′′e′′ | ′′r′′ 

<edition-id> = {1-9} | yyyy

Description: If the <edition> is present, then both <edition-type> and <editionid> are REQUIRED. The <edition-id> may consist of a whole number or a year.

Editions are published according to NIST procedure PR 1502.01.

Scope: The hyphen ′′-′′ <edition-type> may only be used for publications with 

historical precedent (e.g., NIST FIPS 201-3, NIST SP 800-73-4). Otherwise, indicate that it’s 

an “edition” (′′e′′) or “revision” (′′r′′). Typically, editions use a year value (yyyy) for 

<edition-id>. If an existing publication indicates it’s a “version”, it’s PubID should use 

the “revision” <edition-type>.

Examples: 

NIST FIPS 201-3 NIST IR 7383e2013 NIST SP 800-53Ar5
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2.1.6 Stage

<stage> = <stage-id><stage-type>

<stage-id> = “i” | “f” | {2-9} ; ′′i′′,′′f′′, and positive integers

<stage-type> = ′′wd′′ | ′′prd′′ | ′′pd′′

Description: If the publication is a Draft, the <stage> element is REQUIRED. If the 

publication is Final, then the <stage> element is OMITTED. When the <stage> element is 

present, it consists of a <stage-type> preceded by a <stage-id>.

Scope: The most commonly used <stage-type> is “public draft” (′′pd′′); most 

occurrences will be an “initial” or “first” public draft, where <stage> = ipd .

Occasionally there are pubs identified specifically as a “final public draft” where <stage>

= fpd . Other drafts subsequent to an initial draft will have a sequential number, 2pd, 

3pd...

These <stage-type> fields are used most frequently for publications from the Information 

Technology Laboratory’s Computer Security Division and Applied Cybersecurity Division. 

For explanations, see Appendix B.

Examples: 

NIST SP 1800-90 iwd NIST SP 1800-33 iprd

NIST SP 800-140Cr1 ipd NIST IR 9072 2pd NIST SP 800-37r2 fpd

2.1.7 Update

<update> = <update-type><update-id>

<update-type> = ′′upd′′

<update-id> = {1-9} ; positive integers

Description: If the publication is an update (published according to NIST procedure PR 

1502.01), then the <update> element is REQUIRED. When the <update> element is 

present, it consists of an <update-type> followed by an <update-id>. 

Scope: Currently, the only <update-type> is ′′upd′′. The first update of a publication has 

<update-id> of ′′1′′, resulting in <update> = upd1. If subsequent updates are 

published, the <update-id> increases incrementally. For historical FIPS that included a

“Change Notice”, those are now considered “updates” and simply use the ′′upd′′ <updatetype>.

Examples: NIST SP 800-53B-upd1 NIST FIPS 202-upd1 ipd
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2.1.8 Translation

<translation> = {aaa} ; ISO 639-2 three-letter language code

Description: If the publication is in a language other than English, then the 

<translation> element is REQUIRED. The publication’s language is indicated using a 

three-letter ISO 639-2 language code. If a language specifies multiple codes (e.g., French), 

use the bibliographic “(B)” code (e.g., “fre” for French).

Scope: These translation language codes will differ from the language codes used in DOIs 

before the implementation of this PubID syntax (e.g., pt  por; es  spa, etc.).

Examples: 

NIST SP 800-181r1 por NIST IR 8119 vie NIST CSWP 20180416 ara

2.2 PubID Formats

The NIST ISO will use the PubID in two formats: a Human-Readable PubID and Machine-Readable 

PubID. They comprise the same PubID structure but use different characters to separate the PubID

elements.

2.2.1 Human-Readable PubID

The NIST ISO will use the Human-Readable PubID in NIST Technical Series publications:

• on cover pages and title pages

• in reference lists

• in publication listings on NIST websites

Human-Readable PubID

<publisher> <series> <report-num>[<part>][<edition>][-<update>] [<stage>] [<translation>]

Example: NIST HB 150-1e2021-upd3 ipd spa
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2.2.2 Machine-Readable PubID

The NIST ISO will use the Machine-Readable PubID to construct:

• digital object identifiers (DOIs)

• publication filenames

2.2.3 Other PubID Formats

This specification does not preclude the use of other formats by NIST or external organizations, nor 

does it require NIST authors to use these PubIDs within specific contexts. One example format that 

has been proposed previously is a “full format,” e.g., “NIST Special Publication (SP) 800-53 

Revision 5 Update 1”, which would correspond to Machine-Readable PubID NIST.SP.800-53r5-

upd1. Such formats may be used by others but are outside the scope of this specification. 

Machine-Readable PubID

<publisher>.<series>.<report-num>[<part>][<edition>][-<update>][.<stage>][.<translation>]

Example: NIST.HB.150-1e2021-upd3.ipd.spa
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2.3 PubID Examples 

Table 1 shows examples of how this PubID could be applied to some existing publications.

Table 1: Example Implementations of the NIST Technical Series publications PubID 

<publisher> <series> <report- num> [<part>] [<edition>] [<update>] [<stage>] [<translation>] Human Readable PubID Machine Readable PubID

NIST TN 2500 NIST TN 2500 NIST.TN.2500

NIST AMS 600-9 NIST AMS 600-9 NIST.AMS.600-9

NIST SP 800-90 B NIST SP 800-90B NIST.SP.800-90B

NIST IR 8011 v3 NIST IR 8011v3 NIST.IR.8011v3

NIST IR 8183 Av1 NIST IR 8183Av1 NIST.IR.8183Av1

NIST NCSTAR 1-1 Cv1 NIST NCSTAR 1-1Cv1 NIST.NCSTAR.1-1Cv1

NBS NSRDS 3 sec9 NBS NSRDS 3sec9 NBS.NSRDS.3sec9

NIST TN 2135 sup NIST TN 2135sup NIST.TN.2135sup

NIST SP 964 indx NIST SP 964indx NIST.SP.964indx

NIST SP 800-57 pt1 r5 NIST SP 800-53pt1r5 NIST.SP.800-57pt1r5

NIST SP 800-40 r3 NIST SP 800-40r3 NIST.SP.800-40r3

NIST SP 922 e2020 NIST SP 922e2020 NIST.SP.922e2020

NIST HB 150-6 e2020 NIST HB 150-6e2020 NIST.HB.150-6e2020

NIST SP 800-188 2pd NIST SP 800-188 2pd NIST.SP.800-188.2pd

NIST SP 800-53 r5 fpd NIST SP 800-53r5 fpd NIST.SP.800-53r5.fpd 

NIST IR 8204 upd1 NIST IR 8204-upd1 NIST.IR.8204-upd1
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<publisher> <series> <report- num> [<part>] [<edition>] [<update>] [<stage>] [<translation>] Human Readable PubID Machine Readable PubID

NIST FIPS 140-2 upd2 NIST FIPS 140-2-upd2 NIST.FIPS.140-2-upd2

NIST SP 800-53 r4 upd3 NIST SP 800-53r4-upd3 NIST.SP.800-53r4-upd3

NIST SP 800-53 A r4 upd1 NIST SP 800-53Ar4-upd1 NIST.SP.800-53Ar4-upd1

NIST SP 800-60 v1 r1 NIST SP 800-60v1r1 NIST.SP.800-60v1r1

NIST SP 800-57 pt1 r4 NIST SP 800-57pt1r4 NIST.SP.800-57pt1r4

NIST SP 800-73 -4 

(historical 

precedent)

upd1 NIST SP 800-73-4-upd1 NIST.SP.800-73-4-upd1

NIST SP 800-85 B -4 

(historical 

precedent)

ipd NIST SP 800-85B-4 ipd NIST.SP.800-85B-4.ipd

NIST SP 1800-13 B 2pd NIST SP 1800-13B 2pd NIST.SP.1800-13B.2pd

NIST SP 1800-19 B iprd NIST SP 1800-19B iprd NIST.SP.1800-19B.iprd

NIST IR 8228 spa NIST IR 8228 spa NIST.IR.8228.spa
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Appendix A—NIST Technical Series and Abbreviations

A.1 Series Abbreviations

Series descriptions are maintained on the NIST Information Services Office website.

AMS Advanced Manufacturing Series

BH Building and Housing

BMS Building Materials and Structures Reports

BSS Building Science Series

CIRC NBS Circulars

CS Commercial Standards

CSM Commercial Standards Monthly

CSWP NIST Cybersecurity White Papers

EAB Economic Analysis Briefs

FIPS Federal Information Processing Standards Publications

GCR Grantee/Contractor Reports

HB Handbooks

IR NISTIR

MONO Monographs

MP Miscellaneous Publications

NCSTAR National Construction Safety Team Act Reports

NSRDS National Standard Reference Data Series

OWMWP Office of Weights and Measures White Papers

PC Photographic Laboratory Circulars

RPT National Bureau of Standards Reports

SIBS Special Interior Ballistic Studies

SP Special Publications

TIBM Technical Information on Building Materials for Use in the Design of Low 

Cost Housing

TN Technical Notes

TTB Technology Transfer Briefs
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A.2 Special Publications Subseries

The Special Publications series consists of these additional subseries:

SP 250 Special Publication Subseries: Calibration Services

SP 260 Special Publication Subseries: Standard Reference Materials

SP 300 Special Publication Subseries: Precision Measurement and Calibration

SP 400 Special Publication Subseries: Semiconductor Measurement Technology

SP 480 Special Publication Subseries: Law Enforcement Technology

SP 500 Special Publication Subseries: Computer Systems Technology

SP 700 Special Publication Subseries: Industrial Measurement Series

SP 800 Special Publication Subseries: Computer Security

SP 823 Special Publication Subseries: Integrated Services Digital Network Series

SP 960 Special Publication Subseries: NIST Recommended Practice Guides

SP 1190GB Special Publication Subseries: 1190 Guide Briefs

SP 1200 Special Publication Subseries: Protocols

SP 1500 Special Publication Subseries: Working Group Papers

SP 1800 Special Publication Subseries: NIST Cybersecurity Practice Guides

SP 1900 Special Publication Subseries: Cyber-Physical Systems

SP 2000 Special Publication Subseries: Standards Coordination

SP 2100 Special Publication Subseries: Conference Proceedings

A.3 Part Type Definitions

Section 2.1.4 identifies five <part-type> values. Associated <part-type> values are linked 

by a shared <report-num>. One <report-num> can have multiple <part-type> values.

A.3.1 Part

<part-type> = pt

Description: A self-contained document that is linked to other self-contained documents within a 

series, and along with those linked documents, makes up a larger whole. A part may be 

published alongside other parts within a volume. Each part may or may not have a unique title.

A.3.2 Volume

<part-type> = v

Description: A document that is part of a larger collection. May be used to combine parts and|or 
11

sections, split large documents for ease of reading, or as an identifier for a sequence of 

documents. Each volume may or may not have a separate title.

A.3.3 Section

<part-type> = sec

Description: a subdivision of a document, also known as a chapter. It is published as a standalone document but is not self-contained. May be used to split large documents for ease of 

reading or to present to different audiences. Each section should have a unique title.

A.3.4 Supplement

<part-type> = sup

Description: additional information that supports a document or collection of documents, also 

known as an appendix. It is published as a stand-alone but is not self-contained. A supplement 

should use the title of the document or collection of documents it is supporting.

A.3.5 Index

<part-type> = indx

Description: a list of words and/or phrases and locations where related information can be found 

in a document or collection of documents. It is published as a stand-alone but is not selfcontained. An index should use the title of the document or collection of documents it is 

supporting.

A.4 Stage Definitions

Section 2.1.6 describes how to specify different stages of draft publications (i.e., they have not 

been published as “final”). These typically are not entered in NPS, but they are often assigned 

DOIs and uploaded to the NIST Library’s publications server. They are also occasionally 

referenced by other, final publications. Therefore, the PubID can be composed to identify these 

draft publications.

NIST’s Computer Security Division and Applied Cybersecurity Division use the following 

stages in their publication development process. Not every publication goes through every stage. 

Some are published only as “final” publications, but the vast majority are first issued as an Initial 

Public Draft (typically just referred to as a “Public Draft”) and then a Final publication.

The National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence (NCCoE) has been experimenting with a new 

agile publication development process for some of their multi-volume SP 1800 series documents, 

and they created the “Work-in-Progress” and “Preliminary Draft” stages to support this effort. 

These are more informal draft stages during early development that precede the release of any 

full, initial public draft (IPD) for public comment. These stages are not prescriptive. Other

divisions and OUs at NIST may or may not choose to use them. 
12

A.4.1 Work-in-Progress Draft (WD)

<stage-type> = wd

<stage-id> = i | 2 | 3 |...| f

A work-in-progress draft (WD) indicates that the document is currently under development. 

A WD is not yet complete, and organizations should not attempt to implement it. The content is 

in an early stage of development – rough, incomplete, and experimental. It has not been 

extensively edited or vetted. This provides an insider view of the development of the content and 

gives NIST an opportunity to share early thoughts, ideas, and approaches with the community. 

NIST welcomes early informal feedback and comments, which will be adjudicated after the 

specified public comment period. 

There will be one or more versions of the content before it is graduated to a preliminary draft 

(PRD) status.

The initial WD has <stage> = iwd. Any subsequent WDs will have <stage> = 2wd | 3wd 

|... .

A.4.2 Preliminary Draft (PRD)

<stage-type> = prd

<stage-id> = i | 2 | 3 |...| f

After the comments of a work-in-progress draft (WD) have been collected and adjudicated, a 

preliminary draft (PRD) is produced. 

A PRD is more cohesive and composed of a complete, logical grouping of sections or a volume. 

The content is considered to be stable, but changes are expected to occur. There are gaps in the 

content, and the overall document is still incomplete. NIST welcomes early informal feedback 

and comments, which will be adjudicated after the specified public comment period. 

Organizations may consider experimenting with guidelines with the understanding that they will 

identify gaps and challenges. 

There will be one or more versions of the content before it is graduated to a public draft (PD)

status. 

The initial PRD has <stage> = iprd. Any subsequent PRDs will have <stage> = 2prd | 

3prd |... .
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A.4.3 Public Draft (PD)

<stage-type> = pd

<stage-id> = i | 2 | 3 |...| f

The most commonly used public comment document at NIST is the Public Draft (PD)—and 

specifically the Initial (first) Public Draft (IPD).

A Public Draft is a complete document that is posted on a NIST website for a specific public 

comment period, during which reviewers may submit comments (e.g., technical and editorial) to 

NIST via email. For NIST IRs, TNs, SPs, the comment period is typically 30, 45, or 60 days; 

FIPS comment periods are typically 90 days or longer. 

Authors review all comments received, make appropriate changes to the document, and 

determine whether to proceed with a subsequent Public Draft (to obtain more public input) or—

more commonly—a Final publication.

The initial PD has <stage> = ipd. Any subsequent PDs will have <stage> = 2pd | 3pd 

|... . There are some cases where the authors may specifically designate a PD as a Final Public 

Draft (FPD). The FPD provides one last public comment period and may be especially important 

for publications that significantly impact stakeholders. An FPD stage is typically planned from 

the beginning of the publication development process. The comment period is typically shorter 

than any other comment period. The Final Public Draft has <stage> = fpd.

A.4.4 Final Publication

<stage-type> (Not Applicable)

A Final publication has been reviewed and approved by ERB and is published by the NIST 

Library. It may or may not have had draft stages. 

No <stage> is included in the PubID for the Final publication.