Progress Reports and eSNAP

Questions and Answers Table of Contents

Who must submit a progress report?

Most grantees who have an R series award, such as an R01, or a program project, cooperative agreement, career development, fellowship, or training grant award must submit a progress report. You must also submit a progress report if you have a phase I SBIR or STTR award that was approved for more than 12 months of funding.

How often must I submit a progress report?

Your progress report is due every year. For more information, see When is it due?.

Is it true that PI signatures are not required on progress reports?

Yes. Grantees must keep on file a written PI signature assurance for each progress report. This assurance serves instead of a signature on the face page of a progress report. Guidelines for eSNAP are a little different. See the eSNAP (Electronic Streamlined Noncompeting Award Process) SOP and the Noncompeting Progress Reports and Program Officer Approval SOP for more details.

How do I know what type of progress report to submit?

There are three types of progress reports:

• Streamlined noncompeting award process (SNAP).
• Electronic SNAP or eSNAP.
• Non-SNAP.

To determine which is right for you, see the next questions.

Can I submit a SNAP?

For most R series awards, use SNAP, which requires you to fill out only certain pages of the PHS 2590 form. See Submit Your Report on Paper in the NIH Grant Cycle: Application to Renewal.

Can I submit an electronic SNAP?

You can send your progress report electronically after your institution registers with the eRA Commons and becomes an eSNAP participant. For more information, see Submit Your Report Electronically in the NIH Grant Cycle: Application to Renewal.

When must I submit a non-streamlined progress report?

Use a non-SNAP PHS 2590 if you have a multicomponent grant, e.g., P01, P30, or P50; cooperative agreement; or institutional training grant. For information about sending it in, see What Forms to Fill Out for Your Annual Progress Report in the NIH Grant Cycle: Application to Renewal. If you need more help call your program officer, or go to Contact Staff for Help for contact information.

Where do I find the needed resources?

For the online forms, go to the PHS 2590 forms and instructions.

If you are submitting an electronic SNAP, go to NIH's Progress Report Search and use your institutional profile number to get a searchable list of progress reports from which you will select yours. After your business office registers with the Commons, you will be able to access the list of progress reports that are due and pre-filled face pages.

Why can't I find my no-cost extension on the NIH Progress Report site, and will I be notified about submitting my final report?

NIH's Progress Report Search is only for grants that require a renewal -- it's not for no-cost extensions. See your final year Notice of Award for information on submitting a final report. NIH will not notify you unless your final report is late. It's due within 90 days after the project period ends, or in this case, after the no-cost extension ends. If you need help, please contact your grants management specialist, or go to Grants Management Program for contact information.

How do I prepare the final progress report for closeout of my grant?

There isn't a form for the final progress report, but you can find the required information at File Final Reports at Award End in the NIH Grant Cycle: Application to Renewal. It is also included in your Notice of Award.

You will need to submit the Final Invention Statement and Certification and Final Financial Status forms.

Who sends the progress report?

Your institutional business official may submit your progress report to NIAID; sometimes institutions have the PI submit an eSNAP progress report. Also see the eSNAP (Electronic Streamlined Noncompeting Award Process) SOP.

When is it due?

Paper progress reports are due two months before the beginning of your next budget period. eSNAPs are due 45 days before that date. For T32 and T35 grants, progress reports are due four months before.

Does NIH notify me when my progress report is due?

Yes. NIH emails you two months before the due date and again two weeks after the deadline, if you haven't sent it by then.

Who reviews my progress report at NIH?

Your program officer reviews it for the science to determine whether NIAID will continue funding your project. Grants Management Program staff perform an administrative and sometimes a fiscal evaluation. If your research involves model organisms, your program officer will look at that, so include the number of requests you've received and fulfilled. See the Sharing Model Organisms SOP.

Can I send citations by providing links to a journal instead of in a reprint?

Yes. And if you've posted your manuscript at NIH's new public access Web site at National Library of Medicine's PubMed Central, you should provide the PMC ID number instead of including a link or reprint.

As a PI, you can start uploading your manuscripts now at NIH Manuscript Submission; others may submit them on your behalf. Read more in the Public Access of Publications SOP.

What is the page limit for the Progress Report Summary?

According to the PHS 2590 instructions, the entire Progress Report for regular projects, exclusive of the list of publications and the Inclusion Enrollment Report, should not exceed two pages.

What can happen if my progress report is late?

A late progress report can delay and possibly reduce your award.

Is NIH transitioning to electronic SNAPs?

Yes. Eventually electronic SNAP will become the rule for streamlined progress reports.

The titles of our patents are too long to fit in the box provided on the HHS 568 form. Could you suggest a way to address this issue?

Staff in NIH's Office of Policy for Extramural Research Administration needs the correct full name of the invention because they check the title against their records. If the HHS 568 form fields are too short, do the following:

1. Type "See attached list" in the first line of that section.
2. Create the list you'll attach in your word processing program. Identify the grant by number and type out the information required by the three columns on the form.
3. Print out the form and the attachment and send them in together.

Do I need to submit a final progress report for my grant if I am applying for a renewal?

No. You no longer need to submit a final progress report since you must document progress in your renewal application.

If you are closing out your grant or your renewal application does not get funded, you will need to submit a final progress report as well as a final financial status report.

Do I need to submit a copy of our progress report along with the original?

See Do I need to submit a copy of our progress report along with the original? in the Managing a Grant questions and answers.

What if my question wasn't answered here, or I'd like to suggest a question?

Email deaweb@niaid.nih.gov with the title of this page or its URL and your question or comment. We answer questions by email and post them here. Thanks for helping us clarify and expand our knowledge base.