Registration of an Institutional Review Board (IRB)
Version Date 7/09/2009
Obtaining an approved assurance from OHRP is a two-step process. First, you must ensure that the IRB(s) you designate under the Assurance are registered with OHRP. If not, submit the registration. Second, you must complete the Assurance application.
Please note: the fact that an Institutional Review Board (IRB) is registered with the Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP) does not mean that OHRP has determined that the IRB reviews research in accordance with the requirements of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Protection of Human Subjects regulations, 45 CFR part 46, and does not mean that the IRB has the appropriate competence or expertise to review a particular research project. However, all IRBs that review human subjects research conducted or supported by HHS, and that are designated under assurances of compliance approved for federalwide use by OHRP under 45 CFR 46.103(a), must be registered with OHRP.
FAQs on IRB Registration
LIST OF REGISTERED IRBs AND APPROVED ASSURANCES
Filing a New Registration for an IRB
Your institution or organization can register an IRB even if your institution or organization has never been assigned an IORG number by OHRP and never registered an IRB. You must register your institution's or organization's IRB using the electronic submission system unless your institution or organization lacks the ability to register its IRB electronically. We recommend that you print out and have available the instructions for registering an IRB at http://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/humansubjects/assurance/regirbi.htm
Tracking the Status of an IRB Registration
Once you have submitted an IRB registration, you may track the progress of your document until the IRB is registered. Once your institution's IRB registration has been processed, it will be listed on the OHRP website at http://ohrp.cit.nih.gov/search/.