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National Science Foundation (NSF)

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  • Resources for submitting an NSF application (Pre-Award)

  • Resources for administering your NSF award (Post-Award)

    • There are 4 types of reports for the National Science Foundation. Progress reports of NSF-supported projects are required. Only a Principal Investigator (PIs) and co-PIs can create, edit, and submit project reports. The Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) staff have read-only view of project reports.

      Additional information and tips can be found at About Project Reports

      Report TypeDescriptionSubmission Requirements
      Annual ReportAnnual project reports are required for all standard and continuing grants and cooperative agreements.All submitted annual and final reports must be approved by an NSF Program Officer to meet the submission requirements.
      Interim ReportInterim project reports are not required and are used to update the progress of a project any time during or before the award period expires 
      Final ReportFinal reports are required for all standard and continuing grants, cooperative agreements, and fellowships.All submitted annual and final reports must be approved by an NSF Program Officer to meet the submission requirements.
      Project Outcomes ReportThe Project Outcomes Report is a report written for new and existing awards, specifically for the public, that provides insight into the outcomes of NSF-funded research.

    • Award Closeout is the process by which NSF determines that all applicable administrative actions and all required work of the award have been completed. See also Chapter VI.D.3.c for additional information on no cost extensions. The close out amount will be based on the costs recorded at that time. See also Chapter VIII.E.5 for additional information on post closeout adjustments and final disbursements. Awards are administratively closed after the award is financially closed. In most cases, awards are administratively closed automatically based solely on the financial closeout of the award. There are certain cases, such as if the award includes a cost sharing requirement or Federally-owned equipment, where the administrative close is held until the award is reviewed by n NSF Official. The administrative closeout of the award is an NSF action. If additional documentation is required, NSF will contact the recipient. In addition to the financial and administrative closeout, all required project reports, including the Final Annual Project Report and Project Outcomes Report, must also be submitted to completely close the award, and after determination that any other administrative requirements in the award have been met. Awards will be financially closed out 120 days after their expiration date.

      In accordance with 2 CFR §200.344(i), if the recipient does not submit all required reports within one year of the period of performance end date, NSF must report the recipient’s material failure to comply with the terms and conditions of the award with the OMB-designated integrity and performance system (currently FAPIIS). NSF may also pursue other enforcement actions per 2 CFR §200.339.

      In the event a final audit has not been performed prior to the closeout of the award, NSF reserves the right to recover funds after fully considering the recommendations on disallowed costs resulting from the final audit.

      1. Financial records, supporting documents, statistical records, and all other records pertinent to the NSF award must be retained by the recipient for a period of three years from award financial closeout described in Chapter VIII.E.3, except as noted in 2 CFR §200.334.
      2. It is the responsibility of recipients that are States, local governments, or non-profit organizations to arrange for the conduct of audits as required by 2 CFR §200, Subpart F. They shall provide copies of the reports of these audits to the Federal Audit Clearinghouse (see 2 CFR §200.512(b)). Any Federal audit deemed necessary by NSF shall build upon the results of such audit(s).
      3. All awards issued by NSF meet the definition of Research and Development (R&D) at 2 CFR §200.1. As such, auditees should identify NSF awards as part of the R&D cluster on the Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards (SEFA). The auditor should test NSF awards for compliance as instructed in Part V, Clusters of Programs. NSF recognizes that some awards may have another classification for purposes of indirect costs (F&A). The auditor is not required to report the disconnect (i.e., the award is classified as R&D for audit purposes but non-research for indirect cost rate (F&A) purposes), unless the auditee is charging indirect costs at a rate other than the rate(s) specified in the award document(s).

National Institutes of Health (NIH)

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