NIH Other Support - Current Guidance

Other Support Resources

Information on other active and pending support may be requested (often as part of Just-in-Time procedures for grant applications or in progress reports) to ensure there is no scientific, budgetary, or commitment overlap. “Other Support” is sometimes referred to as “current and pending support” or “active and pending support.”  For additional information pertaining to the use of and policy for other support, see NIH Grants Policy Statement, Section 2.5.1: Just-in-Time Procedures. 

Other Support includes all resources made available to a researcher in support of and/or related to all of their research endeavors, regardless of whether or not they have monetary value and regardless of whether they are based at the institution the researcher identifies for the current grant. This includes but is not limited to:

• Resources and/or financial support from all foreign and domestic entities, that are available to the researcher. This includes but is not limited to, financial support for laboratory personnel, and provision of high-value materials that are not freely available (e.g., biologics, chemical, model systems, technology, etc.).
  • Institutional resources, such as core facilities or shared equipment that are made broadly available, should not be included in Other Support, but rather listed under Facilities and Other Resources.
• Consulting agreements, when the PD/PI or other senior/key personnel will be conducting research as part of the consulting activities. Non-research consulting activities are not Other Support.
• In-kind contributions, e.g. office/laboratory space, equipment, supplies, or employees or students supported by an outside source. If the time commitment or dollar value of the in-kind contribution is not readily ascertainable, the recipient must provide reasonable estimates.
  • If in-kind contributions are intended for use on the project being proposed to NIH in an application, the information must be included as part of the Facilities and Other Resources or Equipment section of the application and need not be replicated on the Other Support form.
  • In-kind contributions not intended for use on the project/proposal being proposed in an application must be reported within the Other Support form. If the time commitment or dollar value is not readily ascertainable, reasonable estimates should be provided.

Other Support does NOT include Stanford start-up support/funds, training awards, prizes, or gifts. Gifts are resources provided where there is no expectation of anything (e.g. time, services, specific research activities, money, etc.) in return. An item or service given with the expectation of an associated time commitment is not a gift and is instead an in-kind contribution and must be reported as such.

While Stanford University policy on gifts aligns closely with this definition, there may be gifts that could come into question. As a result, we ask Investigators to use the guide document linked below to carefully consider and identify any gift that meets the criteria for disclosure for NIH Other Support. The guidance is also applicable for NSF Current & Pending Support.

Stanford NIH & NSF Gifts Disclosure Guidance - (updated 10/25/2021)

Gifts Disclosure Webinar Recording - (updated 10/26/2021)

Other Support Instructions

(from NIH Other Support Format Pages and Instructions)

Project/Proposals Section

• Provide Active and Pending Support for all senior/key personnel.  This includes all grants, cooperative agreements, contracts, clinical trials and/or institutional awards, including all University Research Awards and seed grants setup in Stanford gift PTAs (whether or not effort is committed). Run the SeRA Disclosures / Current & Pending Support Report as a starting point for collecting this information.
• Enter your support entries so they are grouped together based on the "Status of Support" and are in the order of Active and Pending Support from top to bottom.
• Neither the application under consideration nor the current PHS award for this project should be listed as Other Support.

In-Kind Contributions Section

• Disclose for all senior/key personnel Active and Pending In-Kind contributions that are currently used in their research endeavors. This includes the “provision of high-value materials that are not freely available (e.g., biologics, chemical, model systems, technology, etc.).”
• Enter your in-kind entries so they are grouped together based on the "Status of Support" and are in the order of Active and Pending Support from top to bottom.
• Common examples of In-Kind contributions include but are not limited to: fellowship funded students and post docs, visiting students, post docs, and scholars, molecules, biologics, chemicals, vectors, data, libraries, model systems such as transgenic mice, cell lines, or other resources, etc. provided by companies, outside entities, and external collaborators/colleagues for use in your research, provided under agreements.  
• Also consider additional in-kind support provided by companies, outside entities, and external collaborators/colleagues, such as data sets, cloud storage space, equipment loans, and transfers of goods and services that occur under unfunded collaboration or other agreements.
• Only materials and resources provided to the Investigator within the past 3 years, that are actively being used, must be included in Other Support. If it is a continuous resource or contribution (i.e. services) or a renewing resource (i.e. data that is updated or added to continuously), then it should remain disclosed.
• Do not disclose as in-kind support any items that you purchased.
• View Stanford's NIH In-Kind Contributions FAQs, Stanford NIH In-Kind Contributions Disclosure Overview and Detailed Guidance & Examples of How to Disclose NIH In-Kind Contributions in Other Support  for more information.
• Note: Enter in-kind contributions in the SeRA Disclosures / Current & Pending Support Report to aid with future disclosures.

Overlap Section

• After listing all support, summarize for each individual any potential overlap with the active or pending projects and activities, other positions, affiliations, and resources and this application in terms of the science, budget, or an individual’s committed effort.
• For further information on Overlap see the NIH Grants Policy Statement, Section 1.1.2: Definition of Terms

Signature 

Each PD/PI or other senior key personnel must electronically sign their respective Other Support form prior to submission to NIH with the following certification:

I, PD/PI or other senior/key personnel, certify that the statements herein are true, complete and accurate to the best of my knowledge, and accept the obligation to comply with Public Health Services terms and conditions if a grant is awarded as a result of this application. I am aware that any false, fictitious, or fraudulent statements or claims may subject me to criminal, civil, or administrative penalties.

Certification of disclosure documents must be completed by each senior/key person and may NEVER be delegated.

Investigator Electronic Signature Guidance

Supporting Documentation:

• Provide copies of contracts specific to senior/key-personnel foreign appointments and/or employment with a foreign institution for all foreign activities and resources that are reported in Other Support. If they are not in English, recipients must provide translated copies.
• Supporting Documentation should be provided as a PDF following the Other Support form.

The Stanford Outside Professional Activities Certification System (OPACS) allows investigators to submit copies of these external agreements for Stanford review to ensure compliance with Stanford policy.  If you have not already, please upload your Agreements in OPACS ASAP.  Additional information about this can be found on the DoR website

Other Support Formatting

Complete the following fields as described below, as applicable to each section of Other Support.  Required Fields are marked with an Asterisk (*).

Note: When providing Other Support under a consortium/contractual arrangement or that is part of a multi-project award: Indicate the project number, Name of PD/PI, and source of Support for the overall project. Provide all other information (e.g. total award amount, person months) for the subproject only.

• *Name of Individual: Provide the name of the senior/key person.
• Commons ID: Provide the eRA Commons ID number of the senior/key person.
• *Title: Identify the title of the project, subproject, or activity.
• *Major Goals: Provide a brief statement of the overall objectives of the project, subproject, or consortium/contractual arrangement or a description of the activity.
• *Status of Support: Indicate if the support is currently Active or Pending.
• Project Number: Provide the project number. If applicable, include a code or identifier for the project.
• Name of PD/PI: Provide the name of the Contact PD/PI of the project.
• *Source of Support: Identify the agency, institute, foundation, or other organization that is providing the support. Include domestic, foreign, institutional (including University Research Awards and seed grants in gift PTAa), federal, public, and private sources of support.
• *Primary Place of Performance: Include the primary location where the project or activity is being executed.
• Project/Proposal Start and End Dates: Indicate the inclusive dates of the project/activity as approved/proposed. For example, in the case of NIH support, provide the dates of the approved/proposed competitive segment. For in-kind contributions, provide project dates when applicable.
• *Total Award Amount: For active projects, provide the total award costs for the period of performance, including indirect costs. For example, in the case of NIH support, provide the total award costs for the competitive segment. For a pending project, provide the proposed total costs for the period of performance.
• *Person Months: Indicate calendar or academic/summer months associated with each project. For an active project, provide the level of actual effort in person months (even if unsalaried) for the current budget period and indicate the proposed level effort for each remaining budget period. Person months should be classified as calendar or academic/summer.
  • For more information about calculating person months, see NIH’s Frequently Asked Questions on Person Months.
  • For a pending project, indicate the level of effort in person months as proposed for each budget period. Use either calendar months OR a combination of academic and summer months.
• *Summary of In-Kind Contributions: Provide a summary of the In-Kind Contribution.
• *Estimated Dollar Value of In-Kind Contribution: Provide an estimate for the value of the In-Kind Contribution. If the time commitment or dollar value is not readily ascertainable, reasonable estimates should be provided.
• *Overlap: After listing all support, summarize for each individual any potential overlap with the active or pending projects and activities, other positions, affiliations, and resources and this application in terms of the science, budget, or an individual’s committed effort.
• *Signature: Each PD/PI or other senior key personnel must electronically sign their respective Other Support form prior to submission to NIH.

Certification of disclosure documents must be completed by each senior/key person and may NEVER be delegated.

Investigator Electronic Signature Guidance

Special Instructions for Joint University and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Appointments

Individuals with joint university and VA appointments may request the university’s share of their salary in proportion to the effort devoted to the research project. The individual’s salary with the university determines the base for computing that request. Signature by the Institutional Official on the application certifies that: (1) the individual is applying as part of a joint appointment specified by a formal Memorandum of Understanding between the university and the VA; and (2) there is no possibility of dual compensation for the same work, or of an actual or apparent conflict of interest regarding such work. Additional information may be requested by the awarding component(s).

“Gifts”

NIH defines a gift to be something that is given without the expectation of anything in return.  An item or service given with the expectation of an associated time commitment or if the donor receives a benefit is not a gift, and is instead an in-kind contribution and must be reported as such. Examples include, but are not limited to, funds received in support of an Industrial Affiliates Program (IAP) with the expectation of an associated time commitment from the investigator and/or if member companies are offered benefits, and/or gifts where the donor will receive a benefit (e.g. access to research results, students or facilities)

While Stanford University policy on gifts aligns closely with this definition, there may be gifts that could come into question. As a result, we ask Investigators to use the guide document linked below to carefully consider and identify any gift that meets the criteria for disclosure for NIH Other Support. The guidance is also applicable for NSF Current & Pending Support.

Stanford NIH & NSF Gifts Disclosure Guidance (updated 10/25/2021)

Gifts Disclosure Webinar Recording (updated 10/26/2021)

The NIH Office of Inspector General (OIG) in April of 2025 posted a report with several Other Support vs. gift case studies (beginning on page 15 of the Full Report PDF).  View the findings and report HERE. 

Recommended approach for reviewing an investigator’s individual Faculty Financial Tool Inquiry (FFIT) screen to identify NIH disclosable current and in-kind support

Additional Other Support Resources

• NIH Other Support Format Pages and Instructions
• SeRA Disclosures / Current & Pending Support Report
• School of Medicine Research Management Group’s NIH Other Support Webpage
• NIH Disclosure FAQs – Stanford Guidance
• Recording of National Institutes of Health (NIH) Disclosures Webinar May 19, 2021
  • Slides from National Institutes of Health (NIH) Disclosures Webinar May 19, 2021
• Stanford NIH In-Kind Contributions Disclosure Overview and Detailed Guidance - (updated 11/9/2021)
• Examples of How to Disclose NIH In-Kind Contributions in Other Support - (updated 11/9/2021)
• In-Kind Resources Disclosure Webinar Recording - (updated 11/10/2021)
• NOT-OD-19-114: Reminders of NIH Policies on Other Support and on Policies related to Financial Conflicts of Interest and Foreign Components
• NIH Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) – Other Support and Foreign Components

Foreign Components

Foreign Component FAQs and Samples (from School of Medicine’s Research Management Group) Protecting U.S. Biomedical Intellectual Innovation

Need further assistance? Have questions and/or feedback? Please submit questions and/or feedback and a member of the ORA-RMG Disclosures Team will respond to you shortly.