Non-Competing Continuations

Most applications for sponsored funding are submitted for multiple years. However, the majority of sponsors tend to provide funding in annual increments only; and most require that a progress report be filed prior to the release of subsequent years' funds. The annual filing of a progress report and any other documentation requested by the sponsor is considered to be a non-competing application for the continuation of funds.

For proper record keeping and reporting, it is important that Principal Investigators plan to route annually to Grants and Contracts all paperwork a sponsor requires for documenting the yearly progress of the project, regardless of whether or not the required paperwork includes budgetary information or institutional endorsement. Routing non-competing paperwork prior to submission to the sponsor ensures timely set-up of the new funding once the continuation award notice is received by Grants and Contracts.

NIH Determining Due Dates on NIH Non-Competing Continuations

NIH maintains an online database of due dates for progress reports (Progress Report Search by IPF Number) which you may query for reports sorted by due date or Principal Investigator. UC Denver's institutional profile number (IPF) is 1199905.

When feasible, approximately six to eight weeks before a report is due, Grants and Contracts will send an e-mail to each PI and his/her department administrator providing the due date for the non-competing application. The e-mail contains information about preparing the report, including web links to forms and instructions.

Those projects that will be entering the last year of committed funding also will be provided with the due date for the competing continuation proposal, which is usually about 4 to 5 months after the non-competing proposal is due (i.e., 2 to 3 months after the budget anniversary date). Exceptions to this rule include AIDS-related projects, Institutional National Research Service Awards (training grants), and Program Project Grants. Please see the NIH web site for NIH Proposal Deadlines, or contact Grants and Contracts at 303-724-0090.

Most NIH non-competing applications are due 2 months prior to the budget anniversary date. The exceptions are Institutional National Research Service Awards (a.k.a. training grants), which are due 5 to 7 months prior to the budget anniversary date. Again, it is the responsibility of the individual PI to keep track of his/her due dates.

PHS 2590

NIH non-competing applications should be filed on PHS 2590 form pages and in accordance with the PHS 2590 instructions​. You may use the forms and corresponding instructions revised 04/06.

There are two separate criteria that can affect how much and which part of the PHS 2590 to complete: Type of Award and SNAP.

Type of Award

Though most NIH non-competing applications follow the standard instructions, there are a few exceptions depending on the type of award:

• Career Development Award (K Awards): Follow the standard instructions and the instructions found in Section IV of the PHS 2590 book.
• Institutional National Research Service Awards (T Awards): Follow the standard instructions and the instructions found in Section V of the PHS 2590 book.
• Individual National Research Service Awards (F Awards): Follow the instructions in the PHS 416-9 instruction book.
• All others (e.g., R, P, U): Follow the standard instructions

SNAP (Streamlined Non-Competing Application Procedures)

These are simplified application requirements that reduce the amount of paperwork to be submitted to NIH. specifically, those awards that fall under SNAP regulation do not have to submit a detailed budget or budget justification on an annual basis. In the first year of a project period, NIH commits funding amounts for all years of the project period. The annual award will match the funds NIH defined as the commitment for that year.

Each year, NIH specifies whether a given award is subject to SNAP or not. The information is found on the award notice under Section III - Terms and Conditions. If you have questions about whether your award is subject to SNAP, check your award notice or contact Grants and Contracts at 303-724-0090.

Award mechanisms most often subject to SNAP: R01, R03, R13, R15, R18, R21, R24, R25, R29, R37, R42, R44 and all K series mechanisms. ​