eRA eSubmission Items of Interest
eRA eSubmission Items of Interest - February 2, 2009
Our communications team is currently looking at the NIH eSubmission Web site to update/streamline/improve the available content. Do you link to specific content on this site that you'd like to see maintained? Is there information that is missing or hard to find? Do you have general suggestions for improving content? The eRA Communications Office would love to hear from you at eRACommunications@mail.nih.gov.
In the meantime, we've received these questions repeatedly over the past week, so we thought the answers were worth passing on to the whole distribution. We'll incorporate them into the Web site FAQs. We also have posted a new page called "Having Problems With Your Submission?"
What is considered "on time" submission?
Under normal circumstances the elements of on-time submission include:
- All registrations completed prior to submission deadline
- Successful submission to Grants.gov with timestamp on or before 5:00 p.m. local time of submitting organization on the due date
- Errors/warnings corrected and the submission process complete within the error correction window following the submission deadline
Current circumstances are far from normal - the vast majority of submission issues applicants are currently experiencing are system-related and beyond their control. If you have made a good faith effort to obtain your on time timestamp and, despite your efforts, you just can't get through the system - don't panic, take the following steps:
- Contact the Grants.gov Contact Center to document/resolve your submission issues. Use email to quickly document your issue - support@grants.gov.
- Report the issue to the eRA Help Desk. You can create your own support ticket on the Web at: http://ithelpdesk.nih.gov/eRA/.
- Continue to work through your submission issues. This doesn't mean you need to continuously try to submit around-the-clock. Once your issues are documented, work to complete the process within the error correction window.
- Document your corrective actions including support ticket numbers in the cover letter attached in the PHS 398 Cover Letter form within the application.
In the case of verified system issues, this documentation can be used in place of the timestamp as "proof" of "on time" submission.
Our institution submits a lot of applications, is it necessary to open individual support tickets for each application?
If multiple applications are having the same issue (e.g., unable to connect to Grants.gov), then you can list the affected applications in the same ticket opened with the support desk. However, you still need to reference the support tickets in the cover letter for each application.
Tip: Take advantage of email and Web ticketing to speed up the documentation process.
What is the "error correction window" and when does it start?
The error correction window is the period of time that NIH provides to correct errors and/or warnings to complete the submission process. It begins the day after the submission deadline and excludes weekends and standard federal holidays.
The following caveats apply:
- Initial application submission must be "on-time."
- The AOR/institution is expected to enforce that application changes made within the window are restricted to those necessary to address system-identified errors/warnings. NIH may reject any application that includes additional changes.
- Proof of "on time" submission and description of changes made within the window must be documented in PHS 398 Cover Letter component of the application.
The error correction window is typically 2 business days, but has been extended to 5 business days for submission deadlines through February 2009. For example, the 5-day error correction window for the February 5, 2009 R01 submission deadline will begin on Friday, February 6 and run through Thursday, February 12.
Does the extended 5 day error correction window temporarily in affect (NOT-OD-09-045) apply to RFA-RM-09-029 which had a submission deadline of January 29, 2009?
Yes. The NIH Guide notice, published on January 28, covers opportunities with submission dates through February 2009.
What is the difference between the "error correction window" and the "application viewing window"?
Once an error-free application is submitted through Grants.gov to eRA, the eRA system assembles an application image and posts it in the PD/PI's Commons account. The PD/PI, any delegated Assistants, and the Signing Official (SO) have 2 business days to view the assembled application in Commons - just as a reviewer would see it. Unlike the error correction window which begins the day after the submission deadline, the application viewing window is linked to the time of submission (i.e., begins the day after the assembled application image is posted in Commons).
Within the viewing window, the SO can Reject the application and stop it from moving further in the process. This action can not be reversed and should be taken cautiously. If your final submission is not made within the error correction window, the application is subject to the late policy.
After the viewing window, the application automatically moves forward for further consideration and the submission process is complete. Any subsequent changes to the application must be made through and at the discretion of the assigned Scientific Review Officer.
Example rejection scenarios:
- You decide not to pursue the opportunity/deadline after all, so you reject the application to prevent it from moving forward.
- The system identified a warning in your on-time application and you decide it must be addressed. Although you can make a corrective submission within the error correction window, you will not be able to do so before the viewing window elapses and your application moves forward. You reject the application, address the warning, resubmit and complete the process within the error correction window.
- While viewing your assembled application you notice that one of the attachments included in your submission is missing in the image. You contact the eRA help desk and they confirm a system-issue has affected your submission. You reject the application and work with help desk to resolve the issue as quickly as possible. You document the issue in your cover letter and are not penalized for submitting late.
Does everyone that opens an Adobe-based application have to use the same version of Adobe Reader?
No. Everyone must use a version of Adobe Reader that is compatible with the forms (see Grants.gov's Download Software page for list), but not all users have to use the same compatible version.
We'll be sending out communications pretty frequently as we all work through the pending submission deadlines. Let us know if there is something you think your colleagues would benefit from knowing and we'll pass it on.
Take care,
Sheri Cummins & Scarlett Gibb
Customer Relationship Managers
eSubmission and eRA Commons
NIH Office of Extramural Research
askera@mail.nih.gov
