Seek Prior Approval (If Needed)

Information on how to electronically obtain prior approval for certain activities from the awarding agency, using the Prior Approval module in eRA Commons. 

Prior Approval is the process wherein an applicant or recipient must have written approval by an authorized official to undertake a certain activity. The Prior Approval module lets organizations make these requests, which must be submitted to the awarding agency for approval by a signing official (SO) from the recipient/applicant organization. 

eRA now supports seven kinds of Prior Approval requests post-award. Only a signing official can initiate or respond to most types of requests. The two exceptions are the Withdrawal Request, which can be initiated by a principal investigator (PI) or an SO, and the 500K request, which can be responded to by the PI or SO. Only a SO can submit any type of request. 

Basic Tasks (step-by-step instructions from the online help)*

• No Cost Extension via Prior Approval (also see web page) 
• Withdrawal Request (also see web page)
• Carryover Request (also see web page)
• DMS Request (also see web page)
• Change of PD/PI (also see web page)
• 500K request (also see web page)
• Other Request (also see web page)

* You must be logged into eRA Commons with appropriate role(s) to complete these activities. 

Main Screenshot

Figure 1: The Prior Approval screen showing the options for request types

Policy

• NIH Grants Policy Statement: Prior Approval Requirements