NIH DMS Plans
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The National Institutes of Health (NIH) currently requires grants with $500,000 per year or more in direct costs to explain how and when data resulting from the grant will be disseminated. Under the new NIH Data Management and Sharing (DMS) Policy, effective January 25, 2023, investigators and awardee institutions are required to:
- Include a robust and detailed plan and budget for the management and sharing of data during the entire funding period in the form of a Data Management and Sharing(DMS) Plan.
- Submit a DMS Plan for review as part of their funding application for all new and competing proposals/renewals that generate scientific data. The DMS Plan will be assessed by NIH program staff members, and the approved plan is considered a Term and Condition of the Notice of Award.
- Comply with the approved DMS Plan.
This update introduces a new streamlined DMS plan format for applications with due dates on or after May, 25, 2026.
- Beginning in FY 2027, all existing awards and applications subject to the NIH DMS Policy must transition to the updated format, regardless of when the competing application was submitted.
- Effective October 1, 2026, recipients must use RPPR Section C.5.c. to report progress on data-sharing activities and notify NIH of changes to an approved DMS Plan.
- NIH no longer requires prior approval to modify an approved DMS Plan.
*Download the NIH DMS Plan Compliance Attestation here.
Additional Resources
For more information on NIH DMS plans: