Federal RPPR

The Federal Research Performance Progress Report (RPPR) is a federal-wide, uniform progress report format used by federal agencies that provide sponsored funding. It documents progress, compliance, and accountability for federally funded projects.

NIH Reporting

Annual RPPR: Required for all annual non-competing (Type 5) NIH awards.

Interim RPPR: If a renewal application has been submitted on or before the date when a Final Research Performance Progress Report (Final-RPPR) would be required for the current competitive segment, then submission of an "Interim-RPPR" via eRA Commons is required.

Final RPPR: Final Research Performance Progress Report (Final RPPR) is required for any grant that has ended and any grant that is not to be extended through the award of a new competitive segment. The report is due within 120 days of the end of the project period.

Resources for Preparing an RPPR

The following instructions and tools support RPPR preparation and submission:

• Initiating the RPPR
• RPPR Instructions document
• Project Outcomes samples and instructions
• NIH required disclosures
• SPA's RPPR Review Checklist 
• UMB RPPR Subrecipient Progress Report Form 
• RPPR help: Editing the Human Subjects Study Form

Click the blue question mark icons in the RPPR system for additional guidance.

Before submission: Review the final PDF, as this is the version viewed by NIH.

Foreign Components and Other Reportable Activities for Compliance

Individual Development Plans (IDPs) Reporting for NIH RPPRs

NIH policy NOT-OD-14-113 requires RPPRs to describe how Individual Development Plans (IDPs) support career goals of graduate students and postdoctoral researchers associated with the award.

Procedure:

• Forward any NIH email requests and corresponding information about IDPs to your SPA team
• SPA will respond to NIH once all information is received
• Non-competing continuation awards may be delayed until requested information is received

RPPR Validations, Errors, and Warnings for Compliance

Error Checks:

At any time before an RPPR is submitted to the agency, an error check can be performed to verify that the report passes the business rules and system validations in place. Any user who has access to the RPPR may perform the error check.

If errors or a warning exist, the appropriate error or warning message displays for each failure.

• All errors must be corrected before submission.
• All errors must be corrected; submission is blocked if errors exist
• Warnings do not prevent submission

If all validations pass, a message displays indicating: No errors found on validation.

Common Warnings:

If you receive the following warning, be aware that submitting an RPPR with a non-compliant publication will delay funding until the publication is made compliant:

Warning Message: This progress report includes one or more publications that are out of compliance with the NIH Public Access Policy. Compliance with the NIH Public Access Policy is a legal requirement and a term and condition of all NIH awards. If you have questions about the Policy, please check the NIH Public Access Website or email PublicAccess@nih.gov. (ID: 201299)

If you receive the following warnings, a Human Subjects report will likely need to be submitted for this RPPR:

Warning Messages:

G.4.b. Updates to Inclusion enrollment report(s) have not been made for study# 106730. If updates are needed, navigate to G.4 of the RPPR to access this study and update inclusion reports. (ID: 206732)

G.4.b. The following study(s) "Study Title" have some updated information that have not yet been submitted to NIH. If you would like to provide the latest updated version to NIH, please click on Human subjects link in G.4 and submit the study(s) that are in Work in Progress status. (ID: 206732)

If your RPPR includes clinical trials, the following requirements must be met. Clinical Trial Validation Errors will prevent RPPR submission if the requirements are not satisfied:

• Clinical Trial Registration: Trials must be registered within 21 days of the first participant’s enrollment.
• Results Reporting: Trial results must be reported within 12 months of the trial’s actual primary completion date.
• Submission Blocking: Any overdue registration or results reporting will result in errors that block submission of the RPPR.

Ensure all clinical trials are registered and results are reported according to NIH requirements before submitting your RPPR. For more information, see the ClinicalTrials.gov FAQ or contact your SPA representative.

NIH Policy Notices, Required Systems, and Training Data for RPPRs

Policy Notices:

• NOT-OD-19-108  - Required Use of the xTRACT System to Prepare Data Tables for Training Grant Research Performance Progress Reports in FY 2020. Beginning with RPPRs due on or after October 1, 2019 (FY 2020), recipients must create the required training data tables for submission with NIH and AHRQ T15, T32, T90/R90, and TL1 progress reports via the xTRACT system. 
• NOT-OD-17-074 : NIH Reminds Recipients to Submit Complete, Timely, and Accurate Progress and Financial Reports
• NOT-OD-18-103 : NIH will Make the Project Outcomes Section of all Interim and Final RPPRs Submitted on or After October 1, 2017 Available via the NIH RePORTER

Training and Instructions:

• Compliance enforcement and RPPR presentation
• RPPR Training and instructions for compliance

Frequently Asked Questions About RPPR Submission

Do I need to route the RPPR in Kuali Research?

• No, routing is not required.

Do I need to fill in the Recipient ID?

• No, UMB will not use this field.

Who is my Signing Official?

• Enter Kenneth Fahnestock

Who is my Administrative Official?

• Enter Gregory Sorensen (Assistant Director, SPA Proposals Team)