Award Management
THE WORK BEGINS!
This is where you’ll spend most of your time as a PI: leading the science while staying on top of your project’s financial and compliance obligations. Use the resources below when you need to rebudget, request a no-cost extension, submit effort reports, monitor a subrecipient, or invoice your sponsor.
STAYING ON BUDGET
Revisions &
Modifications
As your project progresses, you may need to move funds between budget categories (rebudgeting) or carry unspent funds into a new budget period (a carryover request). Many sponsors allow limited rebudgeting without prior approval, but larger shifts — or any change that affects the scope of work — typically require sponsor sign-off first. Under the Uniform Guidance, the general rule is that recipients have flexibility to rebudget within their approved award, as long as the changes don't alter the project in ways the federal agency needs to review. There are several changes that require prior approval that you should know:
- A change in the scope or objectives of the project, even if there's no associated budget change
- A change in key personnel named in the application or award
- The PI disengaging from the project for more than three months, or reducing time devoted to the project by 25% or more from what was approved
- Transferring funds budgeted for participant support costs to other categories
- Subawarding or contracting out work that wasn't described in the approved application
- Including costs that require prior approval under the cost principles (Pre-Award Cost, Exchange Rates, Purchasing Equipment not in the approved budget, Travel Cost above the standard allowance, etc.)
Uniform Guidance sets the baseline, but the award terms and agency policy determines the actual requirement. Check your award’s terms and conditions, or ask your Research Accounting contact, before assuming a budget change doesn’t need approval.
MODIFYING YOUR AWARD
Changes to key personnel and their level of effort, scope of work, project period,
or budget beyond what your sponsor allows all require a formal award modification.
Reach out to your Post-Award contact as soon as you anticipate a change so the request
can be routed to the sponsor with enough lead time.
When it's not clear whether seeking prior approval from the sponsor is required, reach out to an OSP Post-Award staff and make sure you're in compliance with sponsor terms and policies.
Time and Effort Contact RFC Budget ModificationContact Post-Award
COST TRANSFERS
A cost transfer is any adjustment that moves an expense onto or off of a sponsored project after it has already been recorded in the ledger. Transfers can involve salaries and wages, fringe benefits, or other direct costs such as supplies, equipment, travel, and other expenses. The best way to avoid cost transfers is to charge expenses to the correct project and chartstring from the start and to carefully review your financial reports each month to find errors early. When transfers are needed, they should be rare, timely, accurate, and well documented.
REQUESTING A NO-COST EXTENSION
If your project needs more time (but not more money) to complete the approved scope of work, a no-cost extension (NCE) may be available. An NCE extends the project end date so you can use the remaining funds to finish the work you originally proposed. It does not add funding, change the project's scope, or allow new activities outside the approved aim.
Common reasons for requesting an NCE include delays in participant recruitment, hiring challenges, equipment or supply delays, pending IRB or IACUC approvals, or unexpected setbacks in the research itself. The key is that the extra time is needed to complete the original objectives.
KNOW YOUR SPONSOR'S RULES
Each sponsor has its own policy on timing, length, and how many extensions are allowed. For many federal research awards, the recipient may approve a one-time extension of up to 12 months without the agency's prior approval, as long as the sponsor is notified well before the project end date. A second extension, or any extension on an award where this authority isn't granted, usually requires the sponsor's formal approval and a stronger justification. Non-federal sponsors (foundations, industry, and state agencies) often have their own forms and deadlines, so check your award terms early.
PLAN AHEAD
Extension requests are your responsibility as PI. Submit your request to your Research Accounting or Pre-Award contact well before the project end date, ideally 60 to 90 days ahead. This gives time for internal review, coordination with any subrecipients, and submission to the sponsor. Most sponsors will not consider a request submitted after the award has already expired, and costs incurred after the end date without an approved extension may be unallowable.
WHAT TO INCLUDE IN YOUR REQUEST
- The new requested end date for the project
- The estimated remaining balance at the current end date and how it will be spent during the extension period
- A justification tied to completing the approved work (unspent funds alone are not sufficient justification)
- A brief plan or timeline for the remaining activities
- Confirmation that IRB, IACUC, or other compliance approvals will remain active through the new end date
- Whether any subawards will also need to be extended, and any expected changes to personnel or effort
SUBRECIPIENT MONITORING
The subrecipient vs. contractor determination made during proposal development carries through the life of the award. Subrecipients carry out part of your project's programmatic work, so they are monitored for both scientific progress and financial compliance throughout the award. Contractors, by contrast, are managed through standard procurement and purchasing processes. If a collaborator's role changes mid-project, check with Research Financial Compliance (RFC) before assuming the original classification still applies.
WHY MONITORING IS REQUIRED
When UNT Health issues a subaward, it becomes a pass-through entity, which means it remains accountable to the sponsor for how the subrecipient spends its portion of the funds. Under the Uniform Guidance (2 CFR 200.332), UNT Health must ensure that subrecipients follow the terms and conditions of the prime award that flow down to them, use funds only for authorized purposes, and achieve the performance goals of the subaward. If a subrecipient spends funds improperly, the sponsor may hold UNT Health responsible for repaying those costs.
YOUR ROLE AS PI
As the Principal Investigator, you are the person closest to the subrecipient's work and are responsible for overseeing their programmatic performance. This includes:
- Staying in regular contact with the subrecipient PI and reviewing progress reports or deliverables
- Reviewing and approving each subrecipient invoice to confirm the charges reflect work actually performed and are consistent with project progress
- Watching for warning signs, such as spending that doesn't match progress, missed deliverables, or changes in the subrecipient's key personnel
- Notifying RFC or OSP promptly if you have concerns about performance, costs, or compliance
HOW RFC SUPPORTS YOU
RFC manages the financial side of subrecipient monitoring on behalf of UNT Health. This includes:
- Reviewing subrecipient invoices for allowability, budget alignment, and compliance with the subaward terms
- Reviewing each subrecipient's risk level and applying additional monitoring where needed
- Sending closeout reminders and coordinating the final invoice as the subaward nears its end date
- Conducting desk reviews of selected subrecipients
Monitoring works best as a partnership. Your knowledge of the science and RFC's financial review together give UNT Health a complete picture of how each subaward is performing. To learn more about subrecipient monitoring, or if you have concerns about a subrecipient on your award, contact RFC at RFCSubMgmt@unthealth.edu.
Subrecipient MonitoringContact RFC
REPORTING OBLIGATIONS
Sponsored awards come with recurring deliverables that keep the sponsor informed about how the project is progressing and how funds are being used. Most awards include three core types of reporting: programmatic progress reports, financial reports, and time and effort certification. Some awards also require additional reports, such as invention disclosures or equipment inventories. Staying current on these deliverables throughout the award (rather than catching up at closeout) is the single best way to avoid a difficult final report, delayed payments, or problems with future funding.
Quarterly & Annual ReportsContact Research AccountingTime and Effort ReportContact RFC
ADDITIONAL COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENTS
Managing a sponsored award involves more than tracking the budget. Depending on your research, your project may also be subject to federal regulations and institutional policies covering human subjects, animals, safety, security, disclosures, and data. Many of these requirements carry through the entire life of the award, and noncompliance can lead to disallowed costs, suspended funding, or restrictions on future awards. The sections below outline the most common requirements and what you can do to stay in compliance.
NEED ASSISTANCE
Have questions about managing your award? Start by exploring the Research Training, Policy, and Research Administrator pages here on the PI Resource Hub, which cover many common topics in more detail. If you don't find what you need, the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) team is happy to help with your specific questions.
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Award Closeout