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Close a Grant

The award Close-Out phase is the final phase in the grant lifecycle. The Close-Out phase ensures that all administrative actions and required work have been completed by the recipient institution and by NIFA. Close-Out procedures check to make sure that awardees have met all financial and technical obligations, such as submitting final financial and technical reports and returning any unspent or unobligated funds.

Submission of Final Reports

After an award’s termination date, the awardee must submit all the required close-out reports originally identified in the award terms and conditions.

  • Competitive and Non-Competitive awardees must submit the following close-out reports within 90 days of the termination date:
    • Final Federal Financial Report (SF-425) via email as a PDF attachment to awards@nifa.usda.gov
    • Final REEport Project Financial Report via REEport
    • Final Technical Report via REEport (Starting 10/01/2015) 
    • Final invention statement certifying whether or not the funded project resulted in any inventions and whether or not those inventions were previously reported to NIFA
  • Capacity awardees must submit the following closeout reports:
    • Final Federal Financial Report (SF-425) via email as a PDF attachment to formulagrantforms@nifa.usda.gov; this is due within 90 days after the award termination date
    • Final REEport Project Financial Reports via REEport for all individual projects that were conducted under the Capacity program award; these are due by February 1 of the fiscal year following that in which the award terminated
    • Final Technical Reports via REEport for all individual projects that were conducted under the Capacity program award; these are due by March 1 of the fiscal year following that in which the award terminated

NOTE: If notified by NIFA program staff that the award will be receiving an extension of the performance period or continuation award on the same award number, awardees should not follow any close-out procedures or submit any final reports.  They should instead submit a Progress Report via REEport for the most recent period of performance.

Final Obligations

The closeout of a grant does not affect NIFA’s right to disallow costs and recover funds based on later audits and financial reviews.

Awardees should be aware of their continued obligations to the award terms and conditions after a grant is closed out:

  • Close-out does not change the awardee’s obligation to report and return any funds later acquired through refunds, corrections, or determined to be due as the result of an audit
  • Close-out does not automatically cancel any requirements for property accountability, record retention, or financial accountability
  • Awardees must ensure all funds are obligated within the period of performance of the grant and that they are liquidated within 90 days after the termination date
  • Awardees can draw down funds for up to 90 days after the termination date
  • If not able to comply with the established close-out timeline, awardees should contact the Administrative Contact listed in block 14 of the Award Face Sheet; NIFA may approve extensions of time when requested

Records Retention

Recipient institutions must retain award records for a period of three years from the date the Final Financial Report (SF-425) was submitted.

  • NIFA or other federal entities may choose to conduct audits during the three-year period
  • If an audit is conducted, award records must be kept for a period of three years from the time at which any audit issues were resolved
  • Awardees should also take into consideration any retention requirements their institution maintains; if their institution’s retention period is longer, the federal requirement of three years does not supersede

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