Successor-in-Interest (Type 6 Parent Clinical Trial Optional) | PA 18 589

Opportunity Information: Apply for PA 18 589

The NIH funding opportunity titled "Successor-in-Interest (Type 6 Parent Clinical Trial Optional)" (FOA number PA 18 589) is essentially a formal pathway for organizations that already hold certain NIH awards to request a change in the official grantee organization on an existing grant. This is not a typical competitive grant solicitation where applicants propose a new research or program idea for funding. Instead, it supports a specific administrative action: transferring an active NIH award from the current recipient organization to a new organization that will become the legal and financial successor responsible for completing the approved project. These requests are commonly associated with institutional reorganizations, mergers, acquisitions, or other situations where the entity that originally received the award is changing in a way that requires NIH to recognize a new grantee.

NIH treats a successor-in-interest action as a prior approval request under the NIH Grants Policy Statement (specifically the section referenced in the notice). That means the request is reviewed directly by grants management rather than going through a standard peer review process. Applications submitted under this FOA are routed to the Grants Management Specialist listed on the current award, and that specialist, along with the awarding NIH Institute or Center (IC), evaluates whether a transfer is appropriate and whether the proposed successor organization can meet all programmatic, financial, and compliance obligations tied to the award. A key point in the announcement is that submitting a request through this FOA does not guarantee NIH will approve the transfer. NIH can deny or delay a transfer if the successor organization is not adequately qualified, if compliance conditions are not met, if the project cannot be responsibly continued, or if there are other administrative or policy issues that make the transfer unsuitable.

The opportunity strongly encourages applicants to speak with the awarding NIH IC before submitting anything. In practice, that step matters because successor-in-interest transfers often involve time-sensitive coordination around budgets, project leadership, subawards, facilities, human subjects or animal assurances, and other regulatory requirements. Early communication can also clarify whether the specific grant mechanism is eligible for transfer through this FOA, since the announcement notes that only certain types of NIH grants (identified in the full FOA) are covered. The "Type 6" language refers to NIH action codes used for transfers of awards between organizations, and "Clinical Trial Optional" indicates that the parent structure allows awards that may include clinical trials where permitted by the underlying activity code, though the FOA itself is focused on the administrative transfer rather than proposing a new clinical study.

Eligibility is broad and includes many categories of U.S. and non-U.S. organizations that might become the successor recipient, assuming the underlying award and NIH policies allow the transfer. Eligible applicants listed include state, county, and city or township governments; special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; Native American tribal organizations that are not federally recognized governments; public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with 501(c)(3) status and nonprofits without 501(c)(3) status (in both cases, other than institutions of higher education); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; small businesses; and other entities. The notice also explicitly highlights additional eligible categories such as Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions; Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs); Hispanic-serving Institutions; Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs); Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs); faith-based or community-based organizations; eligible federal agencies; regional organizations; U.S. territories or possessions; tribal governments that are not federally recognized; and non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities, meaning foreign organizations may also be able to serve as the successor where NIH policy and the specific award allow.

From an administrative perspective, the FOA sits under the grant funding instrument type and is categorized broadly across multiple activity areas in public listings, including health and other social service related categories. It is associated with a wide range of CFDA numbers (now commonly referred to through NIH and Assistance Listing identifiers), reflecting that many different NIH programs and Institutes/Centers may have awards that could potentially require successor-in-interest actions. The original closing date shown in the source information is October 1, 2020, and the listing does not specify an award ceiling or expected number of awards, which is consistent with an administrative transfer mechanism where volume depends on how many existing grantees undergo organizational changes rather than on a fixed funding competition.

Overall, this opportunity should be understood as a structured, NIH-approved process for asking permission to change the organization legally responsible for an already-funded NIH project. The core purpose is continuity and accountability: ensuring the work can continue without interruption while confirming the new organization can manage federal funds, follow NIH and federal requirements, and carry out the approved scope of work. The most important practical takeaway is that approval is discretionary, case-specific, and heavily dependent on coordination with the awarding Institute/Center and the grants management staff responsible for the current award.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, environment, food and nutrition, health, income security and social services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Successor-in-Interest (Type 6 Parent Clinical Trial Optional)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.077, 93.113, 93.121, 93.142, 93.143, 93.172, 93.173, 93.213, 93.233, 93.242, 93.273, 93.279, 93.281, 93.282, 93.286, 93.307, 93.310, 93.313, 93.350, 93.351, 93.352, 93.361, 93.389, 93.393, 93.394, 93.395, 93.396, 93.397, 93.398, 93.399, 93.701, 93.702, 93.837, 93.838, 93.839, 93.840, 93.846, 93.847, 93.853, 93.855, 93.856, 93.859, 93.865, 93.866, 93.867, 93.879, 93.989.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2018-01-26.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2020-10-01. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

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