As we approach the major NIH R01 deadline on Thursday, February 5, the Department of Contracts and Grants (DCG) would like to highlight several important updates and best practices to help ensure a smooth and successful submission process.
1. Submit Early
High system traffic is expected on 2/5/26, especially between 11:00 AM–5:00 PM. Submitting earlier in the day (or earlier in the week) gives you time to address any issues if an application is rejected by the agency.
2. Use Cayuse S2S Validation
We strongly recommend using the System-to-System (S2S) functionality in Cayuse. Cayuse provides direct NIH validation, allowing you to check your application against NIH systems during development—not just at submission.
3. Address Errors Early
Understanding validation messages ahead of time can prevent submission delays:
Real-Time Validation Errors: Must be resolved before submission (unless the NOFO states otherwise).
Final Validation Errors: Must be fixed—these will block submission to Grants.gov.
- Warnings: Do not prevent submission. Review carefully, but do not delay a valid proposal.
Important Reminder: SciENcv is Now Required
Effective January 25, 2026, NIH requires that Biosketches and Current & Pending/Other Support be generated only through SciENcv. NIH will no longer accept documents created outside of SciENcv. DCG has released a MicroLearning Monday video covering SciENcv requirements and how to prepare compliant NIH and NSF documents:
👉 Watch SciENcv Explained – Preparing NIH and NSF Biosketches & Other Support
SciENcv Warnings in Cayuse
If SciENcv-generated PDFs are uploaded into Cayuse Proposals S2S, you may see a warning that does not align with NIH feedback.
What you might see:
- In Cayuse S2S: A warning that the PDF cannot be verified.
- In eRA Commons: The same file is accepted without issue.
Why this happens:
Cayuse currently does not transmit a specific metadata tag used by NIH to recognize SciENcv’s digital certification, triggering a precautionary warning.
What to do:
✅ If you used SciENcv: You may safely ignore this specific warning.
❌ If you did not use SciENcv: Generate the required documents in SciENcv and re-upload them.
What’s coming next:
A SciENcv Detector is in development to eliminate these false warnings.
Questions?
Please reach out to your DCG Officer if you have any questions.