SBIR Phase I — NIH (PHS Omnibus)
National Institutes of Health
Up to $323,090
NIH seed fund for biotech R&D
NIH funds early-stage biomedical and health-technology R&D through SBIR Phase I — a 6-month feasibility award of up to $323,090 for small businesses with a scientifically credible proof-of-concept. Unlike most grants, NIH SBIR is non-dilutive, competitive, and peer-reviewed: your application goes through formal study section scoring. 27 NIH institutes and centers each fund their own topic areas, from NCI (cancer diagnostics) to NIMH (mental health tech) to NIBIB (devices/imaging).
- Funding type
- Grant
- Level
- Federal
- Amount range
- $323,090
- Realistic amount
- Phase I awards typically cluster near the $250,000–$306,872 range in direct costs; most awardees spend 6 months on feasi…
- Deadline
- Between intakes — next standard receipt date: September 5, 2026. Standard annual cycle: September 5 · January 5 · April 5. New NOFO expected before Sept 5, 2026 (program reauthorized April 13, 2026).
- Status
- between-intakes
- States
- Nationwide
- Payment model
- advance
Who qualifies
- For-profit US small business concern with no more than 500 employees (including affiliates at time of award)
- More than 50% directly owned and controlled by US citizens or permanent resident aliens — or by another US small business that itself meets this rule
- Primary employment (>50% of working time) of the Principal Investigator must be with the applicant firm at time of award and during project
- Foreign organizations are not eligible to apply
- Company must be registered in the SBA SBIR Company Registry before submitting
- Active SAM.gov registration with a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) required
- eRA Commons account required for all PD/PIs and signing officials
- Project must have significant potential for commercialization
- SBIR Phase I does NOT require prior Phase I award (Phase II does)
Hard requirements
- Must be incorporated
- 51%+ US ownership required
What it covers
Eligible expenses
- Salaries and wages for PI, co-investigators, and staff working on the project
- Fringe benefits proportional to salaries charged
- Supplies and reagents consumed during the research
- Equipment under $5,000 per item (minor equipment); major equipment requires prior justification
- Contracted/subcontracted research services up to 33% of total Phase I costs (the 'two-thirds rule' — majority of work must be performed by the small business)
- Travel directly related to the project (domestic conferences, site visits)
- Consultant fees for specialized expertise
- Patient care costs if human subjects research requires clinical services
- Indirect (F&A) costs at the applicant's negotiated rate or a 26% de minimis rate
- SBIR fee (a 7% profit/fee on direct + indirect costs is allowable in Phase I)
Ineligible expenses
- Capital equipment over $5,000 per item without prior approval in the approved budget
- Construction or renovation of facilities
- Fundraising or investor relations activities
- Lobbying or political activities
- Entertainment, alcohol, or personal expenses
- Costs incurred before the Notice of Award date (pre-award costs require specific prior approval and are at applicant's risk)
- Foreign subcontracting exceeding program limits without specific approval
- Profit or fees on subcontracts (fee is only allowable at the prime awardee level)
- Salary exceeding the NIH Executive Level II cap ($221,900 as of January 2025)
How to apply
-
1
Register in SAM.gov and obtain UEI
Create or renew your System for Award Management registration at sam.gov to get a Unique Entity Identifier. Annual renewal required. Start at least 4–6 weeks before deadline — SAM processing can take 2–3 weeks for new registrations.
~4 hrs
-
2
Register in SBA SBIR Company Registry
Complete your company profile in the SBA's SBIR Company Registry at sbir.gov. Required before any SBIR submission. Takes 1–3 business days for approval. Provide ownership, employee count, and venture capital/institutional investor details accurately — misrepresentation is a federal violation.
~2 hrs
-
3
Set up eRA Commons accounts
Register your organization and all PD/PIs in NIH's eRA Commons (era.nih.gov). Signing Official (SO) account needed first; PI account is linked to your SO. Allow 1–2 weeks for institutional setup if your organization is new to NIH.
~3 hrs
-
4
Identify the right NIH institute and develop Specific Aims
Read the active PHS omnibus NOFO and identify the 1–2 NIH institutes whose mission aligns with your science. Write a 1-page Specific Aims document — this is the single most important page in the application. Consider emailing the program officer at your target institute to confirm fit before investing full application time.
~30 hrs
-
5
Prepare the full application package
Develop the Research Strategy (6 pages maximum for Phase I), Facilities & Resources, Biosketches for all key personnel, Budget and Budget Justification, and required commercialization plan. Human subjects and vertebrate animals sections required if applicable. Collect institutional letters if subcontracting >33% of work.
~100 hrs
-
6
Submit via Grants.gov Workspace
Assemble the full application package in Grants.gov Workspace and submit before the receipt date (5pm local time for the applicant institution). Allow 2 full business days before deadline for Workspace processing and any error resolution. After submission, eRA Commons will send a confirmation.
~8 hrs
-
7
Respond to peer review and manage award
Your application is assigned to a study section for peer review (~2 months post-deadline). You receive a Summary Statement and score. Fundable applications proceed to Advisory Council review. Upon award, comply with NIH reporting requirements including RPPR (Research Performance Progress Report) and financial reporting. Phase I awards are paid in advance via NIH's Payment Management System.
~15 hrs
SBIR / STTR details
SBIR phase amounts
| Phase | Max award | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Phase1 | $323,090 | 6 months typical (up to 12 months) |
| Phase2 | $2,153,927 | 2 years typical (up to 3 years) |
NAICS codes: 541714, 541715, 621999, 334510, 541711, 541712
Email the Program Officer at your target institute before submitting — POs routinely respond and can tell you within a week whether your project fits, saving 150+ hours. Study sections reward a tight hypothesis-driven Specific Aims page with clear if/then logic. Resubmissions (A1) historically have higher success rates than new submissions — plan for a 2-cycle strategy if your science is strong but your first score was borderline.
Deadline & timing
NIH SBIR runs 3 standard receipt cycles per fiscal year: September 5, January 5, and April 5. These dates are fixed year-over-year. After the April 13, 2026 reauthorization, NIH had no active NOFO as of May 2026 — a new PHS omnibus solicitation is expected to open several weeks before the September 5, 2026 receipt date. Awards typically follow 6–8 months after the submission deadline: a September 5 submission targets an April start date.
Programs that stack well
- Research & Development Tax Credit (Section 41)
- SBIR Phase II — NIH (PHS Omnibus)
- SBIR Phase I — NSF (America's Seed Fund)
- America Seed Fund Matching
- State Sbir Matching Programs
Related programs
Last reviewed 2026. GrantCompass is an independent funding-discovery tool and is not affiliated with any government agency. Always confirm details on the official program page.