ForecastedResearch announcementOpportunity RFA-OD-26-034

Building Sustainable Software Tools for Open Science (R03 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)

National Institutes of Health · Department of Health and Human Services

At a glance

Building Sustainable Software Tools for Open Science (R03 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) is a forecasted federal grant opportunity from the National Institutes of Health (Department of Health and Human Services). The agency's forecast estimates an application due date of June 16, 2026; forecast dates can change. Applicant types listed as eligible include state governments, county governments, city or township governments, special district governments, independent school districts and 10 more. Cost sharing is not required. It is funded under Assistance Listing 93.310 (Trans-NIH Research Support).

Summary assembled from the official notice's fields. The official notice governs.

Key facts

Feb 5, 2026Forecast posted
Apr 15, 2026 (est.)Full notice expected
Jun 16, 2026 (est.)Application deadline
Apr 13, 2027 (est.)Est. award datenext date

Posted: Feb 5, 2026
Est. close date: Jun 16, 2026
Est. award date: Apr 13, 2027
Award floor: Not specified
Award ceiling: Not specified
Est. total funding: Not specified
Expected awards: Not specified
Cost sharing: Not required
Funding instrument: Grant
Opportunity category: Discretionary
Fiscal year: FY2026

Typical awards for this program (SAM.gov listing for ALN 93.310, not this notice): $3,000 to $27,999,994 with the average being $640,952.

Who can apply

State governments
County governments
City or township governments
Special district governments
Independent school districts
Public colleges & universities
Federally recognized tribal governments
Public & Indian housing authorities
Native American tribal organizations
501(c)(3) nonprofits
Nonprofits without 501(c)(3) status
Private colleges & universities
For-profit organizations (not small businesses)
Small businesses
Others (see notice)

Additional information on eligibility (from the notice)

Other Eligible ApplicantsIndian/Native American Tribal Governments (Other than Federally Recognized);Eligible Agencies of the Federal Government;U.S. Territory or Possession;Faith-based or Community-based Organizations;Regional Organizations;Non-domestic (non-U.S.) Entities (Foreign Institutions).

Can your organization apply?

A quick check against the listed applicant types — other requirements in the notice still apply.

Based on the published notice. Review the official notice for complete eligibility requirements.

What it funds

Official synopsis as published by the agency, formatted for readability.

The Office of Data Science Strategy (ODSS) along with other NIH Institutes and Centers NEI, NHLBI, NHGRI, NIA, NIAAA, NIAMS, NIBIB, NICHD, NIDCD, NIDCR, NIDDK, NIDA, NIEHS, NIMH, NINDS, NIMHD, NLM, NCCIH, and NCI intends to publish a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) to solicit applications for renewal of the funding opportunity for Building Sustainable Software Tools for Open Science (RFA-OD-24-010).

This funding opportunity is intended to provide a flexible mechanism to support the use of best practices and design principles for scientific software development/engineering and to promote community engagement for open science. Successful grants will enable and/or enhance biomedical, clinical, behavioral, social, and health-related research endeavors by (1) developing robust, sustainable, scalable, and reproducible research software tools and workflows, (2) extending the impact of research software by broader dissemination to the scientific community, (3) supporting collaborations between scientists and software engineers to leverage modern, best practices in research software development, and (4) enhancing software skills of the research workforce. This initiative is aligned with the NIH Strategic Plan for Data Science, which describes actions aimed at building a better data infrastructure and a modernized data ecosystem.

No applications are being solicited at this time. Given the early expiration of RFA-OD-24-010, this notice will allow for potential applicants the opportunity to continue developing high-impact research software projects. Investigators with expertise and insights into this area of research software development are encouraged to consider applying for this new NOFO that will use the R03 activity code.

How to apply

0 of 8 done · progress saved in this browser

Read the full announcement (NOFO)Eligibility, evaluation criteria, page limits and required attachments are in the full notice on Grants.gov. Open ↗
Confirm eligibility and fitCheck your organization type above; no cost sharing is required.
Register (or renew) in SAM.gov and get a UEIFree. New registrations can take several weeks; registrations must be renewed every year. Open ↗
Set up Grants.gov accessCreate a Grants.gov account and make sure someone has the Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) role. Open ↗
Watch for the full noticeThe agency estimates posting it around April 15, 2026. Save this grant to track changes.
Prepare narrative, budget and attachmentsFollow the notice's format exactly — page limits and required forms are common reasons applications are rejected.
Ask the agency contact any questions earlyOffice of Data Science Strategy (ODSS) · sustainablesoftware@nih.gov Open ↗
Submit before June 16, 2026Submit a few days early and keep your Grants.gov confirmation and validation emails.

Assistance Listing

What is an ALN?

93.310Trans-NIH Research SupportProgram →

Reported obligations under ALN 93.310

Historical data · not a prediction

FY24

$1.17B

FY25

$1.06B

FY26

$28.1M est.

Source: SAM.gov Assistance Listing 93.310. Program-wide totals, not awards from this specific opportunity.

Who was funded under ALN 93.310

Historical data · not a prediction

Since October 1, 2023, 5,175 grant awards had funding actions under Trans-NIH Research Support, with 7,955 sub-awards passed on to other organizations. These are program-wide awards, not awards from this specific notice.

WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY, THE$96.5M
THE CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF PHILADELPHIA$95.5M
THE LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY$95.3M
YALE UNIV$81.2M
THE JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY$76M

Recipients, states, recent awards and sub-awards →Source: USAspending.gov.

Agency contact (as published)

Office of Data Science Strategy (ODSS)
sustainablesoftware@nih.gov
Please contact via email

Quick answers

Is “Building Sustainable Software Tools for Open Science (R03 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)” open for applications yet?

Not yet. It is a forecast — an agency's advance notice of an expected opportunity. The agency estimates posting the full notice around April 15, 2026. Forecast details and dates can change.

Who is eligible to apply for “Building Sustainable Software Tools for Open Science (R03 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)”?

The official notice names these applicant types as eligible: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public colleges & universities, Federally recognized tribal governments, Public & Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations, 501(c)(3) nonprofits, Nonprofits without 501(c)(3) status, Private colleges & universities and 3 more. Additional restrictions may apply; review the full notice.

How do I apply for “Building Sustainable Software Tools for Open Science (R03 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)”?

Applications are submitted through the official source, not through GrantsJunction. Open the official notice on Grants.gov (opportunity RFA-OD-26-034), and review the full announcement and application package. Organizations applying through Grants.gov generally need an active SAM.gov registration and a Grants.gov account, which can take several weeks to set up.

Matched on shared Assistance Listings, agency, categories and eligible applicant types.

Closes todayResearchALN 93.310