Collaborative International Cooperative Agreement (UF5)

Collaborative International Cooperative Agreement (UF5) is sponsored by National Institutes of Health (NIH). Facilitates international research collaborations through domestic prime cooperative agreement awards linked to independent foreign awards, with a unified application and review process.

Collaborative International Cooperative Agreement (UF5) | Grants & Funding U.S. Department of Health and Human Services National Institutes of Health Collaborative International Cooperative Agreement (UF5) To support international research collaborations, NIH will make domestic prime cooperative agreement awards with independent foreign awards that are linked to the prime.

Note: The project is submitted as one application that is reviewed as a whole. Prior to award, all international subprojects will be disaggregated and funded as separate UL2 cooperative agreement awards in lieu of a foreign subaward. In order to manage compliance and track international funding, the UL2 will be awarded directly to the foreign organization.

International subprojects should not be used for foreign consultants, purchasing unique equipment or supplies from foreign vendors, international collaborations that do not involve NIH funding or any foreign component that would not result in a foreign subaward. NIH no longer accepts applications that request funds for foreign components using the traditional cooperative agreement subaward/consortium structure.

The UF5 activity code facilitates an application and award structure that allows NIH to track the expenditure of federal funds at foreign components and meet federal reporting and oversight needs. U.S. domestic institutions The primary applicant organization must be domestic (located in the U.S.) and UF5 applications must have at least one International Project (i.e., foreign subproject).

Project Director/ Principal Investigator (PD/PI) Eligibility The leadership structure for the UF5 must include at least one PD/PI from the primary applicant organization, and at least one individual from each of the International Projects, who will serve as the PD/PI of the disaggregated Linked International Cooperative Agreement. Applications are reviewed as a whole.

Following merit review, UF5 applications identified by an NIH Institute or Center for funding consideration will be disaggregated. The International Project components will be pulled from the UF5, and each will be provided a distinct cooperative agreement number with an UL2 activity code. The foreign organization will be considered the applicant/recipient of the Linked International Cooperative Agreement (UL2).

Just-in-Time Information (e.g., IRB Approvals, IACUC Approvals, Current and Pending (Other) Support for key personnel), will be requested from both the UF5 and UL2 organizations independently. At this point in the process, if not already completed, the UF2 applicant must verify registration in SAM. gov, Grants.

gov, and eRA Commons, to ensure accurate awarding information moving forward. Should a project be selected for funding, NIH will issue a UF5 cooperative agreement award to the domestic organization and UL2 cooperative agreement awards to the foreign organizations. Each organization will be responsible for ensuring the terms and conditions of their Notices of Award are met.

Note that the system disaggregation of a UF5 application should not be considered a commitment to funding. NIH has the ability to fund all, none, or some of the components of the UF5 application, based on the assessment of the technical merit, materials submitted through the JIT process, and agency priorities. Application and Submission Information UF5 uses a multi-component application structure.

At a minimum, UF5 applicants will be expected to provide an Overall Component that addresses the project's overall objectives as a collaboration, a Research Project component that addresses the scientific and technical directions of the project, and an International Project component that addresses the foreign collaborator's role on the project.

Each funded foreign component should have a unique International Project component; therefore, an application with multiple foreign collaborators at different institutions would submit an application with multiple International Project components. Applications must include a letter from each foreign organization's AOR acknowledging that they will fill the role of recipient organization for the disaggregated cooperative agreement award.

NOT-OD-25-155 : New Application Structure for NIH-Funded International Collaborations (September 12, 2025) NOT-OD-25-104 : Updated NIH Policy on Foreign Subawards (May 1, 2025) For technical issues E-mail OER Webmaster