The budget must be prepared in U.S. dollars. The NPF does not allow budgeting for administrative overhead or indirect costs. NPF does not allow costs associated with alterations or renovations.
Salary and benefits may be requested for the principal investigator and other key personnel. The NPF restricts the amount of direct salary paid to an individual using the current National Institutes of Health salary cap of $212,100. For more information, consult the NIH guidance on salary limitation for grants and cooperative agreements. The principal investigator may request no more than 30% salary support.
Requests for supplies should be divided into major categories (e.g., chemicals, plasticware, cell biology reagents, etc.) and use the NIH supply budget format. If animals are used in the project, please include unit cost per animal and costs for animal care. Dues, subscriptions, and books are not allowed.
NPF does not fund the purchase of major items of capital equipment. Equipment valued at less than $2500 is allowable and must be itemized in the budget.
Contractual services and their cost must be specified in the budget and clearly justified in the budget justification.
Travel costs must be directly related to the project and the dissemination of the results of the project. The purpose and destination of the travel must be indicated in the budget justification. For each grant mechanism, travel costs are capped at $3000 per grant year.