NIH Data Sharing Policy

Beginning Jan 2023, NIH grant recipients will be expected to comply to a new Data Management and Sharing policy. Sharing scientific data accelerates biomedical research discovery, enhances research rigor and reproducibility, provides accessibility to high-value datasets, and promotes data reuse for future research studies.

Key points for the NIH Data Management and Sharing Policy:

• All NIH funded projects that generate data are required to comply with this policy
• Investigators will be required to write a data management and sharing plan (recommended components to include in the plan)
• Data management and sharing plans are to be submitted with NIH grant applications
• Researchers are asked to maximize appropriate data sharing (guidelines for selecting data repositories)
• Compliance is expected and is monitored at regular reporting intervals
• Data should be available at the time of publication or at the conclusion of the granting period, whichever comes first.

As part of the NIH Data Management and Sharing Policy, the NIH has released supplemental information guiding the critical features in a Data Management and Sharing Plan (DMSP). See the links at the bottom of the box for additional details. In summary:

The Data Management and Sharing Plan (DMSP) should

• Describe the types of data and accompanying metadata or documentation that will be collected
• Identify related tools, software or code that would be used
• Describe community standards for data collected and indicate what descriptive information (metadata) would be included
• Describe plans for preservation of data and access to the data such as depositing data into a data repository or archive
• Identify any potential restrictions or limitations to sharing the data
• Describe the oversight of data management and sharing

NOTE: Data management and sharing plans will not be scored by grant reviewers, but will be treated as terms and conditions of the grant. Reviewers will still be able to comment on any budget allocations relating to data management or sharing. Review the NIH guide for Budgeting for Data Management and Sharing for more details (link below).

Compliance to NIH grant data management and sharing plans is expected by the NIH and will be monitored at regular reporting intervals. Data management and sharing plans (DMSPs) will be considered terms and conditions of awarded grants and failure to comply can jeopardize future funding opportunities. DMSPs can be updated during regular reporting intervals in order to ensure compliance. Other key compliance considerations:

• Sharing data is a key component of the plans. Be sure to review the NIH guide on selecting data repositories for publishing data.
• If working with sensitive data, such as data containing personally identifiable information or data on protected or vulnerable populations, review the policy drafts to stay up to date on the best practices for working with the data.