Award Closeout
"Award Closeout" refers to the actions taken at the end of a project ensuring all administrative actions and required work related to a funded project are completed, financial matters are resolved, and final reports are submitted to the sponsor, typically within a defined timeframe or per the terms of the agreement.
Timely closeout is crucial for maintaining a good relationship with sponsors and ensuring compliance with award terms and conditions.
If no additional time or funding is needed to complete the project tasks and objectives, the award must be closed in the manner described below, a process made easier by good award management over the life of an award. The Principal Investigator (PI), the Local Research Administrator (LRA), Pre-Award and Post Award partner for timely closeout process.
If you require assistance or to request a closeout meeting, please contact your Post Award Financial Specialist.
Notifications (90 days before end date)
Preparation for the award closeout begins three months (90 days) prior to the end date of the award. This is done to allow for the accurate forecasting of pending allowable expenses not yet allocated to the award, and to allow for any adjustment to financial entries that need to be made. Ninety days before the end of a given award, a notification is automatically sent by the Research Administration System (RAS) to the PI and LRA with information regarding the upcoming award closeout. If upon receipt of this notice the PI determines that the project is not complete and requires a no-cost extension, it is imperative that a No-Cost Extension request be submitted to Pre-Award immediately.
Closeout Guidelines:
- Review the award with the PI
- Confirm that all obligations associated with the project have been fulfilled
- Does the award need a no cost extension?
- Ensure all the sponsor's expectations are met
- Verify that all deliverables have been submitted
- Confirm that all milestones have been reached
- Confirm that all obligations associated with the project have been fulfilled
- Review the terms of the award – To ensure compliance with all terms
- Review and update recurring charges – To ensure all are current and that they do not continue to post after the end date of the award
- Review any subcontract(s) – Verify that subcontract obligations are fulfilled
- Remove Over-Expenditures – Ensure any over-expenditures are resolved
- Remove expenditures that were not incurred within the award period – Ensure expenditures outside the award period are excluded.
Responsibilities
The Principal Investigator, Lead and Local Research Administrators, Pre-Award and Post Award all play key roles in the closeout process.
Required Actions
No-Cost Extension: A no-cost extension is an extension of the project's period of performance beyond the originally approved end date with, as the name suggests, no additional funds. If a no cost extension is required a request should be sent by the LRA to Pre-Award.
Ancillary Cost: Review to ensure all transfers have been processed moving cost from DeptID's to the account. This must be completed by the time the project ends.
Apptricity: Review to ensure all travel has been processed and posted to the award.
Cost Share: Any committed cost sharing must be expended by the time the project ends. Provide a final accounting of cost share to Post Award.
Marketplace: Update TSS with any necessary changes to your profile by creating a case.
P-Card Update: Update TSS with any necessary changes to your profile by creating a case.
Open Commitments: Submit, liquidate, or cancel any encumbrances. Stop or redirect all re-occurring charges by the end date.
Over-Expenditures: Transfer deficits out of sponsored awards promptly within 60 days after the award end date. Refer to the Outstanding Balance Policy on Sponsored Awards and Cost Transfer Policy for additional details.
Program Income: Any program income must be expended by the time the project ends. Please work with Post Award on final accounting.
Residual Balances: Request must be submitted to Post Award. Refer to the Residual Balance on Sponsored Award Policy if your award is fixed price and has a residual balance.
Salary/Labor Distribution: A request should be submitted via eServe Workforce Portal to move employees/students off the expired/closing award. Also, review key personnel salary allocations and document any DeptID cost-share of salaries for committed grant effort.
Subawards: Obtain a final invoice (clearly marked "final") and any other final reports from each of the subrecipients no later than 60 days after sub-award end date to ensure timely closeout. Post Award will confirm receipt of the “final" invoice for reporting and close-out.
Tufts CMS: Update accounts associated with animal care and use on this award or make arrangements for disposition.
Final Review of Expenses and Financial Workbook: Post Award will prepare the final workbook of expenditures along with a review of the award terms & conditions and ensure that all expenses are appropriate. Post Award will route the workbook to the LRA/PI requesting review and approval of the workbook by the LRA. The LRA should return the workbook to the Post Award specialist with any unaccounted-for expenditures and any acknowledgement that erroneous or unallowable expenses will be transferred to department accounts.
Most federal sponsors and many private sponsors require the submission of final reports within 90 days after the award end date (some agencies may require early or later submission). When Tufts is a subrecipient, final reports are due to the prime institution in advance of the 90-day mark. Please refer to the award terms and conditions to determine the due dates.
Final Financial Statement (FFR)/Final Financial Status Report (FSR)/Final Invoice: The final financial report or invoice is prepared and submitted to the sponsor by Post Award within 90 days of the end of the award, or as required by the award terms and conditions
- Final Financial workbooks will be submitted by Post-Award to the LRA and PI, 30 days prior to the report due date for review and/or comment. This workbook MUST be returned within 15 days of receipt and include any pending expenditures received, but not yet processed in PeopleSoft. If pending expenditures are not included in the returned approved workbook by a LRA/PI and subsequently are charged to the award after submission of the Final Report, the department will assumes full responsibility in absorbing the uncovered expenses/receivable.
Patent/Invention Report: Pre-Award will prepare and submit the Final Invention Report based on the information obtained from the Office for Technology Transfer and Industry Collaboration.
Final Technical/Performance/Narrative Report: The PI prepares and, in most cases, also submits the final technical report and any other progress reports required by the sponsor. Please contact your Pre-Award Signing Official to obtain an institutional signature on the technical report if necessary or request assistance with submission.