Organizations transitioning to the Grants Enterprise Management Solution (GEMS) must register in the eRA Commons Portal.  eRA Commons is an online interface developed by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) that allows grant applicants, recipients, and federal staff to access, manage, and share administrative information related to grants and cooperative agreements throughout the entire grants management lifecycle, from submission to closeout. 

IMPORTANT: To submit applications, in addition to establishing an eRA Commons account, recipients must also maintain active registrations on SAM.gov and Grants.gov. 

Get Started with eRA Commons

Registering a new organization in eRA Commons can require several steps across multiple systems.  Plan ahead, as the overall registration and account setup process can take up to six weeks, depending on which actions below are necessary. 

• Register with SAM.gov to obtain a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) or verify SAM.gov registration is active 
• Register with Grants.gov 
• Register your organization in eRA Commons  
• Create a Project Director/Principal Investigator (PD/PI) account

Organizations Already Registered in SAM.gov, Grants.gov and eRA Commons

If your organization is already registered in eRA Commons and a member of your organization needs an eRA Commons account, contact your organization’s Signatory Official (SO), Administrative Official (AO), or Account Administrator (AA) to request an account. Guidance on creating and managing eRA Commons accounts is available on the eRA Commons Account Management.  

Organizations Not Yet Registered in eRA Commons

Registering a new organization in eRA Commons requires several steps before individual accounts can be established.  Guidance on registering your organization in eRA Commons is available on the eRA website, Register Your Institution in eRA Commons.

Account Management

eRA Commons accounts are classified as one of three role types:  Administrative, Scientific, and Other -- each with specific permissions. PD/PIs cannot create their own accounts and must rely on institutional administrators. For additional account management and registration information, please visit the links included below:  

• Understanding Account Types - Learn about Administrative roles (SO, AO, AA, FSR) and Scientific roles (PD/PI, trainees, project personnel) and their specific permissions.
• Creating New Accounts - Step-by-step process for SOs and AAs to create new user accounts and assign appropriate roles.
• Find Your Signatory Official - Locate your institution's SOs for account creation, password resets, or institutional changes through Institution Profile.
• Account Roles & Permissions - Comprehensive guide to eRA Commons roles, their capabilities, and restrictions within the system.
• Institution Profile Management - Central repository for institutional information, including contact details, assurances, and certifications, managed by SOs.
• Account Affiliation & Switching - Process for affiliating existing accounts with new institutions when researchers change organizations.

An overview of the eRA Commons platform's features and system capabilities is available on the eRA Website, eRA Commons Overview.

Questions? 

See eRA Service Desk Support; submit a web ticket (preferred method of contact); or contact toll-free: 1-866-504-9552; Phone: 301-402-7469; Email: [email protected].