NIH FUNDING PROCESS

The budget process for federal agencies such as NIH begins each year with the President’s Budget, which proposes funding levels for federal agencies. This request is submitted to Congress, typically in the spring, and serves as a starting point for the appropriations process. Congress then works through the House and Senate Appropriations Committees to draft annual funding bills for groups of individual agencies.

NIH funding is included in the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (L/HHS) appropriations bill, one of twelve discretionary spending bills Congress develops each year. The agency also receives limited resources from the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies appropriations bill, along with some small amounts of mandatory budget authority.

Once Congress passes a final L/HHS bill, often in a package with other appropriations bills, it is sent to the President for signature. If the bill is not enacted by the start of a new fiscal year on October 1, Congress may pass a continuing resolution (CR) to temporarily fund the government at prior-year levels until Congress passes a full-year appropriations bill.

You can learn more about past NIH budget requests and the history of the agency’s appropriations here. The Congressional Research Service (CRS) has also published a report detailing the NIH budget and appropriations process for the last 30 years.

Fiscal Year 2026

President’s Budget (released on May 30, 2025)

  • Decreases NIH funding to $28.5 billion, a $18.3 billion decrease (-39%) below the FY25 enacted level of $46.8 billion (after adjustment for proposed structural changes to the Institutes and Centers).

The President’s FY 2026 Discretionary Budget Request

Senate L/HHS Bill, Report, and Markup (approved by the Committee on July 31, 2025)

  • Increases NIH funding to $47.2 billion, a $400 million increase (+1%) over the enacted level of $46.8 billion.

Senate FY 2026 LHHS Bill Text
Senate FY 2026 LHHS Report
Senate FY 2026 LHHS Markup

House L/HHS Bill, Report, and Markup (approved by the Committee on September 9, 2025)

  • Increases NIH funding to $46.9 billion, a $99 million increase (+0.21%) over the enacted level of $46.8 billion.

House FY 2026 LHHS Bill Text
House FY 2026 LHHS Report
House FY 2026 LHHS Markup

Final FY 2026 Appropriations – TBD

Success Rates

At NIH, success rates are a key indicator of the competitiveness of the grant funding process. The success rate represents the percentage of grant applications that ultimately receive funding, calculated by dividing the number of awards made by the total number of applications reviewed in a given fiscal year. Importantly, this figure is not the same as the percentage of applications funded in a single review round. Since applications may be resubmitted in later cycles, the annual success rate captures a broader picture of competitiveness.

NIH success rates vary by Institute and Center, research area, and grant mechanism, but historically they have declined when the number of applications has grown faster than appropriated funding. A lower success rate means investigators are more likely to leave the field for other pursuits, and that those remaining often spend more time submitting more proposals, underscoring the intense competition for NIH awards.

The following charts capture the success rates for the largest NIH Institutes and Centers (i.e., those representing nearly 70 percent of the agency’s budget). Note that this table is for FY24 and became available when the FY26 President’s Budget was released on May 30, 2025. Success rates for FY25 are not likely to be available until the next President’s Budget is released.

Previous Year’s Success Rates Table:

FY2024 SUCCESS RATES FOR THE EIGHT LARGEST NIH INSTITUTES (DOWNLOADABLE PDF)