NIH Salary Cap

Effective January 1, 2024, the NIH salary cap will increase from $212,100 to $221,900. 

You should begin using the new salary cap in proposals and applications, including subawards and subcontracts, for funding as per NIH Notice #NOT-HS-24-007. The notice states: 

The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, restricts the amount of direct salary to Executive Level II of the Federal Executive pay scale. The Office of Personnel Management released new salary levels for the Executive Pay Scale and effective January 1, 2024, the salary limitation for Executive Level II is $221,900 per year (or $106.68 per hour for a FT appointment of 2080 hours per year).

For active awards, including awards that have been issued in FY 2024 (continuation and new) that were restricted to Executive Level II, if adequate funds are available, and if the salary cap increase is consistent with the institutional base salary, recipients may rebudget funds to accommodate the current Executive Level II salary level. Note that no adjustment will be made to any grant, cooperative agreement, or contract award already issued in FY2024."

For a historical record of the salary cap, including effective dates, see the Salary Cap Summary 

Every year since 1990, Congress has legislatively mandated a provision limiting the direct salary that an individual may receive under an NIH grant. The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2017, restricts the amount of direct salary to Executive Level II of the Federal Executive pay scale.  NIH grant/contract awards for applications/proposals that request direct salaries of individuals in excess of the applicable rate will be adjusted in accordance with the new salary limitation. 

Click here for additional information from the Procedure Library about applying a salary cap.