Cost Reimbursable Vs. Fixed Price

Characteristic Cost Reimbursable Fixed Price
Rebudgeting Prior sponsor approval may be required No restrictions
Carryforward Prior sponsor approval may be required No restrictions
Payment Trigger Financial reporting and technical progress Completion of deliverables/milestones or contractually defined fixed payment schedule
Pricing in Agreement Detailed budget by cost category; prepare to justify in detail all actual project expenses Milestone/Deliverable or other Payment Schedule, may be based on rates; no detailed line-item budget is presented to the sponsor and there should be no post award financial reporting
Audit Individual expenses subject to audit Expenses generally not subject to audit, but Uniform Guidance should be followed when estimating costs; internal budget is still required to verify cost reasonableness
Residual Balance Not applicable   Retained by NIU subject to Residual Funds policy
When Appropriate Most sponsored awards are cost reimbursable due to the uncertain nature of research and the programs being funded Should only be used when the scope of work and deliverables are well defined and all costs necessary can be clearly identified

Contact Us

Sponsored Programs Administration
203 Lowden Hall
Northern Illinois University
DeKalb, IL 60115-2828
815-753-1581

Pre-award and Proposals
asosp@niu.edu

Post-award and Award Management
GrantsFiscal@niu.edu

InfoEd Questions
erahelp@niu.edu

Staff Directory
Organizational Chart

Proposal Intake Form

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