Updates to the Data Management and Sharing Plan (DMSP) Format

The National Science Foundation (NSF) recently announced an important update to its proposal submission process that may affect researchers preparing proposals.

Effective April 27, 2026, the Data Management and Sharing Plan (DMSP) required to be submitted with all U.S. NSF proposals will change formats, from a PDF upload to a webform in Research.gov. These changes reflect the supplemental policy notice NSF 26-202 published January 22, 2026. A Research.gov advisory was also posted on January 27, 2026, notifying the research community that the new form will be effective on this date.

What to expect:

• Effective April 27, 2026, the proposal’s DMSP will be collected through a webform that is built directly into Research.gov. 
• The webform will be generated based on the primary Directorate of the proposal selected at the time of proposal creation.
• The webform must be completed to submit a proposal unless a justification is provided. 
• Documents uploaded before April 27, 2026, will be accessible on the Data Management and Sharing Plan’s page.
• However, once data is saved in the new form, the previously uploaded PDF will be overwritten.
• If your proposal is submitted on or before April 27, 2026, a proposal file update is not required.
• Additional information on each section of the webform is also available at this link.

Questions? If you have IT system-related questions, please contact the NSF IT Service Desk at 1-800-381-1532 (7:00 AM – 9:00 PM ET; Monday – Friday except federal holidays) or via rgov@nsf.gov. Policy-related questions should be directed to policy@nsf.gov.