Accounting
Compliance (CaaS)
Grant Management
Period of Performance for Federal Grants: Allowable Dates, Pre-Award Costs and Closeout
Last updated: October 16, 2026 · Independent guide · We do not sell rankings or coverage.
The period of performance for a federal grant is the time between the award’s start and end dates, as defined in 2 CFR 200.1. You may charge a cost to the award only if it is incurred in an approved budget period inside that window, unless it is an approved pre-award cost or an administrative closeout cost. After the end date you have 120 calendar days (90 for subrecipients) to pay what you owe and file final reports. We checked the eCFR text quoted here on October 16, 2026, when Title 2 was shown as up to date as of October 14, 2026.
The rule in brief
- Who it applies to: nonprofits, colleges, school districts, states, local governments and Tribes receiving federal grants or cooperative agreements under 2 CFR Part 200, directly or as subrecipients.
- Requirement: costs must be incurred during the approved budget period (2 CFR 200.403(h)); the award must state period of performance and budget period dates (2 CFR 200.211(b)).
- Pre-award costs: need agency approval (200.458); where waived, up to 90 calendar days before the award date, at your own risk (200.308(g)(1)).
- Key dates: no-cost extension requests at least 10 days before the end date; liquidation and final reports within 120 days after it, or 90 for subrecipients (200.308, 200.344).
- Official source: eCFR, 2 CFR Part 200, as revised effective October 1, 2024 (Federal Register, 89 FR 30046, April 22, 2024).
What the rule requires
Section 200.1 defines period of performance as “the time interval between the start and end date of a Federal award, which may include one or more budget periods” (eCFR, 2 CFR 200.1, up to date as of October 14, 2026). A budget period is the funded portion of the award during which you may obligate funds. A five-year award may have five one-year budget periods, and stating the full period does not commit the agency to fund later years.
Section 200.403(h) applies the rule to every charge: “all other costs must be incurred during the approved budget period,” with an exception for administrative closeout costs (eCFR, 2 CFR 200.403, up to date as of October 14, 2026). The test is when the cost was incurred or obligated, not when you paid or posted it.
For school districts, 34 CFR 76.707 sets when an obligation occurs. The Nebraska Department of Education summarizes it: employee services when performed, contracted services on the date of a binding written commitment, travel when taken and rentals when the property is used (Nebraska Department of Education, no date shown). A three-year service contract charged to a one-year grant therefore falls partly outside the period.
Pre-award costs
Pre-award costs are costs incurred before the award starts, in anticipation of it, where needed for timely performance. Section 200.458 allows them only to the extent they would be allowable after the start date, and only with the agency’s written approval (eCFR, 2 CFR 200.458, up to date as of October 14, 2026).
An agency may waive that approval. Under 200.308(g)(1), a waiver lets you incur costs up to 90 calendar days before the federal award date; anything earlier still needs approval. The regulation says these costs are at your own risk and must be charged to the initial budget period unless the agency says otherwise (eCFR, 2 CFR 200.308, up to date as of October 14, 2026). Research awards get this waiver automatically unless the agency opts out (200.308(h)).
The federal award date is the date the agency official signed the award, which often differs from the start date. As an illustration, for an award signed June 15, 2025 with a waiver, the earliest pre-award cost date is March 17, 2025.
Extensions and no-cost extensions
A no-cost extension adds time without adding federal funds. Section 200.308(f)(10) requires prior approval, and requests “should be submitted at least 10 calendar days before the conclusion of the period of performance.” The agency may approve more than one if no statute or regulation prohibits it.
Where the award terms allow it, 200.308(g)(2) lets you start a one-time extension of up to 12 months yourself by notifying the agency in writing, with a justification and revised end date, at least 10 calendar days before the end date. You cannot use it only to spend unobligated balances, and you need approval if it adds funds or changes scope. NIH’s National Institute on Drug Abuse runs the first extension through the eRA Commons feature, which opens 90 days before the end date, and requires prior approval beyond 12 months (NIDA, no date shown).
Under 200.309, an approved extension amends the period of performance to end when the extension ends; a termination ends it on the termination date, and a renewal award starts a new period (eCFR, 2 CFR 200.309, up to date as of October 14, 2026).
Liquidation and the 120-day closeout window
Section 200.344 requires recipients to liquidate all obligations and submit all final financial, performance and other reports no later than 120 calendar days after the period ends. Subrecipients have 90 days, or an earlier date agreed with the pass-through entity. Extensions may be approved when justified (eCFR, 2 CFR 200.344, up to date as of October 14, 2026).
Liquidation means paying obligations incurred inside the period; you cannot start new program work. The one exception is administrative closeout costs, which 200.403(h) allows until the final report due date if paid by then. If your indirect rate is not final, you still file the final financial report and revise it later. Our SF-425 guide covers building that report from your ledger.
| Event | Recipient | Subrecipient | Section |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-award costs (if waived) | Up to 90 days before award date | Per subaward | 200.308(g)(1) |
| No-cost extension request | 10 days before end date | Per pass-through entity | 200.308(f)(10) |
| Liquidate obligations and file final reports | 120 days after end date | 90 days, or earlier | 200.344(b), (c) |
| Agency completes closeout | Within one year, where possible | Not specified | 200.344(h) |
As an illustration, an award running July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026 has a recipient deadline of October 28, 2026 and a subrecipient deadline of September 28, 2026.
Who is exempt or treated differently
No award is exempt from having a period of performance, but your award terms can change how it works.
- Education formula grants. Under 34 CFR 76.709, funds not obligated by the end of the fiscal year may be obligated during one more fiscal year, the Tydings carryover period (eCFR, 34 CFR 76.709, up to date as of October 14, 2026). For forward-funded programs that gives 27 months to obligate, then 120 days to liquidate (ECTA Center, no date shown).
- Single-budget-period awards. FEMA says Hazard Mitigation Assistance awards have one budget period equal to the period of performance (FEMA, no date shown).
- Subrecipients. Your dates come from the subaward, and you and the pass-through entity can agree on a date earlier than 90 days.
Penalties for missing the dates
Out-of-period costs are unallowable. After closeout reports arrive, the agency disallows them and deobligates unliquidated balances, and you must refund unobligated cash you are not authorized to keep (200.344(e), (f)). If you miss closeout requirements, including final reports, the agency must report a material failure to comply in SAM.gov and may take other action under 200.339.
Records you must keep
Keep all award records for three years from the date you submit the final financial report, or longer if an audit, claim or litigation is open (eCFR, 2 CFR 200.334, up to date as of October 14, 2026). For period-of-performance testing, keep:
- The notice of award and each amendment showing period and budget dates.
- Pre-award approvals or the award term that waives them, and extension requests with the dates sent.
- Purchase orders, contracts and timesheets proving when each cost was obligated.
- Final and revised financial reports and refund records.
The same records feed your schedule of expenditures of federal awards, so a date error usually appears there too.
What to set up in your fund accounting system
Most out-of-period findings start with a charge coded to a grant after its end date, or a pre-award cost nobody approved. Add these fields to each award record and check them against each transaction’s incurred date.
- Period of performance start and end dates from the notice of award, updated the day an extension is approved.
- Budget period dates, so year-two costs cannot hit year-one funds.
- Pre-award start date, filled in only when you hold an approval or waiver.
- Liquidation deadline: end date plus 120 days (90 for subawards), after which all postings are blocked.
- Status (active, closeout, closed), each with its own posting rules.
Validate the service date on invoices, timesheets and expense reports rather than the posting date, since an August invoice for June services is a valid liquidation payment. Block new purchase orders and timesheets after the end date but keep AP payments open until the liquidation deadline. If your system checks only posting dates, run a weekly report of grant charges dated outside the award dates. Open encumbrances show what you still must liquidate; see our encumbrance accounting guide.
- Sage Intacct. A project status can prevent timesheet entry, expense entry, purchasing and invoice generation. The documentation says recurring purchasing transactions are not blocked (Sage Intacct Help, last modified October 8, 2026).
- CGI Advantage. Colorado’s CORE system uses Effective From and Effective To dates on program and funding elements, and transactions coded to an expired element fail validation. The state warns that these dates also block pending corrections (Colorado CORE, no date shown).
- Oracle PeopleSoft. Minnesota’s SWIFT guide says project dates set default control dates, payroll dates must fall between them when a project budget exists, and closing the project halts processing (Minnesota Management and Budget, July 17, 2024).
How we researched this
We read the current eCFR text of 2 CFR 200.1, 200.211, 200.308, 200.309, 200.334, 200.344, 200.403 and 200.458 on October 16, 2026, and confirmed eCFR lists no Part 200 amendments after the October 1, 2024 revision. We added Education Department carryover rules, agency guidance and accounting system documentation. The pages ranking for this topic are mostly short agency FAQs that define the period without covering extensions, liquidation or system setup.
Related guides
- Grant Budget Template: Categories, Narrative and 2 CFR 200
- Time and Effort Reporting for Federal Grants: 2026 Guide
- Single Audit Requirements: $1M Threshold and Major Programs
Frequently asked questions
Can I pay an invoice after the period of performance ends?
Yes, if the goods or services were obligated or received during the period. Pay it within 120 calendar days after the end date, or 90 for subrecipients, under 2 CFR 200.344(c). New work after the end date is unallowable.
What is the difference between the period of performance and the budget period?
The period of performance covers the whole award. A budget period is a funded portion within it during which you may obligate funds, and a multi-year award can have several.
Are pre-award costs allowed under the Uniform Guidance?
Only with written agency approval under 2 CFR 200.458, unless the agency has waived it. With a waiver, 2 CFR 200.308(g)(1) allows costs up to 90 calendar days before the award date, at your own risk.
How early do I need to request a no-cost extension?
At least 10 calendar days before the period ends, under 2 CFR 200.308. Your award terms may set an earlier date, so check them.
What happens if I miss the 120-day closeout deadline?
The agency closes the award with the information it has and must report your material failure to comply in SAM.gov. Unpaid obligations may be deobligated and unspent advances must be refunded.
Sources
- eCFR, 2 CFR 200.1, 200.308, 200.309, 200.334, 200.344, 200.403 and 200.458, up to date as of October 14, 2026, checked October 16, 2026.
- eCFR, 34 CFR 76.709, up to date as of October 14, 2026.
- Federal Register, 89 FR 30046, April 22, 2024.
- NIDA, No-Cost Extensions, no date shown.
- FEMA, Hazard Mitigation Assistance period of performance, no date shown.
- Nebraska Department of Education, Period of Performance fact sheet, no date shown.
- ECTA Center, Fiscal 101: Obligation and Liquidation, no date shown.
- Sage Intacct Help, Create a project status, last modified October 8, 2026 (Sage sells this product).
- Colorado CORE, Effective To and From Dates, no date shown.
- Minnesota Management and Budget, SWIFT: Understand Project Dates, July 17, 2024.
- CGI, Colorado and West Virginia go live on CGI Advantage, August 21, 2014 (CGI sells this product).
- Minnesota Office of the Legislative Auditor, Report 12-23 on SWIFT (PeopleSoft), November 16, 2012.
Sherman Hsieh
Independent analysis of enterprise software — ERP, CRM and more
