Salaries and fringe benefits generally consist of the largest portion of total direct charges to sponsors. Salaries are generally charged in proportion to the effort expended on the sponsored project. Some federal sponsors limit the amount of salary or rate that can be requested e.g., the National Institutes of Health (NIH) imposes a cap on the salary that can be charged to their awards.  All personnel costs charged to sponsored awards must comply with University policy, as well as with any specific sponsor requirements and federal and state laws and regulations.

Note:  SPA is currently updating several Policies and Guidelines to reflect Workday and Research Management Systems references and functionality (Spring 2023)


Additional Pay

Guidance for Additional Pay on Sponsored Funds Responsible Offices: Sponsored Projects Accounting/Office of Sponsored Research ServicesEffective Date: January […]

Administrative & Clerical Salaries

Administrative & Clerical Salaries on Sponsored Funds Responsible Offices: Sponsored Projects Accounting & Office of Sponsored Research ServicesEffective […]

Consultant Policy

Consultant Policy Responsible Offices: Sponsored Projects AccountingEffective Date: July 2023 Purpose This policy statement sets forth guidelines which […]

Effort Reporting

Effort Reporting Policies and Procedures Responsible Office: Sponsored Projects AccountingEffective Date: March 2017PDF version: Effort Reporting Policies and […]

Fringe Benefit Rates

FY24 Fringe Benefits Rates Washington University in St. Louis has negotiated new predetermined fringe benefit rates with our […]

Guidelines for Allocations and Extended Sourcing

Effective Date: Updated September 2023 Sponsored Projects Accounting (SPA) is responsible for the account set-up process for sponsored […]

NIH Salary Cap

NIH Salary Cap for Federal Fiscal Year 2023 Responsible Office: Sponsored Projects AccountingEffective Date: February 2023PDF version: NIH […]

Principal Investigator Salary Authorization

Policy On an annual basis, Principal Investigators (PIs) are required to authorize, in writing, the monthly salaries and […]

Sabbatical and Leave of Absence

Guidance for Sabbatical and Leave of Absence on Sponsored Projects Responsible Offices: Sponsored Projects Accounting/Associate Vice Chancellor for […]