Effective September 15, 2021, NIH/eRA and its partner agencies will require ALL external users to only use login.gov to access eRA’s external modules including Commons, Commons Mobile, IAR and ASSIST. Please review the information below and the attached file Three Steps for Initial Setup at Login.gov.
Transitioning to and Using login.gov
As mandated in NOT-OD-21-040, eRA is moving to two-factor authentication via login.gov for accessing its external modules, meaning that log-in will require something you know (password) and something you have (a phone or other device). Users of eRA Commons, Commons Mobile, IAR, and ASSIST must use login.gov credentials (see below for login.gov method), instead of their Commons username and password, by the deadline of September 15, 2021 to access those modules. For details and a link to step-by-step instructions, see Two-Factor Authentication: Access eRA Modules via login.gov.
Logging In with Login.gov
This method uses login.gov, after a one-time associating of the login.gov account with the eRA Commons account. Groups of reviewers are being migrated during 2021; if you are a reviewer attempting to log in and you are redirected to create a login.gov account, that means that you are among a group currently being migrated to mandatory use of login.gov. Other Commons and ASSIST users are encouraged to start using login.gov as soon as possible before the September 15 deadline.
If you have trouble with the login.gov process, try these two support sources:
Login.gov Help Center: https://login.gov/help/
eRA Commons Support Desk: https://grants.nih.gov/support/index.html
You will continue to retain and maintain the eRA username and password after registering with login.gov; however you must always use login.gov to log into eRA Commons after creating the login.gov account creating and associating it with your eRA credentials. For details, see https://era.nih.gov/faqs.htm#XXIV.
IMPORTANT: BEFORE YOU START THE PROCESS:
• Make sure your eRA Commons account is active and unlocked, and you know your account password; if you are unsure of the password, then use the Forgot Password/Unlock Account link located below the username and password fields on the eRA Commons home screen to change your password.
• Also, ensure that you not are not using old bookmarked URLs to access eRA Commons. The URL for eRA Commons is https://public.era.nih.gov/commons/.
• Ensure your eRA Commons account is active and unlocked. If your eRA Commons account is inactive, you must contact your HRI Grant Administrator for assistance to activate/unlock your account.
• For those who use InCommon federated credentials, NIH is working with the InCommon Federation community to determine if and when that service could implement the necessary two-factor authentication processes to allow that login method to continue in the future.
