2 CFR 200: the Uniform Guidance, section by section

The Uniform Guidance is the rulebook for almost every federal grant. Here are 122 of its sections and the 310 requirements they set, in plain English: what you must do, when it applies, and which part of your application it touches. Each page links to the regulation text.

Subpart A: Acronyms and definitions

The defined terms the rest of the Uniform Guidance depends on, such as modified total direct costs, equipment and subaward.

Subpart D: Post-award requirements

Financial management, internal controls, payment, cost sharing, property, procurement, subrecipients, reporting, records and closeout.

Subpart E: Cost principles

What makes a cost allowable, direct and indirect costs, and the rules for specific items of cost, from compensation to travel.

Appendix II: Contract provisions

The clauses your contracts under a federal award must include.

What changed in the 2024 Uniform Guidance

OMB’s revision applies to federal awards made on or after October 1, 2024. The changes most grantees notice first:

RuleBefore → 2024 revision
De minimis indirect cost rate10% → up to 15% of modified total direct costs
Single audit threshold$750,000 → $1,000,000 in federal awards expended a year
Equipment threshold$5,000 → $10,000 per unit
Subaward amount included in MTDCFirst $25,000 → first $50,000 of each subaward
Fixed amount subawardsUp to $250,000 → up to $500,000

See 200.414 indirect costs, 200.501 audit requirements, 200.1 definitions and 200.333 fixed amount subawards.

Grantable compliance database

Ask how the Uniform Guidance applies to your grant

Upload a funding notice, your draft budget or your award terms and ask. Grantable answers from its compliance database of federal, agency and state rules, with citations.

Uniform Guidance questions

What is 2 CFR 200?

2 CFR 200, the Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards, is the federal regulation that governs most federal grants and cooperative agreements to states, local governments, tribes, universities and nonprofits. It sets the rules for applying, managing the money, allowable costs, procurement, subrecipients, reporting, records, closeout and audits.

Is the Uniform Guidance the same as 2 CFR 200?

Yes. “Uniform Guidance” is the common name for 2 CFR part 200, issued by the Office of Management and Budget. Federal agencies adopt it in their own chapters of 2 CFR and add agency-specific terms, such as the NIH Grants Policy Statement or the DOJ Grants Financial Guide.

Who has to follow the Uniform Guidance?

Any non-federal entity that receives a federal grant or cooperative agreement, directly or as a subrecipient through a state or another organization. That includes nonprofits, universities, states, local governments and tribes. Some parts, like the cost principles, also apply to how you build the budget in your application.

What changed in the 2024 Uniform Guidance?

OMB’s 2024 revision took effect for awards made on or after October 1, 2024. Among the changes: the de minimis indirect rate rose to up to 15%, the single audit threshold to $1,000,000, the equipment threshold to $10,000, and the first $50,000 of each subaward now counts toward modified total direct costs. A further revision is in progress; each page here shows the version it reflects.

Plain-English summaries for information only, not legal advice. Always check the regulation text, your award terms and your agency’s guidance.