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Introducing VisitNIH, the New Visitor Access Process

​Collaboration is essential to achieving our NIH mission. Each year we welcome thousands of patients and researchers from around the world to our campuses to carry out groundbreaking research. To maintain that spirit of partnership and align our agency with federally mandated protocols, we are excited to launch VisitNIH on January 30, 2025.  

VisitNIH, part of the NIH Visitor Access Management Initiative (VAMI), is an online preregistration system that allows patients and researchers to arrive to campus faster and easier. All non-U.S. person visitors will be required to register prior to their visit, with a recommended 30-day advance notice. U.S. person visitors (U.S. citizens, green card holders) are not required to use VisitNIH but are encouraged to preregister to avoid wait times at the gate. This lead time allows for proper review and permits NIH to communicate any discrepancies in advance of the visit. 

To learn more about VisitNIH from the staff perspective, please watch this short video. The VisitNIH team also created a video you can share with your visitors.

The VisitNIH team will be hosting a virtual town hall, open to the entire NIH community, on Tuesday January 14, 2025, from 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm, to provide more information and answer questions. If you would like to submit questions in advance, please email vami@mail.nih.gov by January 7, 2025. A VideoCast link to the town hall is forthcoming.

The VisitNIH launch is part of a phased rollout that will eventually apply to all NIH facilities nationwide, effectively unifying the visitor experience and securing our people and our science. In the initial phase, preregistration is only required for non-U.S person visitors at the Bethesda Main campus, NCI Shady Grove, 5601 Fishers Lane and Biomedical Research Center at Baltimore-Bayview (BRC). For more information, refer to the VisitNIH/VAMI site (NIH Access Only) or email VAMI@mail.nih.gov.  

Dates to Remember: 

  • January 7: Deadline to submit Town Hall questions in advance to vami@mail.nih.gov  
  • January 14: Attend NIH Virtual Town Hall  
  • January 30: VisitNIH pre-registration portal becomes available 

 


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