All federal employees, contractors, and organization affiliates must complete the Personal Identity Verification (PIV) process to be issued an HHS ID Badge or Restricted Local Area (RLA) badge.
DIS is responsible for verifying that all foreign nationals (not including U.S. Citizens or U.S. Lawful Permanent Residents) placed at NIH were lawfully admitted to the United States and are undertaking activities at NIH that are appropriate for their immigration status. After the Administrative Officer (AO) sponsors a foreign national for a badge in the NIH Enterprise Directory (NED), DIS must validate the foreign national's work status before the badge process can continue. DIS validates work status by entering the DIS Validation End Date (DVED) which is determined based on the foreign national's immigration status, work authorization, and NIH-requested end date.
DIS is only involved in the badging process to confirm immigration status and work authorization. Any other badge related inquiries should be directed to DPSAC and/or your Administrative Officer. The
Division of Personnel Security and Access Control (DPSAC) is responsible for badge issuance and is the best resource for obtaining additional information on the badging process.
Obtaining a Badge for the First Time
Foreign Nationals in the NIH Visiting Program
Non-Employee (Non-FTE) Designations:
Including Visiting Fellows (Pre and Post-Doctoral), Rotators, Collaborators, Special Volunteers, & Guest Researchers
NED validation occurs as part of the foreign national's DIS check-in process. See the
Check-In with DIS webpage for more information.
Employee (FTE) Designations:
Including Research Fellows, Clinical Fellows, Staff Scientists, Staff Clinicians, & Investigators
NED validation occurs as a part of the foreign national's Enter-on-Duty (EOD) appointment with the DIS Immigration Specialist who processed the case.
Other Foreign Nationals at NIH
B-1/WB Visitors:
Invited by an NIH Institute/Center (IC) B-1 Delegate for visits of 90 days or less.
Refer to our
B-1/WB Delegate Program (NIH Users Only) guidance.
Contractors,
Tenants, Volunteers, and Others:
Sponsored by Another Employer and Placed at NIH.
Refer to our
Contractor, Tenant, Volunteer Badges page.
U.S. Lawful Permanent Residents and U.S. Citizens:
Also known as "Green Card" holders/LPRs, or USCs.
DIS does not validate the work status of these individuals in NED. The Administrative Officer (AO) is responsible for making sure that the individual's NED record correctly reflects LPR or USC status. If a NED record for a known green card holder or U.S. citizen incorrectly indicates DIS validation is required, contact the AO. The AO or Badge Sponsor will likely need to submit a service request with NED/CIT in order to void the erroneous record.
Badge Re-Sponsorship & Renewal
There are many reasons why a badge can become disabled. Common scenarios include:
1. The individual has an expired DIS Validation End Date (DVED).
To resolve:
First, AO must re-sponsor the badge in NED before DIS can perform badge validation.
Foreign nationals in the Visiting Program (ex. Visiting Fellow, Research Fellow) – AO must send DIS a
renewal case to extend the DVED date. Once submitted, case status can be checked in the
DIS Case Status System.
Foreign nationals at NIH (ex: Contractor) - Must present DIS with updated evidence of immigration status and work authorization per the
required documents chart.
2. The individual was initially granted an RLA badge, but has now lived in the US for three or more years and requires a HHS ID Badge (PIV Card).
To resolve:
According to DPSAC, once the RLA to PIV badge process is initiated by the AO, the foreign national will receive an automated email from DPSAC which outlines the steps required to obtain the new PIV badge. If you do not follow the instructions in the email before the deadline, the badge will deactivate. Refer to the
NIH Enterprise Directory (NED) Customer Guide and
DPSAC's policy update.
3. The badge itself has expired (RLA badges expire after three years, PIV badges expire after five).
To resolve:
Contact
DPSAC for guidance on the badge renewal process.
If the badge has deactivated, but is not expired, it is likely that the DVED was reached in NED. Refer to Scenario #1 above.
* NED recently changed the term “Alien Authorized Work Until Date” (AAWUD) to “DIS Validation End Date” (DVED). These two terms refer to the same date.
