Where a supporting institution that has existed before the implementation of these Regulations requires to be registered as a supporting institution, the registration shall be made by the fund management organ.

The fund management organ shall make public the names of registered supporting institutions.

Article 9 In the management work of fund granting, a supporting institution shall perform the duties as follows:

(1) It shall organize applicants to apply for the subsidies of National Natural Science Funds;

(2) It shall examine the authenticity of the materials as submitted by applicants or project principals;

(3) It shall provide the conditions for implementing the funded projects, and safeguard the time for project principals and participants to carry out funded projects;

(4) It shall follow up the implementation of funded projects, and surveil the use of fund subsidies; and

(5) It shall cooperate with the fund management organ in surveiling and examining the implementation of funded projects.

The fund management organ shall guide and surveil the management work of supporting institutions related to the granting of funds.

Chapter III Application and Evaluation

Article 10 Any science and technology talent in a supporting institution that satisfies the following requirements may apply for the National Natural Science Funds:

(1) He has the experiences of assuming the basic research topic or other basic research; and

(2) He has a senior academic rank (title) or a doctoral degree, or has a recommendation from two science and technology persons who are working in the same research field and have a senior academic rank (title).

Where a science and technology personnel that engages in basic research and satisfies the requirements as prescribed in the preceding paragraph has no job or works for an entity that is not a supporting institution, if he has obtained the consent of a supporting institution registered at the fund management organ after negotiations, he may apply for the National Natural Science Funds under these Regulations. The supporting institution shall deem him as a science and technology personnel of its own, and perform effective management to him in accordance with these Regulations.

An applicant shall be the person in charge of an application for funded projects.

Article 11 An applicant that applies for the National Natural Science Funds shall determine the research project upon the annual directory of funded projects, and submit an application in written form to the fund management organ through the supporting institution within the time limit as prescribed.

An applicant that applies for the National Natural Science Funds shall submit the materials that may prove he has satisfied the requirements as prescribed in Article 10 of these Regulations; in case of any special requirement in the annual directory of funded projects, the applicant shall also submit the certification materials that prove he has satisfied the said requirements.

Where an applicant has obtained other subsidies for the project research for which he is applying for the fund subsidies, the information on the said subsidies shall be explained in the application materials. An applicant shall have the responsibilities of the authenticity of the application materials he submits.

Article 12 The fund management organ shall complete the preliminary examination of application materials within 45 days as of the expiration of the term for applying for funded projects. As regards an application that complies with these Regulations the fund management organ shall accept it, and shall publicize the basic information on the applicant, the name of the supporting institution as well as the name of the project for which the application for funded projects has been filed. In case of any of the following circumstances occurs to an application, the fund management organ may not accept it, and shall inform the applicant through the supporting institution in written form, and shall explain the reasons:

(1) The applicant fails to satisfy the requirements as prescribed in these Regulations;