Material Transfer Agreements

Note: The information presented on this page has been adapted from materials provided by the NIH Office of Technology Transfer (OTT) .

What Is An MTA?

An MTA (or Material Transfer Agreement) is a mechanism to facilitate the free transfer of proprietary materials and/or information between NIMH scientists and other institutions, whether they are for-profit or non-profit institutions. MTAs are used when the following circumstances obtain:

1. The receiving party wishes to obtain proprietary material and/or information to use for his/her own research purposes.
2. No research collaboration between the parties is planned.
3. Neither rights in intellectual property nor rights for commercial purposes may be granted under this type of agreement.
4. The agreement clearly sets forth the terms and conditions under which the recipient of the material and/or information, provided by either the NIMH scientist or other party, may use it.