Call for 2027A Non-Proprietary Priority Proposals

Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute (JASRI) is inviting the Non-Proprietary Priority Proposals for research to be conducted during the 2027A term (April 2027 – July 2027, tentative). Please read the following guidelines and the “Call for 2027A SPring-8 Research Proposals -Overview-” thoroughly before preparing and submitting your proposal application.

 Important 
• The following beamlines invite proposals six times annually, and this call is for the first period of 2027A, from early April to mid-May 2027: BL01B1, BL02B1, BL02B2, BL05XU, BL08B2, BL09XU, BL13XU, BL14B2, BL15XU, BL16B2, BL16XU, BL19B2, and BL46XU.
• Due to the suspension of SPring-8 operations associated with the SPring-8-II upgrade beginning in the 2027B period, the call for proposals for the 2027B term and subsequent terms will be suspended. [News Released on August 4, 2026]

Contents

1. What is the Non-Proprietary Priority Program?
2. Research Period & Beamline Schedule
3. Strict Eligibility Requirements
4. Application Method & Required Submission Procedures
5. Submission Deadlines and Review Schedule
6. Review Criteria & Overlapping Application Rules
7. Report Submission & Publication Requirements
8. Detailed Fee Structure (Tax Included)
9. Next-Term Deadlines & SPring-8-II Facility Shutdown Notice
10. Contact Information

1. What is the Non-Proprietary Priority Program?

The Non-Proprietary Priority Program is designed for research projects that require prioritized, guaranteed beamtime allocation upon payment of a designated Program Fee. Unlike standard General Proposals, proposals under this category bypass competitive scientific peer review and are evaluated solely on technical feasibility, safety, and operational criteria.

• Exemption from Scientific Peer Review: Proposals are granted an exemption from competitive scientific evaluation. Review is limited to four core criteria: (a) necessity of using SPring-8, (b) experimental validity, (c) technical feasibility, and (d) safety and ethics (e.g., exclusively for peaceful purposes).
• Publication Requirement: Research outcomes must be made publicly available through refereed scientific journals, refereed Specific Synchrotron Radiation Facilities Research Reports, or approved technical reports within three years after the end of the research term.
• 1-Year Proposals Status for 2027A: While One-Year Proposals (which run for two consecutive terms across A and B terms with multi-beamline access) were introduced in 2023A, One-Year Proposals will NOT be accepted for the 2027A term. This suspension is due to the planned facility shutdown starting in August 2027 (2027B term) for the SPring-8-II upgrade.
• Priority Allocation Caps & Limits: To ensure equitable access across all user communities, beamtime allocation under priority access is governed by strict percentage caps:
  • Combined Priority Cap: The combined beamtime allocated to Non-Proprietary Priority Proposals and Proprietary Proposals shall not exceed 40% of total user beamtime per beamline.
  • Year Proposal Limit (when applicable): In standard terms, One-Year Proposals are capped at approximately 10% to 15% of beamtime per beamline.
  • RIKEN Beamlines Cap: For RIKEN beamlines, the priority allocation cap is set at up to 50% of beamtime for public use per beamline.
  • Single Research Group Cap: A single research group may be allocated a maximum of 20% of total beamtime per beamline across all priority and proprietary proposal types combined.

2. Research Period & Beamline Schedule

The 2027A research period and beamtime allocations vary depending on whether the target beamlines operate under biannual or six-annual call cycles:

• Beamlines with Biannual Calls: Research period runs from early April 2027 to late July 2027.
• Beamlines with Six-Annual Calls (2027A-I Period): Research period runs from early April 2027 to mid-May 2027. Note: Proposals specifying special operating conditions (such as specific bunch modes) may not necessarily be assigned to the requested period.

For beamlines available to users and beamtime allocated to each beamline, click here.

^*1 The frequency of proposal calls for BL05XU and BL15XU differs depending on the experimental equipment used.
^*2 Please note that available dates are limited at BL16B2 and BL16XU.

3. Strict Eligibility Requirements

CRITICAL SCREENING RULE: Applicants MUST satisfy BOTH of the following conditions without exception. Applications failing to meet either eligibility requirement will be immediately screened out prior to evaluation:

• Condition 1 (Policy Alignment): The proposed research must align with national science, technology, and innovation policies (such as the Basic Plan for Science, Technology, and Innovation). Research supported by competitive grant programs (e.g., KAKENHI / Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research) is explicitly eligible.
• Condition 2 (Domestic Institutional Affiliation): The Project Leader (Applicant) must be affiliated with an institution possessing corporate/legal status located in Japan. Individual applicants without domestic institutional affiliation are not eligible.

4. Application Method & Required Submission Procedures

Applying for a Non-Proprietary Priority Proposal requires completing both an online electronic submission and submitting a signed agreement document:

• Online Application via UI Site: Log in to the SPring-8 User Information (UI) Website (https://user.spring8.or.jp/?lang=en), navigate to My Page > Create and Edit Proposal Application Form > New, and select Non-Proprietary Priority Proposal. Select application term ‘2027A’ for biannual beamlines or ‘2027A-I’ for six-annual beamlines.
• Research Abstract & Necessity Rationale: Applicants must clearly articulate the research summary and the explicit technical necessity for using SPring-8 in the ‘Reason for Proposal’ section. If the description is deemed ambiguous, JASRI may request supplementary materials.
• Competitive Research Grant Details (Optional): Applicants holding competitive research grants related to the proposal may provide supplementary details in the ‘Grant-Aided Research’ fields (Grant system name, funding agency, project title, PI name, project summary, fiscal year, and grant amount).
• Required Document — Program Fee Payment Agreement: Applicants must download the official Agreement form from the UI site, obtain the signature and official seal of the authorized financial officer responsible for fee payment, convert the signed document to PDF, and upload it via My Page > Submitted Proposals or send it by email to the Users Office by the agreement deadline.

5. Submission Deadlines & Review Schedule

CRUCIAL RESUBMISSION PATHWAY: Applicants are notified of priority review results by December 8, 2026. If a Non-Proprietary Priority Proposal is not selected during this pre-notification, the applicant has the immediate opportunity to resubmit the project as a standard General Proposal via the General Proposal web application form prior to the deadline (December 15, 2026, at 10:00 am JST). Formal official approval notices appear on My Page in early February 2027.

6. Review Criteria & Overlapping Application Rules

• Simplified Review Scope: Proposals are reviewed solely for: (1) necessity to use SPring-8, (2) experimental validity, (3) technical feasibility, and (4) safety and ethics (e.g., exclusively for peaceful purposes).
• Beamtime Allocation under Over-subscription: If total requested shifts exceed allocable priority capacity (40%), the SPring-8 Proposal Review Committee (PRC) makes a comprehensive judgment to allocate beamtime among approved proposals.
• Overlapping Application Precedence Rule: If the exact same research proposal is submitted simultaneously as both a Non-Proprietary Priority Proposal AND a General Proposal, priority selection and shift allocation will be granted unconditionally to the Non-Proprietary Priority Proposal.

7. Report Submission & Publication Requirements

• Experiment Summary Report: Project Leaders must submit an Experiment Summary Report online within 60 days of experiment completion. Submitted reports are published on the UI site two weeks after the term report submission deadline.
• Publication of Research Outcomes: Users must publish their research outcomes in a refereed scientific journal (including refereed proceedings and doctoral dissertations), a refereed Specific Synchrotron Radiation Facilities Research Report, or an approved technical report within three years after the end of the research term. All publications must explicitly state the SPring-8 proposal number and acknowledge SPring-8 utilization.
• Post-Experiment Conversion to Proprietary Use: Users may request to retroactively convert their non-proprietary priority beamtime to proprietary beamtime (charged on a shift unit basis) within 60 days of experiment completion or by the end of the fiscal year (March 31), whichever comes first.
• Quasi-Proprietary Use System: Established in 2025A specifically for applicants affiliated with private companies or industrial-equivalent institutions (public testing laboratories, incorporated foundations/associations primarily engaged in contract research/testing).
  • Feature: Allows users to defer or restrict certain publication details upon payment of an additional Quasi-Proprietary Fee.
  • Application Timing: Users must apply for Quasi-Proprietary status either at the time of initial proposal submission or within 60 days of experiment completion (within the fiscal year).

8. Detailed Fee Structure (Tax Included)

• A variable fee will be calculated and added in accordance with the amount of liquid helium / sample preparation service actually used.

* 1 shift is 8 hours and for any proposals that are allocated by the hour, the fees are charged by the hour.

* Program Fee: 22,000 yen/shift for CryoTEMs
* In addition to the above, 144,000 yen/shift, 18,000 yen/hour, will be charged for quasi-proprietary use.

Click here for more details.

9. Next-Term Deadlines & SPring-8-II Facility Shutdown Notice

• Subsequent 2027A Calls for Six-Annual Beamlines: Deadlines for the second period (2027A-II: May–June 2027) and third period (2027A-III: June–July 2027) are scheduled for March 2027 and April 2027, respectively.
• SPring-8-II Facility Shutdown (2027B Onward): Due to major facility upgrade operations for SPring-8-II, SPring-8 operations will be suspended for approximately one year starting in August 2027. Consequently, proposal calls will be paused starting from the 2027B term for the duration of the upgrade.

10. Contact Information

For inquiries regarding proposal application procedures, eligibility criteria, or document submission: