NeurIPS 2025 Volunteer and Financial Assistance

 

The Neural Information Processing Systems Foundation is proud to provide targeted financial support to individuals for whom attendance would cause a financial burden.

Updates 

• 10/20: The hotel room reservation emails will be sent out on Tue 21 Oct
• 10/11: The volunteer applications decisions have been released
• 10/10: The Financial Assistance decisions have been released
• 10/3: The applications are closed. We do not accept applications past close under any circumstances.
• 9/1: The Financial Assistance Grant and Volunteer applications are open.

 

Financial Assistance

Eligibility: The NeurIPS 2025 Financial Assistance programs will prioritize student & junior postdoc (< 2 years) conference authors. If funding amounts allow, we will also consider funding applications on the grounds of other inclusion criteria, including accessibility, affinity group membership, financial hardship, and first-time attendance.

What financial assistance awardees receive: Complimentary registration to NeurIPS 2025 and/or a prepaid hotel stay.

How to apply:

• If you are eligible (see above), fill out the Financial Assistance Application.
• ❗Make sure you fill out all parts of the Financial Assistance application. Incomplete applications will be rejected.

Dates:

• Application opens:  1 Sep
• Application deadline:  2 Oct AoE
• Notification:  by 10 Oct AoE

Questions❓:

• Before getting in touch, please read the FAQs below.
• If you have read the FAQ below and you still have financial assistance questions then contact the NeurIPS 2025 Next Generation & Accessibility Chairs via the Contact NeurIPS page.

 

Volunteering

⚠️ We are only accepting volunteer applications for San Diego.

What volunteers do:

Volunteers are assigned two shifts, each approximately 4 hours long, at the conference venue.

What volunteers receive:

Volunteers must purchase their NeurIPS registration prior to their shift, and will be refunded this registration after completing their shifts. We refund both "Conference Sessions & Tutorials" and "Workshops & Competitions. Volunteers do not receive complimentary hotel accommodation.

How to apply:

• Fill out the San Diego Volunteer Application.

Dates:

• Application opens:  1 Sep
• Application deadline:  1 Oct AoE 
• Notification:  by 10 Oct AoE

Questions❓: 

• If you have If you have read the FAQ below and you still have questions about volunteering then contact the NeurIPS 2025 Volunteer Chairs via the Contact NeurIPS page.

 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

 

Application

How do I know that the Financial Assistance form has been submitted?

We do not send confirmation emails when the Financial Assistance application form is submitted. After you submit the application, a green box stating "Thanks. Your information has been submitted." at the top of the application form confirms the form has been submitted.

I forgot some information or want to update my application. Can I modify it after submission?

You cannot update your application after submission. However, you can submit a new application - we will consider the latest submission associated with each NeurIPS.cc account.

Where can I find the paper number/ID for an accepted conference paper?

For Financial Assistance purposes, the paper number/ID for an accepted NeurIPS conference paper is the 4- to 5-digit submission number (#) visible in your OpenReview Author Console.

Should I register for the conference before being notified about financial assistance?

⚠️ If you need a visa: You should register for NeurIPS and apply for your visa as soon as possible. Only registered participants can receive a Visa Invitation Letter. We cannot make exceptions to this policy for liability reasons. If you apply for your visa by the deadline specified in our cancellation policy, we offer an extended cancellation deadline.

If you do register and later receive a complimentary registration, a refund will be applied to the method of payment used to pay for your registration.

Can I submit my financial assistance application before registering for the conference? Does my registration status (registered/unregistered) affect my eligibility for financial assistance?

Yes, you can submit your financial assistance application before conference registration. No, your registration status does not affect eligibility for the financial assistance grant.

 

Eligibility

Will I be funded if ...

• ... I am not a student or junior postdoc?
• ... I am not an author of an accepted conference paper?
• ... this is not my first time attending NeurIPS?
• ... I don't fit the priority eligibility criteria?

Our funding decisions balance conference participation, inclusion, and other factors across all applicants, so we cannot provide funding guarantees before the notification date. Please apply if you believe you qualify according to the "Eligibility" criteria above.

I am a non-traditional student or academic researcher that does not fit into the "student or junior postdoc" categories listed in the Financial Assistance application. Am I eligible for the award?

Select the student or postdoc category that most closely matches your situation, give your position title as a "Job Title," and provide a justification for your eligibility as a response to "List any other information or questions that you would like to share with the Next Gen Chairs and/or organizers." We will evaluate such instances on a case-by-case basis.

Does my paper qualify "accepted conference paper" if it is ...

• ... accepted to the NeurIPS 2025 main conference track?
• ... accepted to the NeurIPS 2025 Datasets & Benchmarks Track?
• ... accepted to the NeurIPS 2025 Position Paper Track?

Yes.

Does my paper qualify "accepted conference paper" if it is ...

• ... accepted to one of the NeurIPS 2025 Workshops?
• ... accepted to the NeurIPS 2025 Creative AI Track?

No, a workshop or creative AI paper is not a conference paper. However, you may still apply for Financial Assistance. (It may also be helpful to check with the workshop / creative AI track to see if they have any financial assistance available.)

What counts as a "first author" of a conference or workshop paper?

Financial assistance will be prioritized for primary contributing student and junior postdoc conference authors. When a subset of authors are the main contributors but are not listed in the first position(s) in the author list—for example, when authors are ordered alphabetically—those authors should be considered as "first authors" for the purposes of NeurIPS financial assistance.

Do I need to volunteer to receive financial assistance?

No, you do not need to volunteer to receive a financial assistance grant. You can apply for both the grant and to be a volunteer, but you will not be selected for both.

I applied, or I intend to apply, for a financial assistance program run by an affinity group or workshop at NeurIPS 2025. Can I still apply to one of the NeurIPS 2025 Financial Assistance Programs?

Yes. We will review all applications with respect to our support goals, and aim to support as many people in need as we can, given our funding constraints. In addition, we are in coordination with funding programs from affinity groups to avoid double-funding participants.

 

Financial assistance format

What format does the financial assistance take?

All awards are complimentary registration (see Registration section below) and/or 7 days of prepaid hotel accommodation (see Hotel Accommodation section below). Awardees can decline to receive one of these components in the application form, which will not affect their eligibility. All others will receive the full registration + hotel award.

Will NeurIPS provide travel support?

No, NeurIPS is unable to provide travel support (such as flights, per diem, etc.) due to the scale of the Financial Assistance program (nearly 1000 awardees).

Will NeurIPS provide reimbursement for expenses?

No, NeurIPS is unable to provide reimbursement for any expenses due to the scale of the Financial Assistance program (nearly 1000 awardees).

Do the Financial Assistance programs cover virtual aspects of NeurIPS?

Yes: virtual-only registration. The application forms allow you to decline to apply for a hotel stay and to specify that you are applying for the virtual registration.

 

Registration

Does the complimentary registration cover all events at NeurIPS?

Yes, complimentary in-person registration includes both workshop and conference registration, in San Diego and Mexico City. A virtual pass covers all aspects of the virtual conference.

 

Hotel Accommodation

Which days of the conference would the hotel accommodation be applicable to?

Our hotel coordinator will reach out to you separately to confirm your hotel reservation, inluding dates. You will be able to select for which days of the conference you wish to book the accomodation, up to 7 nights. The NextGen Chairs cannot determine the exact dates of your accomodation ahead of time because of this. 

In which hotel would the hotel accommodation be provided?

At one of the NeurIPS 2025 affiliate hotels. Our hotel coordinator will reach out to you separately to confirm your hotel reservation, including location. The NextGen Chairs cannot determine the exact location of your accomodation ahead of time, as there are multiple hotels. 

For how many nights would the hotel accommodation be covered?

You will receive 7 hotel nights. You will be able to purchase additional nights at the conference rate at your own expense. You are also free to select fewer nights.

Can the complimentary hotel rooms be shared?

We are unable to coordinate or confirm that room shares for grant recipients are permitted. The ultimate determination is up to the hotel in which you are booked.

Should I book a hotel room before I receive a decision on financial assistance from NeurIPS?

If you are granted a complimentary hotel stay, the NeurIPS hotel coordinator will arrange the hotel stay on your behalf. Please note that NeurIPS is not able to provide monetary reimbursement for any expenses, so would not be able to reimburse you for a hotel stay that you have paid for. (Of course, you may book a hotel stay that is refundable without penalty on your own, but NeurIPS would not be involved in this process).