Publishers
Publisher waiver policies, side by side
Fifteen publishers, four classification systems, six different rules about which author counts. The differences are not cosmetic: they decide whether you pay nothing, half, or everything.
All policies checked 1 August 2026
15policies recorded
6rules about which author counts
1covers hybrid journals
12support the R4L guidelines
The policies
| Publisher | Which author counts | Hybrid | Applied |
|---|---|---|---|
| ElsevierResearch4Life | All authors must be in the same group | No | Automatic |
| WileyResearch4Life | Corresponding author only, using the affiliation given at | No | Automatic |
| Taylor & FrancisWorld Bank income class plus a GDP ceiling | Corresponding author's primary affiliation | No | Request required |
| Springer NatureWorld Bank income class plus a GDP ceiling | Corresponding author | Not stated | Request required |
| SageResearch4Life; some journals use World Bank income levels inst | Corresponding author | No | Automatic |
| IOP PublishingWorld Bank income class | Automatic when all authors are in an eligible country | Yes | Automatic or on request |
| PLOSResearch4Life | Institution, not the individual author | Not stated | Automatic through the Global Equit |
| Oxford University PressResearch4Life, EIFL and government affordability metrics | Corresponding author | No | Automatic |
| IEEEWorld Bank GNI per capita | All authors must qualify | No | Automatic |
| MDPIMDPI internal classification, described as broadly aligned wit | Corresponding author, assessed individually | Not stated | Request required |
| PeerJWorld Bank income classification | Submitting author for a single waiver; if every co-author | Not stated | Request required |
| Cambridge University PressResearch4Life | Corresponding author of research articles | Not stated | Automatic, plus a discretionary ro |
| BMJBMJ's own waiver list, built on low-income economies | The strictest set of conditions found | Not stated | Request required |
| ACMACM agreements with EIFL and Research4Life, plus the World Ban | Author location; ACM Open institutional licences are appli | Not stated | Automatic for geographic waivers; |
| BMCWorld Bank income classification, through Springer Nature | Corresponding author | No | Automatic for the country route; r |
Six rules about which author counts
| Rule | Publishers |
|---|---|
| Corresponding author onlyThe affiliation given for the corresponding author at submission decides it. Co-authors elsewhere do not affect the outcome. | Wiley, Taylor & Francis, Springer Nature, Sage, Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, MDPI |
| All authors, same groupEvery author must sit in the same Research4Life group. A mix of Group A and Group B authors reduces a full waiver to 50%. | Elsevier |
| All authors, or most on requestApplied automatically when all authors qualify. Granted on request when the corresponding author and a majority of co-authors qualify. | IOP Publishing |
| All authors, lowest tier wins, one failure voids itIf entitlements differ between authors, the smallest applies. A single author in an ineligible country removes the discount entirely. | IEEE |
| Institution, not the authorThe institution holds the agreement. Researchers at a covered institution are never charged. | PLOS |
| All authors, plus where the research was done, plus funding statusEvery author must be in a listed country, the research must have been carried out in one, and it must be unfunded. | BMJ |
This is the single most consequential difference between publishers, and the one authors are least likely to check before choosing where to submit. Full answer.
Known policies not yet recorded
These publishers appear in Research4Life's index of APC waiver policies. We have the address but have not yet verified the terms, so we link rather than summarise.
Bristol University Presspolicy published, terms not yet recordedBritish Institute of Radiologypolicy published, terms not yet recordedCompany of Biologistspolicy published, terms not yet recordedCSIRO Publishingpolicy published, terms not yet recordedEDP Sciencespolicy published, terms not yet recordedRoyal Society of Chemistrypolicy published, terms not yet recordedCCSDpolicy published, terms not yet recorded
Source: Research4Life — Open Access titles with zero or reduced publication charges, checked 2026-08-05.