Publisher version
The version of record made open by the publisher, sometimes with a charge and sometimes without one.
Open publication desk
Choose the compliant version before paying an article charge.
A current funder-policy guide and four-page record for identifying the required manuscript version, repository, timing, license, rights language, and funding route.
Manusights · Evidence checked September 15, 2026 · Four-page working record · CC BY 4.0
Start the record / Decision 01
Policy owner and scope
Which award, funder, institution, or contract controls this output?
Evidence to keep: Award number, policy URL, in-scope output, effective date, and checker.
Work through the decisionsSources and scope · Guide reviewed September 15, 2026
- Coverage
- Current NIH, UKRI, and Wellcome public-access decisions, manuscript versions, repositories, availability timing, licensing, rights, charges, and completion evidence
- Source basis
- Current NIH, UKRI, Wellcome, DOAJ, and Creative Commons primary sources; the approximate journal APC table was removed
Prepared by the Manusights editorial team. Publisher and institutional instructions take precedence.
Use this in the work
Download the Open access route decision record
Print it, complete it with collaborators, or adapt the original framework with attribution. The PDF is generated from the same reviewed evidence record as this page.
- Edition
- 2026.09.15-oa-1
- Format
- License
- CC BY 4.0
- Evidence reviewed
- September 15, 2026
Avoid the expensive shortcut
An APC is a price, not a compliance route
First identify the controlling policy, in-scope output, required version, repository, timing, and license. Only then decide whether a paid route is necessary and eligible.
Repository route
An eligible manuscript version deposited in the required or permitted repository on the required timeline.
Fully open journal
A journal where all research content is openly available. Verify licensing, fees, governance, and transparency.
No-fee open route
A publisher or repository route that meets the controlling requirements without an author-facing publication charge.
Original Manusights decision record
Resolve version, route, and cost in that order
Decision 1
Policy owner and scope
Which award, funder, institution, or contract controls this output?
Completion proof: Award number, policy URL, in-scope output, effective date, and checker.
Decision 2
Required version
Must the version of record, author accepted manuscript, or another version be made open?
Completion proof: Named version, publisher workflow, retained file, and acceptance-date trigger.
Decision 3
Repository and timing
Where and when must the version become available?
Completion proof: Repository, deposit owner, identifier, availability date, embargo rule, and verification.
Decision 4
License and rights
What license and rights-retention language are required or permitted?
Completion proof: License, rights statement, publisher acknowledgement, third-party material exceptions, and evidence.
Decision 5
Cost and funding
Is a publication charge necessary, eligible, budgeted, and transparent?
Completion proof: Route without fee considered, exact current charge, eligible funding source, waiver result, and approval.
Decision 6
Completion evidence
How will you prove that the public record meets the controlling policy?
Completion proof: Public URL, repository status, license display, date checked, responsible owner, and correction path.
Current policy starting points
Three funders, three records to verify
NIH
Policy effective July 1, 2025
For covered manuscripts accepted on or after the effective date, submit the author accepted manuscript to PubMed Central upon acceptance for public availability without embargo on the official publication date. Source A.
UKRI
Current policy reviewed September 2026
Route 1 makes the version of record immediately open. Route 2 deposits the author accepted manuscript in a repository with no embargo. CC BY is normally required for research articles. Source B.
Wellcome
Current policy reviewed September 2026
Make at least one eligible version freely available in Europe PMC under CC BY at publication. Current funding rules limit APC support to eligible fully open-access journals. Source C.
Before paying
Run the cost checkpoint
- 1. Confirm that the award and output are in scope.
- 2. Test a compliant repository route.
- 3. Check the journal's exact current fee and waiver.
- 4. Confirm that the funding source permits the charge.
- 5. Save written approval and the public completion record.
Journal transparency
Check more than the open label
Confirm the license, copyright terms, charges, waiver process, peer-review description, ownership, editorial governance, preservation, and contact information. DOAJ publishes criteria for fully open-access journals, but inclusion is not a substitute for your full journal-fit and policy review. Source D.
Definition control
Name the license, not just "open"
CC BY 4.0 permits sharing and adaptation, including commercial reuse, when attribution and other license conditions are met. A funder may require a particular license, and third-party material can carry separate terms. Record the exact license displayed on the public article and repository version. Source E.
Evidence record
Sources, method, and limits
We rebuilt the guide around the version-route-cost decision an author must actually document. Funder cards summarize only the cited current policy pages and must be checked against the specific award and publication.
NIH Public Access Policy Overview
NIH Office of Extramural Research. Locator: Effective date, covered manuscripts, deposit, and availability.
Supports: The current NIH Public Access Policy timing and manuscript-deposit requirements.
Open official sourceUK Research and Innovation Open Access Policy
UK Research and Innovation. Locator: Routes, timing, license, and data statement.
Supports: UKRI Route 1 and Route 2, immediate availability, licensing, and data-access statement requirements.
Open official sourceComplying with Our Open Access Policy
Wellcome. Locator: Eligible versions, Europe PMC, license, and publication charges.
Supports: Wellcome routes, Europe PMC deposit, CC BY timing, rights retention, and current APC funding boundaries.
Open official sourceGuide to Applying to DOAJ
Directory of Open Access Journals. Locator: Open-access model, transparency, licensing, and charges.
Supports: Transparency signals for fully open-access journals, including licensing and publication-charge disclosure.
Open official sourceAttribution 4.0 International
Creative Commons. Locator: Permissions and attribution conditions.
Supports: The permissions and attribution conditions of CC BY 4.0.
Open official sourceLimit: This guide does not determine award coverage, guarantee funder compliance, approve a journal, establish the current publication charge or waiver, interpret a contract, clear third-party material, or replace a funder, library, grants, repository, legal, or publisher decision.
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