Insights: COPE issues new guidelines for ethical practices in author fees and waivers

On April 15, 2025

The Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) has issued detailed guidelines on the disclosure and application of author fees, waivers and discounts. The document is aimed at editors, publishers, and other stakeholders in academic publishing. The guidelines seek to protect editorial independence, enhance transparency, and support authors (especially those with limited financial resources).

The document extensively highlights how the financial elements of publishing, particularly costs borne by authors, can unintentionally affect editorial objectivity or introduce bias if not handled transparently and impartially.

Transparency

One of COPE’s main recommendations is that journals must be completely transparent and clearly disclose all aspects of their author fee structures. This includes the types of payments, such as submission fees and APCs, and the exact amounts of each. It also involves transparency in when and how the payments should be made and what the fees will be used for. Journals should also prominently mention the process for requesting discounts and waivers.

COPE warns that a lack of transparency can create barriers to access and lead to inequities in author treatment.

Separation of editorial decisions and finance

A serious ethical concern that journals face is that the revenue they gain from accepted articles may pressure them to accept more submissions, particularly those from authors able to pay. Editors, especially those involved in fee administration or whose income is linked to revenue, may be influenced, consciously or unconsciously, by financial considerations. To navigate this, COPE stresses that editorial decisions must be made independently of fee payments or waivers. Editors should not know whether a fee has been paid or waived.

Waivers and discounts

While many journals offer waivers to researchers from low—and lower-middle-income countries, COPE advises that such policies must be transparent and equitably applied. Journals should clearly state which countries qualify, whether all authors or only corresponding authors are eligible, and whether waivers need to be applied for or are automatically applied.

Publishers are also encouraged to design discreet or automated systems for waiver requests to avoid putting authors in uncomfortable situations.

Transformative agreements

The guidelines delve into the risks associated with transformative or read-and-publish agreements, which allow institutions to pre-pay APCs for affiliated authors. These deals, while expanding access, may also encourage “gift authorship” or changes in authorship to align with institutional affiliations, skew journal choice away from content quality to financial coverage and influence editorial bias in favour of fee-covered manuscripts

COPE calls for publishers to have clear policies to disincentivise unethical practices and for transparency around such agreements.

Other concerns

The guidance also addresses issues such as:

• Post-publication fees: COPE advises against charging for critiques or corrections to published articles to preserve academic integrity and promote discussion.
• Non-payment issues: Journals may impose sanctions, for example, manuscript hold or rejection, but these must be clearly stated in submission terms and managed separately from editorial teams.
• Sponsored issues: COPE reiterates that sponsors should not influence editorial decisions, and the sponsored status of content should be clearly marked.

COPE acknowledges the tension between generating revenue and maintaining ethical standards. While journals must sustain themselves financially, the guidelines caution against allowing revenue to undermine equitable access, diversity in publishing, or trust in editorial judgment.

KnE Publishing is committed to complying with and developing its policies as open access publishing continues to evolve. We believe that these guidelines underscore the importance of fairness, transparency, and independence in scholarly communication.

The full guidelines are available to download here