BeckerGuides: Open Access : Article Processing Charges (APCs): Waivers and Discounts for WashU Authors

Journals that Offer Discounts or Waivers for Article Processing Charges (APCs)

The Washington University Open Access Resolution, passed in 2011, encourages faculty to make their journal articles freely and easily available to the world community. Publishing under an Open Access license is one way to promote accessibility. To help support faculty authors, Washington University Libraries and Becker Medical Library have memberships or agreements with publishers and select journal titles that provide a discount or a waiver of article processing charges (APCs) for open access publications. The Libraries also participate in Subscribe to Open (S2O) initiatives that rely on current subscription funding and infrastructure to make journals free to read and share as well as to publish in with a waiver of APCs for authors. Other discounts are available for authors with personal memberships to organizations. Faculty authors who are members of organizations that publish journals should check with the journal to confirm discounts or waiver of APCs for members.

Journal/Publisher	Fee	Link	WU or WUSM Status
American Chemical Society (ACS)	Corresponding Authors from a subscriber institution are entitled to a discount on APCs for open access articles. Additional discounts apply if authors are ACS members.	ACS Author Choice	WU and WUSM are subscriber institutions.
Annual Reviews	Under the Subscribe to Open (S2O) program from Annual Reviews, Corresponding Authors will not be charged APCs. S2O makes use of the existing subscription base, funds and infrastructure to make journals free to read and share as well as to publish in. WU and WUSM subscribe to a number of Annual Reviews journals to support this OA initiative as of January 2025. Authors will be required to sign a Creative Commons license.	Annual Reviews Subscribe to Open (S2O) program	WU and WUSM are subscriber institutions.
Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)	Corresponding Authors from a subscriber institution are entitled to a waiver of APCs for works published in ACM journals. Authors who do not wish to publish their work under an open access license may opt out and publish their work as subscription-only. (January 1, 2020 to December 31, 2025)	ACM Open	WU and WUSM are subscriber institutions.
Biochemical Society Journals (Portland Press)	The Biochemical Society has announced a Conditional Open Access (OA) with Subscribe to Open policy. For the 2025 issues, the content of the journals listed below will be made OA if the Society meets their threshold for subscription renewal commitments. Biochemical Journal Clinical Science Biochemical Society Transactions Essays in Biochemistry Emerging Topics in Life Sciences The status of the journals will be announced in March 2025. Any articles that were published within the volume prior to the decision will be retrospectively made OA, and all subsequent articles in the volume will be made immediately OA. This will be at no charge to Corresponding Authors. Bioscience Reports is not covered under the program; Society members receive an APC discount.	Conditional Open Access (OA) with Subscribe to Open	WU and WUSM are participating institutions.
Bioscientifica	Corresponding Authors from a subscriber institution are entitled to a discount on APCs for open access articles published in hybrid Bioscientifica journals: Journal of Endocrinology; Journal of Molecular Endocrinology; Endocrine-Related Cancer; European Journal of Endocrinology; and Reproduction.	Bioscientifica Society for Endocrinology Journals	WU and WUSM are subscriber institutions.
BMJ Case Reports	Authors from a subscriber institution (Institutional Fellowship subscriber) are entitled to a waiver of APCs for case reports (including color charges).	BMJ Case Reports Fees	WU and WUSM are subscriber institutions. Please complete this form to obtain the Fellowship Code for BMJ.
Cambridge University Press (CUP)	Corresponding Authors from a subscriber institution are entitled to a waiver of APCs for open access articles published in Cambridge University Press journals (January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2025). Some publication types are not eligible for the discount. See the “Article types not covered by transformative agreements” section on Article Types Definitions.	Cambridge Open Access Waivers and Discounts (enter Washington University to find the list of eligible journals).	WU and WUSM are subscriber institutions.
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press	Corresponding Authors from a subscriber institution are entitled to a waiver of APCs for open access articles published in: Genes & Development; Genome Research; RNA; and Learning and Memory. This option applies only to original research articles; not reviews, editorials, and analyses. The funding for the full waiver is limited and subject to a first-come, first-serve basis each calendar year. After the full waiver funding reaches its limit, authors will receive a 10% discount for APCs for open access articles.	Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press Transformative Agreements	WU and WUSM are subscriber institutions.
Elsevier	Corresponding Authors from a subscriber institution are entitled to waivers and discounts of APCs for open access articles published in journals from the following bundles: Hybrid Journals including Cell Press, Gold (Open Access) Journals, and Gold (Open Access) Cell Press and Lancet Journals. The APC waivers apply to the Hybrid Journal bundle including Cell Press. There is a limit of APC waivers per calendar year, with a gradual increase each year of the agreement. The waiver limits are based on WashU publishing history in the journals and subject to a first-come, first-served basis. APC discounts apply for Gold (Open Access), and Gold (Open Access) Cell Press and Lancet journal bundles. Authors will be required to sign a Creative Commons license. (January 1, 2024 to December 31, 2027)	Washington University in St. Louis Journal Finder List	WU and WUSM are subscriber institutions.
Future Science Group (now Taylor & Francis)	Corresponding Authors from a subscriber institution are entitled to a full waiver of APCs for open access articles in select titles from Taylor & Francis (formerly Future Science Group). Authors will be required to sign a Creative Commons license. (January 1, 2024 to December 31, 2025)	Taylor and Francis Journal List	WU and WUSM are subscriber institutions.
Institute of Physics (IOP)	Corresponding Authors from a subscriber institution are entitled to a waiver of APCs for selected IOP journals. Authors who do not wish to publish their work under an open access license may opt out and publish their work as subscription-only. (January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2025)	IOP Journal Finder Guide for Authors	WU and WUSM are subscriber institutions.
Karger	Under the Subscribe to Open (S2O) program from Karger, Corresponding Authors will not be charged APCs for select journals: Pediatric Neurosurgery; European Addiction Research; and Neurodegenerative Diseases. S2O makes use of the existing subscription base, funds and infrastructure to make journals free to read and share as well as to publish in. Authors will be required to sign a Creative Commons license.	Karger Subscribe to Open (S2O) program	WU and WUSM are subscriber institutions.
Microbiology Society	Corresponding Authors from a subscriber institution are entitled to a waiver of APCs for open access articles under a Publish and Read agreement. Authors will be required to sign a Creative Commons license.	Microbiology Society Publish and Read Journey	WU and WUSM are Publish and Read subscriber institutions.
Open Library of Humanities	Authors from a subscriber institution are entitled to a waiver of APCs.	List of Journals	WU and WUSM are subscriber institutions.
Policy Press	Corresponding Authors from a subscriber institution are entitled to a 20% discount on APCs for open access articles.	Open Access Options with Policy Press	WU and WUSM authors may use customer number (CU-0028017) to obtain a discount.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS)	Corresponding Authors from a subscriber institution are entitled to a discount on APCs for immediate open access articles.	PNAS Author Center	WU and WUSM are subscriber institutions. (2025 site license)
Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC)	Corresponding Authors from a subscriber institution are entitled to a waiver of APCs for open access articles in Gold and Hybrid journals including RSC Advances under a Publish and Read agreement. (January 1, 2025 to December 31, 2025)	RSC List of Journals	WU and WUSM are Publish and Read subscriber institutions via GWLA.

Questions?

Main Campus Libraries: Treasa Bane or Micah Zeller
Medical Campus Library: Cathy Sarli or Amy Suiter