Publishing an Open Access research article involves some important choices, such as selecting the right journal, choosing how to publish, and following funder requirements and access rules.

Since the available options and regulations can be complex and subject to change, it’s wise to consider these factors before submitting your manuscript. The sheme below can help you make informed decisions about the best publishing option and journal, based on funder requirements, journal types, and access conditions.

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Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) - https://doaj.org

Directory of Open Access Repositories (Open DOAR) - https://opendoar.ac.uk/

Open Policy Finder - https://openpolicyfinder.jisc.ac.uk/

Open Research Europe - https://open-research-europe.ec.europa.eu/

Publishing an Open Access article is not always free of charge. Journals with the highest impact factors often charge significant publication fees, which are usually associated with wide visibility and academic prestige.

In some cases, the costs of OA publishing can be covered through the so-called transformative agreement (Pay and Publish model), which is signed between a research publisher and a research institution. The agreements vary between publishers, some have uncapped publishing and others allow for a certain number of outputs. The APCs (Article Processing Charges) payable in these agreements are covered by library services journal subscription payments to specific publishers.

In Estonia, access to research databases and publishers' e-journal packages is collectively obtained through the ELNET Consortium. Recently the transformative agreements have been established with the following publishers:

• Starting from 2025, according to the agreement with the American Chemical Society, OA publishing is free of charge for UT researchers (corresponding authors) in all e-journals;
• Through the international consortium EIFL (Electronic Information for Libraries), where information about discounted publication fees for various research journals (incl Brill, IWA Publishing, Taylor & Francis, World Scientific) can be found on their website (under the "Download" button);
• Agreement with Cambridge University Press, based on which UT researchers do not have to pay for OA publishing;
• Agreement with SAGE allows to publish OA articles for free in Sage Choice hybrid journals. However, fully open access journals from SAGE offer a 20% discount to UT authors (corresponding author);
• In Taylor & Francis Open Select hybrid journals, open access publishing is free of charge for University of Tartu authors. The publisher’s system applies the discount automatically until the annual cap of 70 articles is reached. The corresponding author is identified based on institutional affiliation and official email address, and the article limit is shared among multiple members of the ELNET Consortium;
• In the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) hybrid journals, UT authors can publish up to 7 articles with free every year. The condition is that the UT author must be the corresponding author and in order for the publisher to recognize them automatically, they must use an e-mail address with the domain ut.ee;
• Under the agreement with The Company of Biologists, corresponding authors from the University of Tartu can publish an unlimited number of articles in five journals (Development, Journal of Cell Science, Journal of Experimental Biology, Disease Models & Mechanisms, Biology Open) without article processing charges (APCs).

The University of Tartu Development Fund will allocate €100,000 in 2026 to support the publication of high-quality open-access scientific articles. The aim of this initiative is to raise researchers’ awareness of the benefits of safe open access, introduce library support services, and encourage making top-level research freely accessible.

Requirements for supported publications and applicants:

Supported Publications

1. The publication must be a scientific articles and comply with the ETIS 1.1 classification definition of a scientific article (Web of Science and/or Scopus publications categorized as Article or Review).
2. The publication must be accepted for publication (confirmed by the publisher) between 01.01.2026 – 31.12.2026. It may have been submitted for review earlier, but the final acceptance decision must fall within this period.
3. After receiving the acceptance letter, the publication must be correctly entered into ETIS.
4. The publication must be published in a Q1 category journal (based on the 2024 Web of Science Journal Impact Factor (JIF)¹ or Scopus SCImago Journal Rank (SJR)².
5. The publication must appear in a gold open-access journal indexed in the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ)³.
6. The publication must be published under a CC-BY license (other licenses may be acceptable in some cases).
7. APC support can also be requested for publications in Nature (ISSN 0028-0836) and Science (ISSN 0036-8075), provided they meet the requirements for supported publications (points 1–4) and the applicant meets the eligibility criteria.
8. Publications in MDPI journals are not eligible for support⁴.

Applicants and Application Content

1. The applicant must be the corresponding author of the publication.
2. Eligible applicants:
3. Doctoral students of the University of Tartu.
4. Contracted academic staff of the University of Tartu in positions such as junior researcher, junior lecturer, teacher (career model level R1⁵).
5. Contracted academic staff (levels R2–R4) who are not principal investigators of any R&D project at the time of application.

Conditions of Support

1. Each applicant can receive support for a maximum of two publications per year.
2. Support per publication covers 50% of the APC costs.
3. Support is provided only for APC-related costs. Additional costs (e.g., color figures, expedited publication) are not covered.
4. Applications can be submitted once the acceptance letter confirming peer review and acceptance for publication is available.
5. Payment will be made based on the cost document through the University of Tartu’s document management system (DHIS).
6. Supported publications will be submitted to the University of Tartu’s marketing and communications office for wider visibility through Novaator or other outlets.
7. Supported publications will be added to the University of Tartu’s digital archive ADA in accordance with open science principles to ensure accessibility and long-term

Application Form and Timeline

• The application must be submitted using the designated form (download HERE) and completed according to the provided instructions (download HERE).
• The application form must be accompanied by a confirmation letter from the publisher and both documents should be sent by email to [email protected]. The application will be reviewed within 3 working days, and the decision will be sent to the applicant’s email address.
• Applications can be submitted until the allocated budget is exhausted.

Evaluation

Compliance with the support conditions will be assessed by staff from the University of Tartu Library and Grant Office. Appeals, if necessary, will be handled by the Faculty’s Vice Dean for Research and the Vice Rector for Research.

Acknowledging the Support

A reference to the support will be added to the ETIS record of the publication by the ETIS administrator (in the Comments field).

Guidelines and Additional Information

1. Web of Science journal overview: https://jcr.clarivate.com
2. Scopus journal overview: https://www.scimagojr.com/journalrank.php
3. Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ): https://doaj.org
4. MDPI controversies: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MDPI#Controversies
5. Academic career model: https://ut.ee/et/sisu/akadeemiliste-tootajate-karjaarimudel

Publications eligible for support must comply with the code of conduct for research integrity and be published in accordance with the guidelines for responsible internationalization.

Promoting open science requires an understanding of the different ways research articles can be made accessible to everyone. Being familiar with publishing models helps researchers choose options that meet funder requirements and match their personal preferences for sharing their work. To support broad and open dissemination of research, several Open Access models have been developed. These models vary in how access is provided, how publishing is funded, and how rights are managed.

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1. Publishing in an OA journal (Gold Open Access) means that a peer-reviewed article is made immediately available to everyone free of charge through the publisher’s website. This often involves an Article Processing Charge (APC), but not always.

Before publishing, it is important to check the following:

• whether the chosen journal is trustworthy and not a predatory publisher;
• whether there is funding available to cover the APC or if the university has an OA agreement with the publisher that may cover the costs fully or partially;
• what kind of usage license the journal offers and whether it suits your needs (e.g. Creative Commons);
• what OA requirements your funder has (e.g. Horizon Europe) and whether the journal complies with them.

Creative Commons Licenses

Creative Commons (CC) licenses are widely used in Open Access publishing. They clearly define how others may share and reuse research outputs, while allowing the author to retain control over the terms of use.

The most commonly applied license in OA publishing is CC BY (Creative Commons Attribution). This license allows others to freely share and adapt the work, even for commercial purposes, as long as proper credit is given to the author. It is the preferred license of Horizon Europe and many other international funders, as it ensures maximum dissemination and reuse of research findings.

Other CC licenses, such as CC BY-NC (non-commercial use only) or CC BY-ND (no modifications allowed), place additional restrictions on use and may not comply with the policies of certain funders or journals.

2. Self-archiving (Green Open Access) means making the article available in a chosen digital repository, such as:

• an institutional repository (e.g. the University of Tartu's digital archive ADA),
• a subject-specific repository (e.g. Europe PubMed Central),
• or a multidisciplinary repository (e.g. Zenodo).

In most cases, commercial publishers allow authors to self-archive a version of their manuscript alongside publication in a journal — either as a preprint (before peer review) or as a postprint (after acceptance). It is important to check the publisher’s terms and be aware of any potential embargo period.

Check the conditions:

• via the platform Jisc's open policy finder,
• or on the publisher’s website (e.g. Elsevier, Springer, Wiley, etc.).

3. Publishing in a Hybrid Open Access journal means that a peer-reviewed article is published in a subscription-based journal but made freely accessible if the author pays an Article Processing Charge (APC). This model leads to the issue of double-dipping, where research institutions pay both for journal subscriptions and for Open Access publishing of individual articles. While paid OA articles become openly available, much of the journal’s content remains behind a paywall, limiting the free flow of knowledge.

When considering this model, it's important to note that:

• APCs can reach €3,000 or more;
• Hybrid journal APCs are not reimbursed in Horizon Europe projects;
• Transitional (read-and-publish) agreements may allow discounted or free OA publishing;
• Self-archiving in a repository is generally permitted.

Check publishing options and agreement terms:

• via your university library or research support office;
• through the Jisc’s Open Policy Finder platform.

4. The Diamond Open Access model refers to publishing a peer-reviewed article in an Open Access journal or on a publishing platform without any fees for either the author or the reader. The costs are typically covered by universities, research institutions, foundations, or international collaboration networks.

Diamond Open Access promotes academic equity by enabling researchers without project funding to publish their work. However, this model is still in a developmental phase and continues to evolve.

Examples and resources:

• Open Research Europe (ORE) – a publishing platform for EU-funded researchers;
• OASPA Diamond OA Journal list– a directory of no-fee OA journals;
• Action Plan for Diamond OA– developed by Science Europe, cOAlition S, OPERAS, and others;
• European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) – supports infrastructures, networks, and tools that contribute to the growth of the Diamond model across Europe.

Predatory journals are publications that appear to be scholarly but do not actually adhere to academic standards. Their main characteristics include:

• Poor or non-existent peer review – articles are published without substantive quality control.
• Commercial motivation – focused on collecting author fees rather than advancing science.
• Misleading presentation – may claim to have a high impact factor or renowned editors, even though this is not true.
• Aggressive solicitation – send mass invitations to publish articles or participate in conferences.

Such journals undermine the credibility of science by publishing unchecked or low-quality work.

How to avoid predatory journals?

1. Check the journal’s credibility

• See if the journal is indexed in reputable databases (e.g., Web of Science, Scopus).
• Check DOAJ (Directory of Open Access Journals) – it only includes quality open-access journals.
• Use https://thinkchecksubmit.org/ or Beall’s list.

2. Investigate the peer review process

• A legitimate journal clearly describes how peer review is conducted.
• If they promise publication “within a few days” and “pay now,” it’s suspicious.

3. Check the editorial board

• Are the editors real and affiliated with recognized universities?
• If you find unknown names or fake profiles, that’s a red flag.
• Don’t hesitate to contact familiar names.

4. Critically assess the website

• Language errors, vague promises, and aggressive advertising (“Publish fast!”, “Pay now!”, “Impact Factor 6.7!”, “Indexed in all databases!”) indicate a predatory journal.

5. Ask colleagues or use tools

• Think. Check. Submit. https://thinkchecksubmit.org/ – an international initiative offering a checklist for assessing journal quality.
• Consult your colleagues or a research administrator in the library or grant office.

6. If you’ve fallen victim, don’t hesitate to speak up

• It doesn’t reflect badly on you if you’ve been deceived. Similar cases have happened before and will happen again. Your experience or warning could save another researcher from the same situation. Grant office and library staff are always ready to advise and support you on how to proceed.

In the Horizon Europe framework programme, scientific publications are subject to specific Open Access requirements. The goal is to ensure that research funded by taxpayers is made as widely and immediately accessible as possible. While authors are free to choose where to publish, certain conditions must be met to comply with funder requirements and to qualify for cost reimbursement.

Key requirements:

• Immediate Open Access: the publication must be freely accessible at the time of publication; embargo periods are not allowed.
• Self-archiving: a peer-reviewed manuscript (Author Accepted Manuscript – AAM, or Version of Record – VoR) must be deposited in a trusted repository.
• APC reimbursement: costs are reimbursed only if the article is published in a fully Open Access journal. The journal does not need to be exclusively OA, but APCs paid to hybrid journals are not eligible for reimbursement.
• Copyright: authors must retain their rights, and the published version must be available under the CC BY 4.0 license. For monographs and longer texts, licenses such as CC BY-NC, BY-ND, or BY-NC-ND are also accepted. Book chapters are not eligible for reimbursement.
• Metadata and acknowledgment: the publication’s metadata must include the project code or acronym and acknowledge EU funding.

More information: Horizon Europe Programme Guide

Pivot-RP is one of the largest paid databases of funding opportunities, and a university member can access it using their university username and password. Pivot-RP also includes a range of different funding opportunities related to the dissemination and publication of research results. The list below provides a brief overview, and the link View more details in Pivot-RP leads to a larger set of results. More detailed information on using Pivot-RP can be found on the University of Tartu intranet and at the grant office.