Waiver Policy

Purpose and Principle

The International Journal of Clinical Virology (IJCV) promotes open and inclusive publishing by reducing economic barriers that may prevent authors—especially those from low-income regions or underfunded institutions—from disseminating their research. This Waiver Policy ensures that publication opportunities are not influenced by an author’s ability to pay.

Scope

The Waiver Policy applies to Article Processing Charges (APC) only. It does not cover optional services such as expedited review, reprints, or editorial artwork design. All waiver applications are confidential and reviewed independently of the editorial decision-making process.

Eligibility Criteria

Authors may qualify for full or partial APC waivers based on the following circumstances:

• Residence or primary affiliation in countries classified by the World Bank as low- or lower-middle-income economies.
• Students, post-doctoral researchers, or early-career scientists without grant support.
• Independent researchers not affiliated with a funding institution.
• Authors invited for special issues, editorials, or peer-review contributions.
• Collaborators from humanitarian or non-profit research organizations.

Waiver Levels

Application Procedure

1. Authors must submit a waiver request at the time of manuscript submission via email to [email protected].
2. The request should include the manuscript title, author names, affiliation country, and a short explanation of financial need or funding status.
3. Requests received after manuscript acceptance cannot be considered.
4. Applicants receive a written decision within 7–10 working days.

Ethical Independence

Waiver decisions are handled by the publisher’s administrative team and are not linked to editorial or peer-review outcomes. Editorial staff and reviewers are blinded to financial requests during manuscript evaluation to uphold impartiality and academic integrity.

Evidence and Verification

• Applicants may be asked to provide proof of institutional affiliation or funding status.
• Students must supply a valid student ID or supervisor endorsement letter.
• For projects funded by external grants, authors should declare whether the grant includes open-access funding provisions.

Confidentiality

All waiver applications and associated financial information are treated as strictly confidential and used solely for processing the request. Data handling complies with GDPR and the journal’s Privacy Statement.

Communication and Decision Timeline

Once a waiver request is submitted, an acknowledgment email is sent immediately. Final approval or rejection is communicated within 10 working days. The journal reserves the right to adjust waiver criteria periodically to ensure fair distribution of support.

Policy for Special Issues and Collaborative Projects

Guest editors may recommend waivers for selected contributors to special issues or conference collections. Each proposal is evaluated individually based on editorial budget and publisher approval.

Annual Budget Allocation

The publisher allocates a specific percentage of annual APC income to support waivers and fee reductions for authors from financially disadvantaged regions. Utilization of these funds is monitored through internal audits for transparency.

Appeal Procedure

Authors who believe their waiver application was unfairly assessed may submit an appeal with additional documentation to [email protected]. Appeals are reviewed by the Publisher within 14 working days and the decision is final.

Transparency and Accountability

All waiver requests and outcomes are logged internally for annual review by the publisher to ensure non-discrimination and equal opportunity. Aggregated statistics on waivers granted may be published periodically for public awareness.

Policy Review Cycle

The Waiver Policy is revised annually to reflect changes in global economic classifications and open-access publishing standards. All revisions are dated and publicly archived on the IJCV website.

Contact

For Waiver Enquiries
Email: [email protected]
Finance and Billing: [email protected]
Website: https://www.clinvirologyjournal.com/

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