Plan S - Information for researchers

Plan S is an initiative to accelerate the transition to 100% open-access publication from 2020 onwards. The plan was launched in September 2018. It is promoted by a coalition of 16 funders known as cOAlition S and coordinated by Science Europe. Plan S will affect publications funded by participating organizations, such as NWO and ZonMw in the Netherlands.

What does Plan S mean for researchers?

Plan S will affect peer-reviewed academic articles funded by participating organizations, such as NWO and ZonMw in the Netherlands. It will not affect monographs or book chapters.

To comply with Plan S, publications must meet three key requirements:

1. Immediate open access (no embargoes)
2. Full copyright retention for authors or their institutions
3. Open license (recommended CC BY 4.0)

The main goals of the initiative are:

• to eliminate publication paywalls
• to grant immediate open-access publication to research funded by cOAlition S
• to grant full copyright retention to the legal copyright holder (usually the author(s) or their institution(s)) and an open license allowing re-use for any purpose
• to enhance transparency in academic publishing
• to promote a shift in the assessment of research.

Please contact the University Library's or the Central Medical Library's open-access teams for further information or any questions you may have.