Fulfilling funder open access requirements

Three ways to make your publications open access

You can generally make a journal article open access in the following ways:

1. Deposit your article in an open access repository

You can deposit a version of your article in an institutional repository, such as eScholarship@McGill, or in a disciplinary repository.

For journal articles, the version you can deposit depends on the publisher's copyright and self-archiving policy. In many cases, this will be the accepted manuscript: the final version of your article after peer review, before the publisher's formatting and layout.

The McGill Libraries can check publisher policies for you. You can send us your publication or a list of publications, and we can determine which version can be deposited and whether an embargo applies.

eScholarship can accommodate publisher embargoes, so you can submit your article as soon as it is accepted for publication. The Libraries will apply any required embargo before making the article openly available.

2. Publish in an open access journal

You can publish your article in a journal that makes its articles freely available online.

Some open access journals charge an article processing charge (APC) to authors. APCs for open access journals are typically eligible grant expenses.

3. Publish open access in a subscription journal

Some subscription journals allow authors to pay a fee to make an individual article open access on the publisher's website. This is often called hybrid open access. Whether this option meets your funder's requirements, and whether the fee is an eligible grant expense, depends on the funder. APCs for hybrid journals are not an eligible grant expense for FRQ grants awarded after July 2022.

How can I check a journal's compliance with funder OA policies?

Open Policy Finder

The JISC Open Policy Finder (formerly SHERPA/RoMEO) provides information about provides publisher self-archiving policies, permitted manuscript versions, embargo periods, licence information, and repository deposit conditions.

Search for a journal's title and review the Journal Policy section to see the open access policies for the Published, Accepted, and Submitted versions of your article. See detailed search steps with screenshots.

Journal Checker Tool

The Journal Checker Tool, developed by cOAlition S, is useful for researchers funded by the FRQ 2022 policy because it evaluates whether a journal offers routes that meet requirements for immediate open access and open licensing. However, it does not include McGill's publisher agreements and APC discounts, so a journal that appears non-compliant may actually be covered by a McGill transformative agreement.

Which version of my article should I deposit?

An accepted manuscript is the final version of your article after peer review, before the publisher's formatting, layout, and other enhancements. It is also sometimes called a post-print or author accepted manuscript (AAM).

Publishers determine which versions authors may deposit and whether an embargo applies. The Libraries can check these policies on your behalf.

Keep a copy of your accepted manuscript when your article is accepted for publication. It is often the version that you have the greatest rights to share.

Learn more about accepted manuscripts and depositing your work in eScholarship

What doesn't count as open access?

Posting an article on your personal or departmental website, ResearchGate, Academia.edu, or a similar site does not by itself satisfy these funder requirements.

You can still share your work on these sites where permitted, but funders require a copy to be made available through a qualifying repository or journal. Repositories provide broader discoverability and long-term preservation.

Paying for open access

Some journals charge an article processing charge (APC) to make an article open access. McGill Libraries do not have a fund that directly pays individual APCs, but McGill researchers may have access to publisher discounts and waivers through Library agreements. Whether this option meets your funder's requirements, and whether the fee is an eligible grant expense, depends on the funder.

Before paying an APC, check:

• whether your funder permits the expense;
• whether the journal meets your funder's open access requirements;
• whether McGill has an agreement with the publisher that provides a discount or waiver; and
• whether you can instead meet the requirement by depositing your accepted manuscript in a repository.

See current APC discounts and open access publishing agreements

How can the Libraries help?

You do not need to navigate funder and publisher requirements on your own.

We can help:

• determine which funder requirements apply to your publication
• check a journal's copyright and self-archiving policies
• determine which version of an article you can deposit
• identify appropriate institutional or disciplinary repositories
• deposit your publications in eScholarship@McGill
• advise you about publisher agreements, open licences, and author rights
• help you identify available APC discounts and waivers

Send the Libraries a list of your publications and, where available, copies of your accepted manuscripts. We can review the relevant funder requirements and publisher policies and determine how your publications can be made open access.

Get help with open access

Further information

Funder policies

• Tri-Agency Open Access Policy on Publications
• Tri-Agency Open Access Policy FAQ
• FRQ Open Access Policy
• FRQ Open Access Policy FAQ

McGill resources

• How to make your research open access
• eScholarship@McGill
• Open access publishing agreements and APC discounts
• Get help with open access