Leibniz Universität Hannover's Open Access Publishing Fund

Leibniz Universität Hannover's Open Access Publishing Fund provides funding for articles in Open Access journals that charge publication fees (Article Processing Charges, APC).

Open Access Publishing Fund application form

You can apply for a reimbursement of costs using the online form.

How does the fund work?

For every article that meets the basic funding criteria the LUH Fund will pay up to a maximum of 700 Euro. Authors need to pay the full amount of the APC and then submit the invoice for reimbursement.

APC are covered in full, if the article also meets the best practice criteria.

There are exceptions for journals or publishers that are under observation (see below, Exceptions). In these cases, the fund will pay up to a maximum of 500 Euro per article.

Eligibility conditions

Basic funding criteria

These criteria must always be met in order to receive funding from the LUH Fund.

  • The Corresponding Author is a member of Leibniz Universität Hannover (LUH) and has an ORCID iD. The affiliation with the “Leibniz University Hannover” is clearly and correctly stated in the article.
  • The article is being published in a genuine Open Access journal, in which all contributions are freely accessible in full and immediately upon publication under a Creative Commons license (no hybrid journals).
  • The journal has implemented a system of quality management approved within its discipline and should be listed in the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ).

Best practice criteria

Articles that also meet the following high standards for openness and publishing quality will be fully funded.

  • The selected journal has been awarded the DOAJ Seal by DOAJ.
  • The article will be made available under the “CC BY” license.
  • The total cost of the APC does not exceed 2,000 Euro net.

Exceptions

For articles published in journals or by publishers whose science-supporting functions are in doubt and under observation, the fund will pay up to a maximum of 500 Euro per article. We reevaluate  these journals and publishers annually.

The following publishers are currently under observation:

  • MDPI (Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute)

Nota bene

  • The new criteria will apply to all articles submitted on or after 1 January 2023 (Submission Date).
  • Articles published in so-called mirror journals are not eligible for funding, even if they are listed in DOAJ. Mirror Journals are Open Access offshoots of already existing closed access journals and therefore represent a form of hybrid journal.
  • Additional costs for rapid peer review, overlength etc. will not be funded.
  • Publications must contain the following funding acknowledgement: „The publication of this article was funded by the Open Access Publishing Fund of Leibniz Universität Hannover“
  • Split invoices are generally not eligible.

Application process

  1. You can apply for funding as soon as your manuscript has been accepted for publication. But of course you can check with us in advance to make sure that your article will be eligible.
  2. Being the article's corresponding author you apply for funding using the online form provided on this website.
  3. The team at the TIB appraises all applications according to the funding criteria and in the order of their receipt. This usually takes 1-2 working days
  4. You can directly upload your original invoice via the application form or send it to us by e-mail (oafondstibeu). 

Handling the invoice

Option 1: Partial Funding

If partial funding is applicable, the LUH Fund will reimburse you and pay a maximum of 700 EUR. Please provide us with the original invoice and the details of your LUH account. Please indicate the cost center and project number.

You can directly upload your original invoice via the application form or send it to us by e-mail. (oafondstibeu).

Option 2: Full Funding

Please do not settle the invoice yourself if the LUH Fund covers the APC in full (Best practice criteria). Instead, have it addressed to TIB. We will pay the APC directly to the publisher.

In order to do so the invoice must include the following details:

Billing Address:

Technische Informationsbibliothek (TIB), Welfengarten 1B, 30167 Hannover

VAT ID:

DE 214931803

Should the specification of a contact person and a telephone number be mandatory, please name:

Frau Jessica Michel

Tel.: +49 511 762-19859

Articles financed from the fund

All articles funded by the Publication Fund are also available via LUH’s Institutional Repository. We share the data on APC payments via the OpenAPC initiative.

Contact

Jessica Michel

Feedback