EGU are pleased to announce a new clarification of the way the Union and our publishing partner Copernicus handle the Article Processing Charges (APCs) in our 19 open access journals. These changes, which will take place from January 2025, also include an expansion of the discounts and waivers available to authors who wish to publish in an EGU journal, taking another step towards a more equitable and diverse publishing landscape.

From January 2025, the article processing charges in all EGU journals will be changing from the current model of either per-page or per-article payment to a single per-article charge, to help make our charges more transparent for authors. The new article processing charges are structured into three journal groups, calculated based on the costs for typesetting and copy editing for the average article lengths of different EGU publications, according to statistics gathered over the last three years. For a specific breakdown of the charges for each journal, please visit the journal page and click on the ‘moderate article processing charges’ icon or use the menu in the ‘About’ section. Short articles, such as letters or peer-reviewed comments, have approximately the same length in all EGU journals and as such will be grouped into one standard charge across all journals.

EGU members who publish with any journal in the EGU family will also receive a 10% discount on the article processing charge, as long as they are a member at the time of submission. This discount strengthens EGU’s commitment to open science as a member-led, community-driven learned society, not a profit-focused model.

In addition to these changes, EGU are clarifying the availability of financial support for publication charges, to encourage scientists from all regions in Europe to participate in the Union’s activities, including publishing. Therefore, any corresponding authors affiliated in European economically disadvantaged (EED) countries will automatically receive a 50% discount on the standard charge for the journal they wish to publish in and an additional 10% discount if they are EGU members. Lastly, article processing charges are automatically waived for corresponding authors with affiliations in countries classified by Research4Life (Groups A & B), who will receive a full APC waiver. Authors who do not fall into this categorization, but who also cannot afford the charges can still apply for a full or partial waiver, which we hope will facilitate more equitable and inclusive access to publication, across the global geoscience community.

EGU’s publishing partner, Copernicus Publications, has signed numerous institutional agreements with institutions, universities, funders, and libraries which allow for the centralized settlement of article processing charges. As these agreements are often based on a per-article basis and to encourage the widespread uptake of such agreements, EGU and Copernicus are also offering a 10% discount on all these negotiated institutional agreements – similar to that given to EGU members.

EGU Publications Committee Chair Barbara Ervens said, “The new APC scheme makes publishing in EGU journals even more accessible and inclusive as many authors will benefit, not only because of publishing agreements with their institution, but also our own discounts and waivers. We hope that EGU members and our colleagues from currently underrepresented countries, in particular in the Global South and in European economically disadvantaged countries, see this as an extra incentive, and encouragement, to publish in our journals.”

If you have any questions about EGU journal’s article processing charges, the upcoming changes that will be introduced from January 2025, or discounts and waivers available to authors, please contact Copernicus editorial support, editorial@copernicus.org.

• Publications Committee
• EGU open access, publicly peer-reviewed journals