Author Fees and Business Model

Author Fees and Business Model Policy

The Andalasian International Journal of Agricultural and Natural Sciences (AIJANS) is committed to transparent, equitable, and sustainable scholarly publishing. As an open-access journal published by the Lembaga Penelitian dan Pengabdian kepada Masyarakat (LPPM), Universitas Andalas, Indonesia, AIJANS provides unrestricted access to its published scholarly content while maintaining an independent and academically rigorous editorial process.

This policy explains the journal's publication charges, payment arrangements, fee waiver provisions, funding sources, and safeguards for editorial independence.

The policy is informed by the Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing, Version 5.0 (2026), developed by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), Open Access Scholarly Publishing Association (OASPA), and World Association of Medical Editors (WAME).

1. Open-Access Publishing Model

AIJANS operates under an open-access publishing model. All published articles are immediately available to readers without subscription fees, registration requirements, or pay-per-view charges.

Readers may access and download published articles without payment. Reuse of published content is governed by the journal's applicable Creative Commons licence, as explained in its Open Access Policy.

AIJANS applies an Article Processing Charge (APC) to accepted manuscripts to support the costs associated with scholarly publication.

2. Article Processing Charge (APC)

2.1 APC Amount

The Article Processing Charge for publication in AIJANS is:

Article Processing Charge (APC): USD 75 per accepted article.

The APC is applied to an article accepted for publication following the journal's editorial assessment and peer-review procedures.

The APC is charged per accepted article, not per author, page, table, figure, or reference.

2.2 Submission and Review Fees

AIJANS does not charge a fee for the initial submission of a manuscript.

The journal does not charge authors for editorial assessment or peer review.

No APC payment is required before an editorial decision on acceptance has been made.

2.3 Services Supported by the APC

The APC contributes to the operational costs associated with scholarly publishing, including:

Editorial administration and manuscript processing.
Coordination and management of the peer-review process.
Manuscript preparation, formatting, and typesetting.
Publication and maintenance of electronic articles.
Digital publishing infrastructure and website maintenance.
Long-term digital preservation and archiving services.
Other necessary activities supporting the sustainable operation of the journal.

Payment of the APC does not constitute payment for a favorable editorial decision, a particular peer-review outcome, or guaranteed publication.

3. Payment Policy

3.1 Payment Timing

The APC becomes payable only after the manuscript has received a formal acceptance decision from the journal.

Authors will receive payment instructions through an official communication from the AIJANS editorial or administrative office.

The journal does not require APC payment as a condition for initiating peer review or obtaining an editorial assessment.

3.2 Responsibility for Payment

The corresponding author is responsible for coordinating APC payment arrangements with the journal.

Payment may be made by an author, the authors' institution, a research funder, or another authorized supporting organization.

The identity of the party paying the APC must not influence the editorial assessment, peer review, or publication decision.

3.3 Payment Instructions

Official payment details will be provided only after acceptance.

Authors should verify payment instructions through the journal's official communication channels before making a payment.

AIJANS is not responsible for payments made to unauthorized individuals or unverified third-party accounts.

4. Article Processing Charge Waiver Policy

4.1 Purpose

AIJANS recognizes that publication charges may create financial barriers for researchers who lack adequate institutional or project funding.

To support equitable participation in scholarly publishing, the journal may consider requests for full or partial APC waivers based on documented financial circumstances.

Waivers are intended to support authors with genuine financial constraints and must not influence editorial decisions.

4.2 Eligibility

An APC waiver may be considered when the author group demonstrates that sufficient resources are not available to cover the publication charge.

Relevant circumstances may include:

Lack of available institutional funding for publication charges.
Research conducted without financial support that can be used to cover publication costs.
Significant financial constraints affecting the author group.
Other documented circumstances that substantially limit the authors' ability to pay.

The corresponding author may submit a waiver request on behalf of the author group.

Eligibility will be assessed with reference to the financial resources reasonably available to the author group, rather than the corresponding author's circumstances alone.

A waiver is not automatic and must be approved through the journal's designated administrative process.

4.3 Waiver Application Procedure

Authors seeking an APC waiver should submit a written request to the journal's administrative office before initial submission or at the time of manuscript submission.

The request should include:

The manuscript title, if available.
The corresponding author's name and affiliation.
A brief explanation of the financial circumstances.
A statement concerning the availability of institutional or research funding for publication charges.
Any relevant supporting information reasonably requested by the journal.

Authors should submit waiver requests through the journal's official contact channel.

4.4 Waiver Assessment and Decision

Waiver requests will be assessed by a designated administrative representative of the journal or publisher who is not responsible for making the manuscript's article-level editorial decision.

The assessment may result in:

Approval of a full APC waiver.
Approval of a partial APC waiver.
Rejection of the waiver request.

The author will be informed of the administrative decision and any applicable payment arrangements.

A waiver decision does not constitute an editorial decision concerning the manuscript's suitability for publication.

4.5 Editorial Independence of Waiver Decisions

APC waiver applications and decisions must remain separate from manuscript evaluation and editorial decision-making.

Editors responsible for deciding whether an article should be accepted or rejected must not determine the financial eligibility of authors applying for APC waivers.

The approval or rejection of a waiver request must not influence:

Initial manuscript screening.
Selection of peer reviewers.
Peer-review recommendations.
Requests for revision.
Editorial acceptance or rejection decisions.
The scholarly evaluation of a manuscript.

Manuscripts will be assessed according to their scholarly merit and compliance with the journal's editorial requirements, regardless of the authors' ability to pay.

5. Editorial Independence and Financial Integrity

AIJANS maintains a clear separation between editorial decision-making and the financial administration of publication.

All editorial decisions must be based on:

The relevance of the manuscript to the journal's aims and scope.
Scientific originality and contribution.
Methodological rigor and reliability.
Research and publication ethics.
The quality and validity of the research findings.
Appropriate consideration of independent peer-review recommendations.

Editorial decisions must not be influenced by an author's nationality, institutional affiliation, financial resources, or ability to pay an APC.

The Editor-in-Chief and other decision-making editors are responsible for ensuring that academic assessment remains independent from commercial and financial interests.

Individuals responsible for article-level acceptance or rejection decisions must not be involved in collecting article payments or deciding APC waivers.

Editors and editorial staff must not receive financial incentives or compensation based on the number of manuscripts accepted for publication.

AIJANS does not guarantee acceptance or publication in exchange for payment of any fee.

6. Business Model and Sources of Revenue

6.1 Publication Funding

AIJANS operates through a combination of Article Processing Charges and institutional support.

The journal's principal sources of operational support are:

Article Processing Charges: Fees collected from accepted articles to support eligible publishing activities.
Institutional Support: Financial, administrative, infrastructural, or other operational support provided by the Lembaga Penelitian dan Pengabdian kepada Masyarakat (LPPM), Universitas Andalas, Indonesia.

These funding arrangements support the continued operation of the journal and the dissemination of scholarly research through open access.

6.2 Advertising and Sponsorship

AIJANS does not rely on commercial advertising or external sponsorship as part of its stated business model.

The journal's editorial decisions must remain independent of any financial or institutional support.

If the journal introduces additional revenue sources in the future, their nature and relevant conditions will be disclosed transparently on the journal website.

6.3 Other Potential Revenue Arrangements

Any future revenue arrangements, including sponsorships, publication services, special publications, content licensing, or agreements with commercial organizations and artificial intelligence companies, must be transparently disclosed where applicable.

Such arrangements must not compromise the journal's editorial independence, the rights of authors, or the applicable licensing conditions of published content.

Any future commercial agreement concerning access to or licensing of journal content must respect the rights and permissions established under the relevant copyright and open-access licences.

7. Transparency and Changes to Publication Fees

AIJANS is committed to ensuring that prospective authors can identify the applicable publication charges before submitting their manuscripts.

The journal will clearly disclose:

The current APC amount.
The stage at which payment becomes applicable.
Any additional author charges, if introduced in the future.
The availability and conditions of APC waivers.
Relevant changes to the journal's business model.

Any future changes to publication fees will be announced on the journal website before they take effect.

Fee changes must not be applied retroactively to manuscripts without appropriate prior notification and agreement.

8. Payment Disputes and Administrative Inquiries

Authors who have questions concerning publication fees, invoices, payment instructions, or waiver decisions may contact the journal's administrative office.

Financial disputes will be handled through an administrative process separate from scholarly assessment.

Any complaint concerning an editorial decision must be evaluated independently of the author's payment status.

Authors may submit administrative inquiries through the AIJANS Contact Page.

9. Policy Review and Accountability

AIJANS will periodically review its author-fee arrangements and business model to ensure their continued transparency, fairness, and sustainability.

Any substantial change to the journal's financial policies will be communicated through the journal website.

The editorial and administrative teams are responsible for implementing this policy within their respective areas of authority.

10. References and Publishing Standards

COPE, DOAJ, OASPA, and WAME. Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing, Version 5.0 (2026).
Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). Publication Ethics Guidance and Resources.
Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ). Guide to Applying.