BMJ APC Waiver and Discount Policy: Who Qualifies and How to Apply

At a glanceFull waiver only when every author is in a country on BMJ's list and the research is unfunded; partial discounts case by case. Every author Must be requested, usually at submission

Check BMJ's waiver for your author team

Co-authors (where they work)

Only the country is needed: without a journal you get every publisher's result for your author team. Free. No sign-up. Uses the publishers' published rules, last verified 27 October 2026.

Which countries qualify at BMJ

Countries are matched by the author's institutional affiliation, not nationality.

100% waiver 91 countries BMJ full waiver list

Afghanistan, Angola, Bangladesh, Belau, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo (Brazzaville), Congo (Kinshasa), Cook Islands, Djibouti, Dominica, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Grenada, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Honduras, Iran, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Kiribati, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Micronesia, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Niue, North Korea, Pakistan, Palestinian Territory, Papua New Guinea, Rwanda, Saint Helena, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Suriname, Syria, São Tomé and Príncipe, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tokelau, Tonga, Tunisia, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Co-authors from other countries

Every author must be affiliated in an eligible country. One co-author from an ineligible country cancels the waiver; with authors from different groups, the lowest discount applies.

All authors: 'All authors on the paper must be located in a country, area or territory included in our waiver list'; research done there and unfunded

The waiver is only for research without external funding.

How to get the waiver

Request via form before or during initial submission.

Programmes: Own full-waiver list (Research4Life Group A and World Bank lending groups); case-by-case partial discount up to 50%; ONOS (reading access).

Official sources: authors.bmj.com ↗ · s16086.pcdn.co (2) ↗

BMJ journals on ScholarsColab

Each journal page shows its indexing, impact factor, review time, reviewer comments and this waiver.

ElsevierWileyHindawiSAGEOxford University PressCambridge University PressPLOSCopernicus PublicationsMIT PressThiemeIETScience Advances (AAAS)

Schemes used: Publisher country lists, Research4Life, Discretionary hardship waivers. All publishers and schemes →

Frequently asked questions

Does BMJ offer APC waivers?

Full waiver only when every author is in a country on BMJ's list and the research is unfunded; partial discounts case by case. Must be requested, usually at submission.

Who gets a full APC waiver at BMJ?

Authors affiliated in 91 countries qualify for a 100% waiver. Every author must be affiliated in an eligible country. One co-author from an ineligible country cancels the waiver; with authors from different groups, the lowest discount applies.

Does the BMJ waiver apply if my co-authors are from other countries?

Every author must be affiliated in an eligible country. One co-author from an ineligible country cancels the waiver; with authors from different groups, the lowest discount applies.

How do I apply for an APC waiver at BMJ?

Request via form before or during initial submission.

Before you submit

Source, method and date. Each publisher's rule was read from its official waiver page (linked on every row) and the country lists from Research4Life, EIFL, the World Bank income classification and the publishers' own lists. Last verified: 27 October 2026. Policies change, Research4Life updates its lists every January and the World Bank every July, and some waivers are temporary or decided case by case. The checker reads the published rules; it cannot promise a waiver. Confirm on the publisher's page before you submit. ScholarsColab is not affiliated with any publisher listed here; logos are trademarks of their owners, shown only to name the publishers whose rules we read.

Confidence of this entry: High.