Publishers and journals that waive the APC in full for Somalia
A 100% waiver means you publish open access without paying the fee. Read the co-author rule of each one before you submit.
| Publisher or journal | What you get | Whose affiliation counts | How |
|---|---|---|---|
| ACM | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| AIP Publishing | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| American Chemical Society | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| American Physical Society | Free 100% APC waiver | Submitting author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| American Society for Microbiology | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| BioMed Central (BMC) | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Must be requested, usually at submission |
| BMC journals with country-tiered pricing journal | Free 100% APC waiver (APC set to 0% of list price) | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| BMJ | Free 100% APC waiver | Every author | Must be requested, usually at submission |
| Cambridge University Press | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| Cell Press | Free 100% APC waiver | Every author | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| Copernicus Publications | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| Dove Medical Press | Free 100% APC waiver | Every author | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| Elsevier | Free 100% APC waiver | Every author | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| EMBO Press | Free 100% APC waiver (APC set to 0% of list price) | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| Emerald Publishing | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| F1000Research journal | Free 100% APC waiver | Submitting author only | Must be requested, usually at submission |
| Heliyon journal | Free 100% APC waiver | Not stated by the journal | Must be requested, usually at submission |
| Hindawi | Free 100% APC waiver | Half of all authors | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| IEEE | Free 100% APC waiver | Every author | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| IEEE Access journal | Free 100% APC waiver | Every author | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| IET | Free 100% APC waiver | Half of all authors | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| IOP Publishing | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author + majority | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| KeAi | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| Lancet open access journals journal | Free 100% APC waiver | Majority of institutions | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| Microbiology Society | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| MIT Press | Free 100% APC waiver (Quantitative Science Studies) | Corresponding author only | Must be requested, usually at submission |
| Optica Publishing Group | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| PeerJ | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Must be requested, usually at submission |
| PLOS | Free 100% APC waiver (only if the research has no external funding) | Corresponding author only | Must be requested, usually at submission |
| PLOS ONE journal | Free 100% APC waiver (only if the research has no external funding) | Not stated by the journal | Must be requested, usually at submission |
| Portland Press | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| Rockefeller University Press | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| Royal Society of Chemistry | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| SAGE | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| Science Advances (AAAS) | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| Scientific Reports journal | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Must be requested, usually at submission |
| Springer Nature | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Must be requested, usually at submission |
| Springer Nature Discover journals journal | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Must be requested, usually at submission |
| Taylor & Francis | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Must be requested, usually at submission |
| The Royal Society | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| Thieme | Free 100% APC waiver | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| Wiley | Free 100% APC waiver | Half of all authors | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
APC discounts for authors in Somalia
A part of the fee is waived; the rest is paid by the authors or their institution.
| Publisher or journal | What you get | Whose affiliation counts | How |
|---|---|---|---|
| De Gruyter Brill | 80% off 80% off the APC | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| University of California Press | 75% off 75% off the APC | Corresponding author only | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
| Bentham Science | 50% off 50% off the APC | Corresponding author only | Must be requested, usually at submission |
| Bioscientifica | Discount Waiver or discount | Case by case | Must be requested, usually at submission |
| JMIR Publications | Discount Full waiver only in exceptional cases | Every author | Must be requested, usually at submission |
| Karger | Discount Waiver or discount | Corresponding author only | Must be requested, usually at submission |
| SCIRP | Discount Reduction | First and corresponding author | Applied automatically from the affiliation |
Check the waiver for your author team
The tables above are for a single author in Somalia. Add your co-authors' countries and a journal to see what applies to your paper.
Co-authors in other countries
With an international author team the same paper can be free at one publisher and charged at another. This is how the publishers above decide:
Corresponding author only
Only the corresponding author's affiliation counts. Co-authors from other countries do not change the waiver.
Submitting author only
Only the submitting (corresponding) author's institutional affiliation counts.
First and corresponding author
The first author and the corresponding author both count; when they differ, the less favourable discount is applied.
Half of all authors
The corresponding author's country decides the group, and for a full waiver at least half of all authors must be affiliated in a country of the same eligible group.
Corresponding author + majority
Applied automatically when all authors are in eligible countries; on request when the corresponding author and the majority of co-authors are.
Majority of institutions
The country of the main funder decides; for unfunded work, the country of the majority of the authors' institutions, and when there is no majority, the corresponding author's country.
Every author
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.
Country lists that include Somalia
- Research4Life Group A list source ↗
- World Bank low-income list
Publishers update these lists every year, so confirm with the journal before you submit. How the schemes work →
Case-by-case waivers
These publishers grant waivers or discounts on application, by need and available funds. Nothing is guaranteed, but you can ask at submission.
No APC at all
Find a journal on your topic with the waiver
The Journal Finder matches your title or abstract to journals that published similar papers and, with the waiver filter on, keeps the journals that waive or discount the APC for Somalia.
Open the Journal Finder for Somalia →
Countries on the same lists
Authors in these countries get the same treatment at most publishers.
Frequently asked questions
Do authors from Somalia get an APC waiver?
Yes, at 42 of the publishers and journals we checked, for example ACM, AIP Publishing, American Chemical Society, American Physical Society, American Society for Microbiology, BioMed Central (BMC). The waiver depends on where the authors are affiliated, not their nationality.
Which publishers give a discount to authors in Somalia?
De Gruyter Brill, University of California Press, Bentham Science, Bioscientifica, JMIR Publications, Karger, SCIRP. The percentage and conditions differ by publisher; the table on this page shows each one.
Does the waiver still apply if my co-authors are in other countries?
It depends on the publisher. At many publishers only the corresponding author's affiliation counts; others need half, most or all authors in eligible countries. The table on this page shows the rule of each publisher, and the checker applies it to your author team.
Which country lists include Somalia?
Somalia is on: Research4Life Group A list, World Bank low-income list.