Open Access Agreements with Publishers

Saarland University and the SULB enable members of the UdS to benefit from discounts on Open Access publishing by entering into institutional memberships, participation in consortia, and transformative Open Access agreements.

Members of Saarland University Hospital (Universitätsklinkikum des Saarlandes, UKS) also benefit from DEAL agreements with Elsevier, Springer Nature and Wiley and the Nature Transformative Agreement.

AAAS (American Association for the Advancement of Science)

  • Term of the agreement: 1.1.2024 to 31.12.2026
  • Eligible authors: Members of Saarland University (UdS) with the status „corresponding author“.
  • The publisher offers a 15% discount on the APC of the Gold Open Access journal Science Advances.
  • The acceptance date is decisive.
  • Please follow the Science Advances APC Affiliation Workflow
  • Please use your UdS e-mail address for submission and communication with the publisher and submit your article from the UdS IP area. Affiliation verification is done via the email domain of the „corresponding author“.

ACM (Association for Computing Machinery)

ACS (American Chemical Society)

  • Term of the agreement with ACS: 1.1.2025 bis 31.12.2027
  • Eligible authors: Members of Saarland University (UdS) with the status „submitting corresponding author“.
  • Central financing of Open Access publication fees for journals covered by the agreement by the SULB / Saarland University.
  • Journals covered by the agreement: Which ACS journals are included in this agreement?
  • The acceptance date is decisive.
  • Please note the ACS information for authors: I’m a prospective author, how do I publish open access?
  • Please use your UdS e-mail address for submission and communication with the publisher and submit your article from the UdS IP area. Affiliation verification is done via the email domain of the „corresponding author“.

AIP (American Institute of Physics)

  • Term of the agreement with AIP: 1.1.2024 bis 31.12.2026
  • Central financing of Open Access publication fees for journals covered by the agreement by the SULB / Saarland University.
  • Journals covered by the agreement: AIP title list 2024 (also applies to 2025) -> a check mark is set in the 'Publish' column.
  • Eligible authors: Members of Saarland University (UdS) with the status „corresponding author“.
  • The acceptance date is decisive.
  • Eligible article type: Article
  • Articles will be published under the CC BY license.
  • The number of publications available under the agreement is limited. Allocation is based on the priority principle (first come, first serve).
  • When submitting, please refer to When you are ready to publish and the Guide for Authors from AIP.
  • Please use your UdS e-mail address for submission and communication with the publisher and submit your article from the UdS IP area. Affiliation verification is done via the email domain of the „corresponding author“.

APS (American Physical Society)

  • Term of the agreement with APS: 1.1.2025 to 31.12.2028
  • Eligible authors: Members of Saarland University (UdS) with the status „submitting corresponding author“.
  • Central financing of Open Access publication fees for journals covered by the agreement by the SULB / Saarland University.
  • Journals covered by the agreement: APS Journals 2025-2028 / Titelliste Publish
  • The acceptance date is decisive.
  • Eligible article types: Article Eligibility Criteria
  • Articles will be published under the CC BY license.
  • Please use your UdS e-mail address for submission and communication with the publisher and submit your article from the UdS IP area.

BMJ

  • Term of the BMJ Agreement: 1.1. to 31.12.2025
  • Eligible authors: Members of Saarland University (UdS) with the status „corresponding author“.
  • Central financing of Open Access publication fees for journals covered by the agreement by the SULB / Saarland University.
  • Journals covered by the agreement: Find out if you are eligible for institutional funding for your article 
    • 1. Select your institution: Universität des Saarlandes
    • 2. How you can publish with fees covered by your institution: Selection via drop down menu 'The journals that you can publish in with fees covered by the agreement'.
  • The acceptance date is decisive.
  • Eligible article type: Original Research Article
  • Articles will be published under the CC BY-NC license, unless the research sponsor requires the CC BY license.
  • Please refer to BMJs information for authors („What authors need to know“).
  • Please use your UdS e-mail address for submission and communication with the publisher and submit your article from the UdS IP area. Affiliation verification is done via the email domain of the „corresponding author“.

The Company of Biologists

Elsevier (DEAL)

  • Participation in the DEAL-Elsevier Agreement: 29.11.2023 to 31.12.2028
  • Eligible authors: Members of Saarland University (UdS) and Saarland University Hospital (UKS) with status „submitting corresponding author“.
  • Journals included in the agreement can be found in the Elsevier Journal title list in sheet *included*:
    • colum 'Publishing Model': Hybrid Open Access = Central financing of Open Access publication fees in the hybrid subscription journals by the SULB / Saarland University.
    • colum 'Publishing Model': Fully Open Access (Gold Open Access) = Financing of Article Processing Charges (APCs) by the authors. The APCs with DEAL discount (net) can be found in column 'DEAL Cost Contribution (current)'.
      • All DEAL Gold Open Access articles are invoiced to the SULB. The SULB forwards these collective invoices to the persons responsible for the APC; the fees must be paid by an *assignment object of Saarland University*.
      • There is the possibility of funding from the Open Access Publication Fund of Saarland University.
  • Eligible article types: Full Length Article, Review Article, Case Report, Data in Brief, Microarticle, Original Software Publication, Protocol, Replication Study, Short Communication, Short Survey, Video Article
  • Additional costs (fees for overlength, colour charges, etc.) are not part of the agreement and will be charged to the authors.
  • Please use your UdS e-mail address for submission and communication with the publisher and submit your article from the UdS IP area. Affiliation verification is done via the email domain of the „corresponding author“.

Frontiers

  • Participation in the Frontiers agreement: 15.5.2024 to 31.12.2026
  • Eligible authors: Members of Saarland University (UdS) with the status „corresponding author“.
  • The publisher offers a 10% discount on the Article Processing Charge (APC) for all Frontiers journals.
    • After acceptance of the article, the invoice will be addressed to the SULB and forwarded by e-mail to the corresponding author (or the person responsible) for payment. The invoice must be paid from an account of Saarland University.
    • There is the possibility of funding from the Open Access Publication Fund of Saarland University.
  • Eligible article types: no restriction, all article types are eligible.
  • Please use your UdS e-mail address for submission and communication with the publisher and submit your article from the UdS IP area. Affiliation verification is done via the email domain of the „corresponding author“.

Hogrefe: PsyJOURNALS

Karger Publishing House

  • Term of the Publish & Read agreement with Karger: 1.1.2024 to 31.12.2026
  • Eligible authors: Members of Saarland University (UdS) with the status „corresponding author“.
  • Journals included in the agreement can be found in the Karger-Titelliste 2024-2026
    • Table: Subscription Titles = Central financing of Open Access publication fees by the SULB / Saarland University.
    • Table: Gold Open Access Titles = Financing of Article Processing Charges (APCs) by the authors. The publisher offers a 15% discount on the APCs.
  • The acceptance date is decisive.
  • Eligible article types: Case Report, Meta Analyse, Methods Article, Research Article, Systematic Review
  • When submitting articles, please follow Karger's submission guidelines.
  • Please use your UdS e-mail address for submission and communication with the publisher and submit your article from the UdS IP area. Affiliation verification is done via the email domain of the „corresponding author“.

MDPI

  • Term of the agreement: 1.1.2025 to 31.12.2026
  • Eligible authors: Members of Saarland University (UdS) with the status „corresponding author“.
  • The Submission Date is decisive.
  • Eligible article types: no restriction, all article types are eligible.
  • The publisher grants the following discounts: 
  • Please use your UdS e-mail address for submission and communication with the publisher and submit your article from the UdS IP area. Affiliation verification is done via the email domain of the „corresponding author“.

Microbiology Society

The Open Library of the Humanities (OLH)

  • The non-profit organization Open Library of Humanities (OLH) publishes quality-assessed Open Access journals with a focus on the humanities and social sciences.
  • Open Access publishing at OLH is free of charge to authors.
  • Funding is secured through grants from libraries, and SULB has also been contributing since 2019.

Portland Press: Biochemical Society Journals

  • Term of the agreement: 1.1.2025 to 31.12.2027
  • Eligible authors: Members of Saarland University (UdS) with the status „submitting corresponding author“.
  • Central financing of Open Access publication fees for journals covered by the agreement by the SULB / Saarland University.
  • Journals covered by the agreement:
  • The submission date is decisive.
  • Eligible article types: no restriction, all article types are eligible.
  • Please use your UdS e-mail address for submission and communication with the publisher and submit your article from the UdS IP area. Affiliation verification is done via the email domain of the „corresponding author“.

RSC (Royal Society of Chemistry)

  • Term of the RSC Journals / Platinum agreement: 1.1.2024 to 31.12.2027
  • Eligible authors: Members of Saarland University (UdS) with the status „submitting corresponding author“.
  • Central financing of Open Access publication fees for journals covered by the agreement by the SULB / Saarland University.
  • Journals covered by the agreement: All journals A-Z
  • The acceptance date is decisive.
  • Eligible article types: all article types *except* Comment, Correction, Editorial and Retraction
  • Articles will be published by default under the CC BY license.
  • Please refer to the information under Read & Publish author guidelines.
  • Please use your UdS e-mail address for submission and communication with the publisher and submit your article from the UdS IP area. Affiliation verification is done via the email domain of the „corresponding author“.

Springer Nature (Nature und Nature-Research-Journals)

  • Term of the Nature Transformative Agreement: 1.1.2025 to 31.12.2028
  • Eligible authors: Members of Saarland University (UdS) and Saarland University Hospital (UKS) with „corresponding author“ status.
  • Central financing of Open Access publication fees for journals covered by the agreement by the SULB / Saarland University.
  • Journals covered by the agreement: Nature - eligible journals -> column 'Nature OA Publishing': Y(es)
  • The publication date is decisive.
  • Eligible article type: Primary Research Article
  • Please refer to Nature's information for authors.
  • Please use your UdS e-mail address for submission and communication with the publisher and submit your article from the UdS IP area. Affiliation verification is done via the email domain of the „corresponding author“.

Springer Nature (DEAL)

  • Term of the DEAL Springer Nature agreement: 1.1.2025 to 31.12.2028
  • Eligible authors: Members of Saarland University (UdS) and Saarland University Hospital (UKS) with status „corresponding author“.
  • Journals included in the agreement can be found in the Springer Nature Journal title list in the table sheet *included*:
    • column 'Publishing Model': Hybrid (Open Choice) = Central financing of Open Access publication fees in the hybrid subscription journals by the SULB / Saarland University.
      • Eligible article types: Research Article (= Original Paper, Review Paper, Brief Communication) and Non-Research Article (= Editorial Notes, Book Review, Letter, Report).
      • *Contractual exception*: „Note on Springer Nature medical journals (Facharztzeitschriften): Articles in these journals will only be published Open Access under DEAL if they are a) not submitted by invitation (e.g. via a call for papers) and b) of the type „research article“. Non-research articles in journals are excluded from the agreement". You can find these journals in colum 'Facharztzeitschriften', entry: yes.
    • column 'Publishing Model': Fully Open Access (Gold Open Access) = Financing of Article Processing Charges (APCs) by the authors. The APCs with DEAL discount (net) can be found in column 'Current DEAL Cost Contribution (2025)'.
      • All DEAL Gold Open Access articles are invoiced to the SULB. The SULB forwards these collective invoices to the persons responsible for the APC; the fees must be paid by an *assignment object of Saarland University*.
      • Eligible Article Type: Research Article (= Original Paper, Review Paper, Brief Communication)
      • There is the possibility of funding from the Open Access Publication Fund of Saarland University.
  • Additional costs (fees for overlength, colour charges, etc.) are not part of the agreement and will be charged to the authors. Information on additional fees can be found in the Submission Guidelines of the journals.
  • Please use your UdS e-mail address for submission and communication with the publisher and submit your article from the UdS IP area. Affiliation verification is done via the email domain of the „corresponding author“.

Wiley (DEAL)

  • Term of the DEAL Wiley agreement: 1.1.2024 to 31.12.2028
  • Eligible authors: Members of Saarland University (UdS) and Saarland University Hospital (UKS) with status „Responsible corresponding author“.
  • Journals included in the agreement can be found in the Wiley journal title list in the table sheet *included*:
    • column 'Revenue Model': HOA (Hybrid Open Access) = Central financing of Open Access publication fees in the hybrid subscription journals by the SULB / Saarland University.
    • column 'Revenue Model': OA (Gold Open Access) = Financing of Article Processing Charges (APCs) by the authors. The APCs with DEAL discount (net) can be found in column 'EUR APC, Discounted (20%)'.
      • All DEAL Gold Open Access articles are invoiced to the SULB. The SULB forwards these collective invoices to the persons responsible for the APC; the fees must be paid by an *assignment object of Saarland University*.
      • There is the possibility of funding from the Open Access Publication Fund of Saarland University.
  • Eligible article types: Primary Research Article und Review Article
  • Additional costs (fees for overlength, colour charges, etc.) are not part of the agreement and will be charged to the authors.
  • Please use your UdS e-mail address for submission and communication with the publisher and submit your article from the UdS IP area. Affiliation verification is done via the email domain of the „corresponding author“.