Complying with the UKRI open access policy for researchers: long-form publications
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A quick guide for libraries and research offices to help researchers with UKRI funding make their research immediately available.
Introduction
Open access to research outputs is integral to maximising the value of publicly funded research. It ensures that knowledge is freely available to researchers, policymakers, practitioners, and the public - removing barriers to collaboration, innovation, and informed decision-making. By extending open access beyond journal articles to include monographs, we aim to support a more inclusive and transparent research ecosystem.
Open access also strengthens research integrity and reproducibility. When outputs are openly available, it becomes easier to validate findings, build on existing work, and support interdisciplinary research. This openness is especially important in tackling global challenges, where timely access to knowledge can accelerate solutions. Through our work we are committed to working with institutions and partners to develop sustainable models that support open access across all output types.
UKRI’s open access (OA) policy extends to long-form publications (specifically monographs, book chapters, and edited collections). This applies to works published on or after 1 January 2024. This guide outlines steps that you can take to support UKRI-funded researchers in your institution to comply with the policy.
The policy does not cover textbooks, creative works, fiction, or doctoral theses.
A companion version of this guide is also available for publishers.
Read our complying with the UKRI open access policy for publishers: long-form publications guide.
Requirements for long-form publications: the policy at a glance
| OA within 12 months | Authors must ensure that either the final published book or chapter, or the author’s accepted manuscript (AAM), is freely available no later than 12 months after publication. They can do this via:
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| Creative Commons Licence | UKRI’s policy requires a Creative Commons Attribution licence. CC BY is preferred to maximise re-use, however, other CC licences, including CC BY-ND and CC BY-NC-ND are permitted. Third-party materials (eg text, images, or figures which the author does not have copyright for) within the work may be excluded from the OA licence requirement. |
Tip: many publishers do not yet allow green OA for long-form content and many institutional rights retention policies do not yet include long-form. You may need to work directly with publishers to negotiate contracts and licenses.
How to access UKRI funding for long-form content
UKRI will contribute up to £10,000 (including VAT) towards OA book processing charges, or up to £1,000 (including VAT) towards OA chapter publishing charges. UKRI will also contribute up to £6,000 for participation in an alternative open access model, with up to an additional £3,000 available where there are two or more eligible outputs. UKRI funding is only available where a book is made open access immediately on publication. The application for this funding must be made through the author’s institution as follows:
Stage one: approval
An initial application for funding approval in principle should be made as soon as the author has entered into publishing discussions. An indication of the cost should be entered on the understanding that this may be subject to change.
Stage two: reclaim costs
The application can be made once the publication has been published, referencing the stage one application number. UKRI will issue a contribution towards publication fees of up to their publishing maximum limit.
Tip: UKRI processes payments twice yearly. Some publishers might be prepared to coordinate timing with you to avoid a delay in reimbursement.
Your role in supporting compliance
1. Advise and train researchers
- Ensure researchers understand the policy, and are aware that funding is available for OA
- Be aware of cost-effective options for authors. Some publishers, especially newer OA presses or university presses, may offer lower BPCs to funded researchers or offer alternative publication routes that do not involve paying a BPC. These may be suitable to recommend to your researchers
- Proactively liaise with researchers on new publishing contracts, especially sections about copyright and open access. Ensure there is a provision for OA, or that authors can self-archive in 12 months. Clarify that third-party materials can be excluded from the OA license. See UKRI’s guide to third party rights and our publishing under the UKRI open access policy: copyright and Creative Commons licences guide for more information
- Ensure researchers are aware of the requirement to add funder acknowledgement. See the UKRI guidance on acknowledging your funding for further information
- Ensure researchers understand the policy, and are aware that funding is available for OA
- Be aware of cost-effective options for authors. Some publishers, especially newer OA presses or university presses, may offer lower BPCs to funded researchers or offer alternative publication routes that do not involve paying a BPC. These may be suitable to recommend to your researchers
- Proactively liaise with researchers on new publishing contracts, especially sections about copyright and open access. Ensure there is a provision for OA, or that authors can self-archive in 12 months. Clarify that third-party materials can be excluded from the OA license. See UKRI’s guide to third party rights and our publishing under the UKRI open access policy: copyright and Creative Commons licences guide for more information
- Ensure researchers are aware of the requirement to add funder acknowledgement. See the UKRI guidance on acknowledging your funding for further information
2. Coordinate with publishers
- Many publishers are also new to this process. The institution may wish to liaise directly with publishers to ensure there is a clear understanding of licence requirements and to share how the invoicing process works for institutions
- If the publisher does not offer an OA route, ensure they understand there is funding available for immediate OA to help their authors comply, or check that a compliant CC licence will be applied
- Many publishers are also new to this process. The institution may wish to liaise directly with publishers to ensure there is a clear understanding of licence requirements and to share how the invoicing process works for institutions
- If the publisher does not offer an OA route, ensure they understand there is funding available for immediate OA to help their authors comply, or check that a compliant CC licence will be applied
3. Manage applications for funding
- Set up a straightforward process for researchers to request BPC funding
- Ensure the publisher understands there is a £10,000 cap, including VAT. If the publisher is unwilling to adjust the BPC, then top up funding will be required from elsewhere
- If an institution is part of a supporter or membership model (such as Open Book Publishers or the Open Book Collective), UKRI funds can be retrospectively used to pay for these costs if any UKRI-funded books are published as part of that agreement. You may need to highlight UKRI funding of the title and actively negotiate inclusion of a title in a diamond model, as the publisher may not do this automatically.
- Ensure a record is kept for all reference numbers to submitted applications at stage one, as these will be required on completion of stage two
- Set up a straightforward process for researchers to request BPC funding
- Ensure the publisher understands there is a £10,000 cap, including VAT. If the publisher is unwilling to adjust the BPC, then top up funding will be required from elsewhere
- If an institution is part of a supporter or membership model (such as Open Book Publishers or the Open Book Collective), UKRI funds can be retrospectively used to pay for these costs if any UKRI-funded books are published as part of that agreement. You may need to highlight UKRI funding of the title and actively negotiate inclusion of a title in a diamond model, as the publisher may not do this automatically.
- Ensure a record is kept for all reference numbers to submitted applications at stage one, as these will be required on completion of stage two
4. Manage self-archiving
- Even if the publisher is providing an OA copy on their platform (gold route), encourage or arrange for a copy to be deposited in the university’s repository or a subject repository
- For books not made immediately OA, set a reminder to deposit a copy within 12 months. Note that any non-OA content (eg where third-party rights were excluded) may need to be removed before depositing
- Check that the correct Creative Commons licence is applied
- UKRI encourages the adoption of metadata standards and persistent identifiers for long-form research outputs although not currently a requirement of their policy. Institutions are encouraged to include this metadata in their self-archived copies to improve the research information landscape
- Even if the publisher is providing an OA copy on their platform (gold route), encourage or arrange for a copy to be deposited in the university’s repository or a subject repository
- For books not made immediately OA, set a reminder to deposit a copy within 12 months. Note that any non-OA content (eg where third-party rights were excluded) may need to be removed before depositing
- Check that the correct Creative Commons licence is applied
- UKRI encourages the adoption of metadata standards and persistent identifiers for long-form research outputs although not currently a requirement of their policy. Institutions are encouraged to include this metadata in their self-archived copies to improve the research information landscape
Further information
- Take a look at the UKRI guide for publishing your research findings
- Take a look at the UKRI funding roadmap
Contact
For help and guidance on the above, please contact us by phone 020 3006 6088 or email help.digitalresources@jisc.ac.uk