Open access agreements for United States

Information for authors

Welcome

Through BMJ’s open access agreement with a number of North American institutions, corresponding authors* affiliated with participating universities and research institutions can publish eligible research open access in a range of BMJ journals, with fees fully covered by the agreement.

*The corresponding author is the primary contact with BMJ after editorial acceptance.

Useful resources for authors

Download OA at BMJ Author Guide
Download “How to publish your article open access with BMJ” infographic
Download R&P Frequently Asked Questions
Download Eligible Research Article Types
BMJ Author Hub
Where Is My Paper?

What authors need to know

Article type: only original research articles (reporting on primary research) are eligible.

Journal type: your article must be submitted to one of the journals specified in the institutional drop down below.

Author role: you must be the corresponding author* of the article.

Affiliation: you should be a current staff member or student of an eligible institution at the time your article is accepted for publication.

Manuscript: clearly state your primary affiliation in the published manuscript.

Verification: confirm your eligibility at submission using your Ringgold ID/ institution domain. Learn more about Ringgold IDs and why they are important.

Licensing: all open access articles will be published allowing reuse under a CC-BY-NC license; in some cases CC-BY licence – where funder mandates.

Agreement status: your institution’s OA agreement with BMJ must be active, with sufficient funds, on acceptance of your paper.

For some institutions BMJ Case Reports is also included in the Agreement, you will find information for your institution in the drop down below.
*Acting as the main contact with us after editorial acceptance.

Ready to publish? Next steps

1. Select your institution

BMJ Open

Thinking about submitting your article to this journal?

Your APC may be covered – check below to see if your institution includes BMJ Open in its list of eligible journals.

2. How you can publish with fees covered by your institution

Type of open access agreement

Read and publish agreement

Licence Type

CC-BY-NC; CC-BY in selected journals. Please double-check with your library for licence details.

Eligibility

Corresponding author – please note that the corresponding author needs to be the person who is linked to the grant holding or funding institution, at the time the article is accepted for publication. Please use your institutional email address in the submission process.

Type of article: Original research articles.

Our full list of eligible research article types can be found here.

You can publish in the BMJ Journals Collection, as listed on page 1 here.

How you can publish with fees covered by your institution

What is covered

Article Processing Charges for the open access publication of your article in titles in the BMJ Journals Collection listed above.

Please note that our agreements do not cover extra costs, i.e. colour charges that might apply with hybrid journals.

When submitting through our submission system you will need to verify your eligibility using your Institution’s Ringgold ID. The application of the full payment of the APC will take place once your article has been accepted, upon verification of your institution’s Ringgold ID.

In addition you have read access to content in all the Standard Collection (SC) journals listed on page 2 of the leaflet above.

If you need further clarification, contact us at openaccess@bmj.com

Type of open access agreement

Read and publish agreement (including Gold OA journals)

Licence Type

CC-BY-NC; CC-BY in selected journals. Please double-check with your library for licence details.

Eligibility

Type of article: Original research articles. Our full list of eligible research article types can be found here.

You can publish in the BMJ Journals Collection and in BMJ Gold Open Access Journals, as listed on pages 1 and 3 here.

What is covered

Article Processing Charges for the open access publication of:
– your research articles in the BMJ Journals Collection titles listed.
– your research articles in the BMJ Gold OA titles listed.

Please note that our agreements do not cover extra costs, i.e. colour charges that might apply with hybrid journals.

When submitting through our submission system you will need to verify your eligibility using your Institution’s Ringgold ID. The application of the waiver will take place once your article has been accepted, upon verification of the Ringgold ID.

In addition you have read access to all content in our BMJ Journals Collection.

If you need further clarification, contact us at openaccess@bmj.com

Type of open access agreement

Read and publish agreement

Licence Type

CC-BY-NC; CC-BY in selected journals. Please double-check with your library for licence details.

Eligibility

Type of article: Original research articles. Our full list of eligible research article types can be found here.

You can publish in the BMJ Journals Collection, as listed on page 1 here.

What is covered

Article Processing Charges for the open access publication of your article in titles in the BMJ Journals Collection listed above.

Please note that our agreements do not cover extra costs, i.e. colour charges that might apply with hybrid journals.

In addition you have read access to all content in our BMJ Journals Collection.

If you need further clarification, contact us at openaccess@bmj.com

Type of open access agreement

Read and publish agreement

Licence Type

CC-BY-NC; CC-BY in selected journals. Please double-check with your library for licence details.

Eligibility

Type of article: Original research articles. Our full list of eligible research article types can be found here.

You can publish in the BMJ Standard Collection journals, as listed on page 2 here.

What is covered

Article Processing Charges for the open access publication of your article in titles in the BMJ Standard Collection listed above.

Please note that our agreements do not cover extra costs, i.e. colour charges that might apply with hybrid journals.

In addition you have read access to all content in our BMJ Standard Collection.

If you need further clarification, contact us at openaccess@bmj.com

Type of open access agreement

Read and publish agreement

Licence Type

CC-BY-NC; CC-BY in selected journals. Please double-check with your library for licence details.

Eligibility

Type of article: Original research articles. Our full list of eligible research article types can be found here.

You can publish in the BMJ Standard Collection and in BMJ Gold Open Access Journals, as listed on pages 2 and 3 here.

What is covered

Article Processing Charges for the open access publication of:
– your research articles in the BMJ Standard Collection titles listed.
– your research articles in the BMJ Gold OA titles listed.

Please note that our agreements do not cover extra costs, i.e. colour charges that might apply with hybrid journals.

In addition you have read access to all content in our BMJ Standard Collection.

If you need further clarification, contact us at openaccess@bmj.com

Type of open access agreement

Membership

Licence Type

CC-BY-NC; CC-BY in selected journals. Please double-check with your library for licence details.

Eligibility

Type of article: Original research articles. Our full list of eligible research article types can be found here.

You can publish in the BMJ Journals Collection and in BMJ Gold Open Access Journals, as listed on pages 1 and 3 here.

What is covered

You will receive a discount of 25% on the Article Processing Charges for the open access publication of:
– your research article in the BMJ Journals Collection titles listed.
– your research article in one of the Gold open access journals listed.

Please note that our agreements do not cover extra costs, i.e. colour charges that might apply with hybrid journals.

When submitting through our submission system you will need to verify your eligibility using your Institution’s Ringgold ID. The application of the 25% discount will take place once your article has been accepted, upon verification of the Ringgold ID.

If you need further clarification, contact us at openaccess@bmj.com

Type of open access agreement

Read and publish agreement (including Gold OA journals, and BMJ Case Reports)

Licence Type

CC-BY-NC. Please double-check with your library for licence details.

Eligibility

Type of article: Original research articles. Our full list of eligible research article types can be found here.

You can publish in the BMJ Journals Collection and in BMJ Gold Open Access Journals, as listed on pages 1 and 3 here.

What is covered

Article Processing Charges for the open access publication of:
– your research articles in the BMJ Journals Collection titles listed.
– your research articles in the BMJ Gold OA titles listed.
– your case report in BMJ Case Reports.

Please note that our agreements do not cover extra costs, i.e. colour charges that might apply with hybrid journals.

In addition you have read access to all content in our BMJ Journals Collection.

If you need further clarification, contact us at openaccess@bmj.com

3. Ready to submit?

Authors

Use the journal booklet on this page to select your preferred BMJ journal. Each journal homepage includes a prominent “Submit” button to guide you directly to the submission portal.

Need guidance before submitting?

We’ve created resources to support you at every step:

Download the OA at BMJ Author Guide

A step-by-step reference for preparing and submitting your manuscript.

Download the infographic: How to publish your article open access with BMJ

A visual summary of the process.

These resources will help you navigate the submission system smoothly and ensure your article is set up for successful open access publication.

Librarians

Discover how to use the RightsLink® Institutional Portal to oversee and manage your institution’s open access publishing activity.

Download the Institutional Approval CCC Guide (Manual)

Step-by-step guidance on approving open access articles.

A quick introduction to publishing open access with BMJ.

Authors

Use the journal booklet on this page to select your preferred BMJ journal. Each journal homepage includes a prominent “Submit” button to guide you directly to the submission portal.

Need guidance before submitting?

We’ve created resources to support you at every step:

Download the OA at BMJ Author Guide

A step-by-step reference for preparing and submitting your manuscript.

Download the infographic: How to publish your article open access with BMJ

A visual summary of the process.

These resources will help you navigate the submission system smoothly and ensure your article is set up for successful open access publication.