Article Processing Charges
Fee-free publishing and prohibition of charges
Diamond Open Access removes charges for submission, technical checks, similarity screening, review, copyediting, layout, DOI, publication, access, and preservation. It applies equally to every article type, author, country, and institution.
Services voluntarily purchased by an author outside the journal are not part of processing and do not influence decisions. The journal does not recommend providers for commission or offer speed or acceptance for payment.
No fees
The journal charges no article processing charges (APCs) or fees for submission, evaluation, peer review, copyediting, layout, publication, access, or preservation.
Sustainability
The model is sustained through ISICM institutional support, the work of the editorial committee and external reviewers, and technical support from Sapiens Edition S.A.S. No payment affects assessment or manuscript priority.
Equity
Authors’ financial capacity, geographical origin, and affiliation are not editorial criteria. Waivers are unnecessary because no fees are charged.
Scope of free publication
The absence of APCs covers every article type and every stage: receipt, technical checks, similarity screening, peer review, copyediting, production, DOI, publication, dissemination, and preservation. There are no fees for pages, tables, figures, supplementary materials, language, expedited assessment, or corrections.
The journal offers no paid fast track and does not sell acceptance. Any external service voluntarily hired by authors—for example, pre-submission translation—is independent of the journal and does not improve the likelihood of publication.
Funding the diamond model
Operations are supported through institutional contributions, infrastructure, editorial work, and other legitimate sources that are not transferred to authors or readers. The publishing entity is the Instituto Sapiens de Investigaciones Científicas Multidisciplinar. Sapiens Edition S.A.S. provides technical and administrative support as co-publisher without participating in scientific evaluation.
Funding sources and sponsorships are managed transparently. No contribution gives authority to select articles, appoint reviewers, alter reports, or condition decisions.
Changes and communications
If the economic model changes, the journal will publish the new policy, effective date, charges, and waiver rules in advance. No fee will be applied retroactively to manuscripts received under the no-fee policy without explicit author consent.
Any request for payment in the journal’s name should be verified through the official website and contact. Unauthorized payment requests will be investigated and will not affect scientific processing.
Implementation procedure
- Display prominently that there are no APCs or editorial charges.
- State free publication in guidelines, checklists, and acceptance communications.
- Separate institutional funding from scientific decisions.
- Investigate any payment request made in the journal’s name.
- Announce any future change in advance without retroactive application.
Evidence of compliance
- A website and forms without payment fields.
- Accounting records showing no author publication payments.
- An institutional statement of sustainability sources.
- Records of fraudulent payment reports and responses.
Public verification of the no-fee model
The journal shall distinguish submission, review, processing, and publication charges, displaying a zero amount for each category while the diamond model remains institutionally approved. No financial contribution, sponsorship, or donation shall purchase expedited scientific assessment, influence over reviews, or acceptance rights.
