Waivers & Discounts
The European College of Sport Science (ECSS) is dedicated to promoting equity in scientific publishing. For Open Access (OA) publications, ECSS provides various options to help authors cover Article Publication Charges (APCs), ensuring that the European Journal of Sport Science (EJSS) can publish high-quality research from around the world.
Corresponding Authors are responsible for ensuring that APC funding is secured for their manuscript. Where OA publication is required by a funder, government, institution or department, authors should first explore the relevant funding options available to them. Authors without access to such funding are encouraged to explore the discounts and waivers outlined below.
ECSS Member Benefit
20% APC discount for ECSS Members
ECSS Members acting as corresponding authors receive a 20% discount on APCs for EJSS. For further information regarding ECSS Membership, please visit the ECSS website.
Other APC funding and waiver options
Research4Life
Through its publishing partner Wiley, ECSS supports the Research4Life programme, which provides automatic APC waivers or discounts to authors from eligible low- and middle-income countries. Group A countries receive a full waiver, while Group B countries receive a 50% discount. The eligibility list is updated annually. Waivers and discounts under Research4Life are applied for prior to submission and finalised upon article acceptance.
Institutional or funder support
Wiley offers other possibilities to cover the APC according to your country. Find out here whether your institution or funder will cover your open-access APCs.
ECSS discretionary waivers
If the author does not qualify for any of the above funding or waiver options, ECSS offers discretionary waivers for APCs, especially for authors who lack external funding or institutional support. These waivers are separate from the peer-review process and are prioritised for those who can demonstrate the absence of national or institutional support, or who are not institutionally employed. Authors should apply for waivers before manuscript submission. See below for more information.
Please note: Only the highest applicable discount will be applied; discounts cannot be combined.
Important information on ECSS discretionary waivers
- Waiver requests should be submitted before manuscript submission, once the author has determined that they are not eligible for the alternative funding arrangements, not after peer review or acceptance.
- Approval of a waiver request does not guarantee manuscript acceptance. The peer-review process remains the same as for any other submitted manuscript.
- Waiver applications should include proof that no grant funds are available for APCs, documentation of unsuccessful funding attempts, and any other supporting evidence. Authors must also provide a rationale explaining the reasons for the application.
Application Procedure for ECSS discretionary waivers
- Applicants must submit waiver requests by emailing publishing@sport-science.org.
- The request is forwarded to the relevant member of the ECSS Executive Board for review and decision.
- The author is informed of the outcome by the ECSS Office.
- The author may then submit their manuscript (if they have not done so already, e.g. while applying for Wiley funding).
- If the waiver request is approved, the ECSS Office informs Wiley.
- The manuscript undergoes peer review. If the waiver is approved and the manuscript is accepted, the author is exempt from paying the APC.
