Plan S is an initiative for Open Access publishing which is supported by cOAlition S, a group of research funders and research organisations. Plan S requires that, from 2021 onward, publications funded by cOAlition S members must be made Open Access immediately upon publication.
Researchers can make their publications open access either by publishing them in an Open Access journal, making their accepted manuscript available in an Open Access repository, or publishing an Open Access article in a subscription journal under a transformative agreement. For more information on these options, please see the Where can I publish? tab.
Some of the funders who are members of cOAlition S that may be most relevant to TCD researchers are:
| Science Foundation Ireland | Wellcome Trust | World Health Organization |
European Commission |
UK Research and Innovation | Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation |
If you are receiving research funding from one of the cOAlition S member organisations listed above from 2021 onwards, you will need to make sure that any articles resulting from that funding are made Open Access immediately.
There are multiple ways to easily make your work Open Access and comply with Plan S. You can find more information on how to do this on the next page.
COAlition S funders will actively monitor publications to ensure that they are open access (and that they are properly compliant with Plan S). In order to avoid negative communications from funders, time-consuming retrospective 'fixes', and possible penalties, it is strongly advised that researchers ensure that all of their funded journal articles (and any other publications possible) are made open access and Plan S-compliant as soon they are accepted for publication.
Plan S currently focuses on scholarly articles. All journal articles funded by cOAlition S members must be compliant from January 1st 2021 onwards. In addition, by the end of 2021, COAlition S will issue guidelines for the compliance of monographs and book chapters, so these publication types will also need to be taken into account.
There are multiple ways to easily make your work Open Access and comply with Plan S. You can find more information on how to do this on the next page.
However, it is recommended that, regardless of the route you choose, you should:
1. Add your publication details (including funder name and grant number) to your profile on the TCD Research Support System (RSS)
2. Upload your Author's Accepted Manuscript (after peer review) to TARA via the RSS. You may upload the final published pdf instead if you have published in an Open Access journal.
In this way, you will immediately make your publication compliant with both Plan S and the Trinity Open Access Publications Policy. You will also have a record of your compliance that you can use for internal and external reporting.
If you have any questions about Plan S or want to learn more about making your work open access, please contact Niamh Brennan or Edie Davis at rssadmin@tcd.ie.
