PLOS APC Waiver and Discount Policy: Who Qualifies and How to Apply

At a glanceFree publication for Research4Life Group A authors without external funding, reduced fees for Group B, and need-based fee assistance. Corresponding author only Must be requested, usually at submission

Check PLOS's waiver for your author team

Co-authors (where they work)

Only the country is needed: without a journal you get every publisher's result for your author team. Free. No sign-up. Uses the publishers' published rules, last verified 27 October 2026.

Which countries qualify at PLOS

Countries are matched by the author's institutional affiliation, not nationality.

100% waiver 82 countries Research4Life Group A list, only if the research has no external funding

Afghanistan, Angola, Bangladesh, Belau, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo (Brazzaville), Congo (Kinshasa), Cook Islands, Djibouti, Dominica, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Grenada, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Kiribati, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Mali, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Micronesia, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nauru, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Niue, North Korea, Palestinian Territory, Papua New Guinea, Rwanda, Saint Helena, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Suriname, Syria, São Tomé and Príncipe, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, Vanuatu, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Discount 42 countries Research4Life Group B list, reduced fee in most journals

Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Fiji, Gabon, Georgia, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Kosovo, Libya, Mauritius, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Namibia, Nigeria, North Macedonia, Pakistan, Paraguay, Peru, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Seychelles, Sri Lanka, Tunisia, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Vietnam

Co-authors from other countries

Only the corresponding author's affiliation counts. Co-authors from other countries do not change the waiver.

Authors based at institutions in Group A without external funding

The waiver is only for research without external funding.

How to get the waiver

Request at submission.

Programmes: Research4Life assistance (Group A free in all journals; Group B free in 3 journals, USD 940 elsewhere); Publication Fee Assistance; Global Equity.

Official sources: plos.org ↗ · plos.org (2) ↗

PLOS journals on ScholarsColab

Each journal page shows its indexing, impact factor, review time, reviewer comments and this waiver.

PLOS ONESAGEOxford University PressCambridge University PressCopernicus PublicationsMIT PressThiemeACMScience Advances (AAAS)American Society for MicrobiologyPortland PressKeAi

Schemes used: Research4Life, Discretionary hardship waivers, Institutional and read & publish deals. All publishers and schemes →

Frequently asked questions

Does PLOS offer APC waivers?

Free publication for Research4Life Group A authors without external funding, reduced fees for Group B, and need-based fee assistance. Must be requested, usually at submission.

Who gets a full APC waiver at PLOS?

Authors affiliated in 82 countries qualify for a 100% waiver. Only the corresponding author's affiliation counts. Co-authors from other countries do not change the waiver.

Does the PLOS waiver apply if my co-authors are from other countries?

Only the corresponding author's affiliation counts. Co-authors from other countries do not change the waiver.

How do I apply for an APC waiver at PLOS?

Request at submission.

Before you submit

Source, method and date. Each publisher's rule was read from its official waiver page (linked on every row) and the country lists from Research4Life, EIFL, the World Bank income classification and the publishers' own lists. Last verified: 27 October 2026. Policies change, Research4Life updates its lists every January and the World Bank every July, and some waivers are temporary or decided case by case. The checker reads the published rules; it cannot promise a waiver. Confirm on the publisher's page before you submit. ScholarsColab is not affiliated with any publisher listed here; logos are trademarks of their owners, shown only to name the publishers whose rules we read.

Confidence of this entry: High.