Article Processing Charges (APC), Administrative Service Fees, and Waiver Policy

1. Article Processing Charges (APC)

Health Nexus is a fully open-access, peer-reviewed journal published by Panorama Scholarly Group (PSG). To support editorial management, peer review, production, and global dissemination, an Article Processing Charge (APC) is applied to accepted manuscripts.

The APC is charged only after peer review and formal acceptance. No fees are required at submission or during the review process.

2. Payment Methods

Authors may complete APC payments using the following methods:

• Bank Transfer (Wire Transfer)
• Online Payment (secure electronic payment systems)

Detailed payment instructions will be provided upon acceptance.

3. Invoicing

• An official invoice is generated and sent to the corresponding author via email upon manuscript acceptance.
• The invoice will include:
  • APC amount
  • Payment instructions
  • Transaction reference details

Authors are responsible for ensuring the accuracy of billing information at submission.

4. Payment Confirmation and Receipts

• Authors must complete payment according to the invoice instructions.
• A payment confirmation and/or receipt will be issued after verification.
• Authors may contact the Editorial Office for billing support if needed.

5. Publication and Article Delivery

After payment and final production:

• The final published article, or Version of Record, will be:
  • Published on the journal’s official website
  • Assigned a Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
• The corresponding author will receive:
  • Email notification upon publication
  • A direct link to access the published article

This ensures compliance with international standards for permanent accessibility and citation.

6. Waiver and Discount Policy

Health Nexus is committed to equitable access to publication and offers APC waivers or discounts.

6.1 Full Waivers

May be granted to:

• Authors from low-income countries, based on internationally recognized classifications such as World Bank income groups
• Authors with demonstrated financial hardship

6.2 Partial Waivers / Discounts

May be granted to:

• Authors from lower-middle-income countries
• Early-career researchers without funding
• Submissions of exceptional academic merit recommended by editors

7. Waiver Application Process

• Waiver requests must be submitted at the time of manuscript submission.
• Requests should include a brief justification.
• All applications are reviewed confidentially by the Editorial Office.

8. Administrative Service Fees

In addition to the Article Processing Charge (APC), Health Nexus may charge an administrative service fee for specific author-requested services that require additional editorial office, production, billing, or metadata processing after acceptance or publication.

The administrative service fee may apply to the following author-requested services:

• Assessment and processing of author-requested post-publication metadata changes;
• Approved post-publication corrections to author affiliations, author information, acknowledgments, funding information, or other article metadata;
• Updates to article metadata, PDF, HTML, DOI/Crossref records, or indexing-related records following an approved correction;
• Reissuance or revision of invoices, receipts, publication certificates, or acceptance letters at the author’s request;
• Additional administrative documentation requested after acceptance or publication.

Time limit for author-requested administrative changes:

Author-requested administrative changes after publication, including non-substantive changes to affiliations, author information, acknowledgments, funding details, or other metadata, should normally be submitted within 30 calendar days from the date of publication. Requests submitted more than 30 calendar days after publication will generally not be approved, unless the Editorial Office determines that the change is necessary to correct an error introduced by the journal, publisher, editorial office, or production office, or to maintain the accuracy, transparency, and integrity of the scholarly record.

No administrative service fee will be charged for:

• Errors introduced by the journal, publisher, editorial office, or production office;
• Corrections required to maintain the accuracy and integrity of the scholarly record;
• Research integrity investigations, retractions, expressions of concern, or ethical inquiries;
• Submission, editorial assessment, peer review, or editorial decision-making;
• Complaints and appeals.

The administrative service fee, where applicable, will be clearly communicated to authors before the service is performed. Payment of an administrative service fee does not influence editorial decisions, correction decisions, peer review, or publication ethics assessments. The Editorial Office reserves the right to decline author-requested administrative changes that are submitted outside the stated time limit or that do not constitute factual errors in the published record.

9. Editorial Independence

Editorial decisions are made independently of APC payments, administrative service fees, or waiver status.

• The ability to pay does not influence acceptance.
• Waiver requests are not disclosed to reviewers.
• Payment of an administrative service fee does not influence correction decisions, editorial assessments, peer review, or publication ethics assessments.

10. Refund Policy

APC payments are non-refundable once an article has been accepted and processed for publication.

Exceptions may be considered in cases of:

• Administrative error
• Duplicate payment

Requests must be submitted to the Editorial Office with supporting documentation.

11. Transparency and Compliance

This policy complies with:

• DOAJ transparency and best practice standards
• COPE principles on publication ethics
• International norms for open-access publishing

All APC-related information and applicable administrative service fees are clearly displayed on the journal website. Authors will be informed of any applicable fee before the relevant service is performed. No fee is charged for manuscript submission, editorial assessment, or peer review.

12. Contact for Billing and Payment