Policies and governance
These policies apply to all six EP journals. They set out how the journals review, decide, licence, correct, and charge for the work they publish. Editorial practice follows the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines.
How does peer review work?
Review is double-blind: authors do not know the reviewers, and reviewers do not know the authors. Each submission that passes an initial editorial check is read by at least two independent reviewers. A first decision is typically returned within one to two weeks, and the journals publish monthly. The handling editor takes the final decision — accept, revise, or decline — on the basis of the reviews. To keep review blind, prepare the manuscript as set out in the author guidelines.
What are the publication-ethics standards?
Editorial practice follows the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines. This covers how the journals handle suspected misconduct, disputes over authorship, undisclosed conflicts, and concerns raised about published work. Editors, reviewers, and authors are each expected to act on these standards.
Who counts as an author?
Authorship is limited to those who made a substantial contribution to the work and approved the final manuscript. Everyone who qualifies must be listed, and no one who qualifies may be omitted. Others who helped may be named in the acknowledgements. Changes to the author list after submission require the agreement of all authors.
How are conflicts of interest handled?
Authors declare any financial or personal interest that could be seen to influence the work, and the declaration is published with the article. Reviewers and editors withdraw from handling a manuscript where they have a competing interest. Funding sources are declared in the manuscript.
What are the rules on originality and AI use?
Submissions must be original and not under consideration elsewhere. Text or data taken from other sources must be cited, and quoted material must be marked as such. Where authors have used generative AI tools in preparing the manuscript, that use must be disclosed; AI tools are not credited as authors, and authors remain responsible for the whole of the work.
How are corrections and retractions handled?
The published version of record can be amended in three ways, in line with COPE guidance. A correction fixes an error that does not affect the findings. An expression of concern flags an unresolved issue while it is investigated. A retraction withdraws an article whose findings are no longer reliable. Each notice is linked to the original article and carries its own Crossref DOI, so the record stays traceable.
How do I appeal or complain?
To appeal a decision or raise a concern about the editorial process, write to editor@ep-journals.org with the manuscript reference and the grounds. Appeals are considered by an editor who was not responsible for the original decision. Complaints about published articles are handled under the ethics standards above.
What licence and copyright apply?
Authors keep the copyright in their work. Articles are published under a Creative Commons Attribution licence (CC BY 4.0), which lets anyone read, share, and reuse the article, including for commercial purposes, provided the original authors and source are credited. This is what allows the article to be read and cited freely worldwide.
What does open access mean here?
Every article is open access from publication: free for anyone to read, with no subscription or paywall. Each article receives a Crossref Digital Object Identifier (DOI) as a permanent link, and is discoverable through Crossref and Google Scholar. How the journals are indexed is described on the indexing page.
What are the charges?
There is no submission fee. A flat article processing charge (APC) of USD 30 applies per accepted article, and it is stated upfront so the cost is known before you submit. The charge is the same regardless of article length or type, and it is payable only once an article is accepted. The APC is what makes the article free for readers.
Who is the publisher?
EP Journals Group is the publisher of the six journals listed on the Call for Papers page. The publisher is contactable at the address below. Editorial decisions are made by each journal's editors, independently of the article processing charge.
EP Journals Group
Taurusavenue 105, 2132 LS Hoofddorp, Netherlands
Contact: editor@ep-journals.org