Article Processing Charges (APC) Policy

PUBLICATION FEES FREE TO PUBLISH

Article Processing Charges (APC) Policy

ICME Journal of Laboratory Medicine (IJLM) • Transparent & Barrier-Free Publishing

Current Publication Fee: ₹0 (No Fee)

The journal does not charge authors any submission, evaluation, or publication fees.

100% DIAMOND OPEN ACCESS

The ICME Journal of Laboratory Medicine currently does not charge authors any Article Processing Charge (APC) for the submission, peer review, acceptance, publication, or online availability of manuscripts.

Authors can submit and publish eligible research articles in the journal without paying any mandatory publication fee, supporting accessible scholarly publishing and encouraging the dissemination of reliable scientific research without financial barriers.

Fee Breakdown & Included Services

No Submission or Review Fees (₹0)
  • Initial manuscript assessment & editorial screening
  • Plagiarism and text-similarity checks
  • Double-blind independent peer-review management
  • Processing of author revisions and re-evaluations
No Acceptance or Publishing Fees (₹0)
  • Formal acceptance & production workflow
  • Standard copyediting & journal article layout formatting
  • Immediate open-access online hosting & distribution
  • Assignment to regular and special published issues

Editorial Independence & Quality Criteria

The journal maintains a strict separation between financial matters and editorial decision-making. Publication decisions are based entirely on:

Relevance to the journal’s aims and scope.
Scientific quality, originality, and methodological reliability.
Ethical compliance and research integrity standards.
Clinical, practical, or academic significance in laboratory medicine.
Successful completion of the peer-review process.

Policy Details & Transparency

Waiver Policy

Because the current APC is ₹0, authors do not need to apply for waivers. All authors are treated equally regardless of country, institution, economic background, or funding status.

No Hidden Charges

The journal imposes no undisclosed mandatory charges. Optional services (such as print copies or language editing) remain entirely voluntary and separate from editorial decisions.

Special & Supplementary Issues

Articles submitted to special or supplementary issues are fully covered under the ₹0 APC policy unless explicitly stated otherwise in advance on the website.

Future Policy Changes

Any future APC policy revisions will be clearly announced on the website, apply only prospectively to new submissions, and will never be imposed retroactively.

Notice Against Fraudulent Claims: Authors are advised not to make payments to unauthorized individuals or third parties claiming to represent the journal. Official communications are handled solely via the journal website and official editorial emails.

APC Summary Table
Submission Fee ₹0 (Free)
Peer-Review Fee ₹0 (Free)
Article Processing Fee ₹0 (Free)
Online Publication Fee ₹0 (Free)
Access Model Open Access
Adhering to COPE & OASPA guidelines for open-access publishing.