Copyright & Licensing

IJRGP publishes articles under an open, transparent copyright framework. By default, authors retain copyright and publish their work under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence. This approach maximises reuse, interoperability, discoverability and compliance with most funder mandates while ensuring that authors receive clear credit for their work.

Core principles

Author ownership

Authors retain copyright in their work unless they explicitly transfer it.

Open reuse by default

The default licence for articles is CC BY 4.0 — permitting reuse, redistribution and commercial use provided the original authors are attributed.

Transparency and machine readability

License statements appear on the article HTML page, on the PDF, and in metadata deposited with indexing services.

Practicality for indexing and preservation

CC BY supports long-term discoverability, text- and data-mining, and reuse that indexers and repositories prefer.

What authors retain

Unless otherwise agreed in writing, authors retain:

The copyright to their article (the exclusive right to control reproduction, distribution and derivative works).
The right to reuse their material in future works (books, lectures, course packs), provided proper citation to the published version is included.
The right to grant third parties permissions beyond the article licence (though such permissions should be consistent with any funder or contractual obligations).

What authors grant IJRGP upon acceptance

On acceptance, authors grant IJRGP the non-exclusive, irrevocable, worldwide right to:

Publish, distribute and display the article in all formats and media (online and in any future media).
Sub-license publication and distribution rights as necessary to support hosting, archiving, indexing, DOI registration and metadata deposits.
Preserve and make accessible the article as part of IJRGP’s archives and preservation arrangements.

Important: This grant does not require authors to transfer copyright to the publisher; authors remain the copyright holders while the article is licensed publicly under CC BY 4.0.

Default licence: CC BY 4.0 — what it means

Under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0):

Anyone may copy, redistribute, remix, transform and build upon the material for any purpose, including commercial use.
Users must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the licence, and indicate if changes were made.
No additional permission is required for reuse that complies with these conditions.

Why CC BY 4.0? It maximises interoperability, aligns with major funder mandates and indexer preferences (DOAJ/major repositories), and enables responsible text-and-data-mining.

Third-party material, permissions & image rights

Authors must only submit material for which they hold the necessary rights. For third-party copyrighted content (illustrations, long extracts, maps), authors must obtain and document permission for reuse under the article’s licence—or else exclude the material or provide a clearly labelled permission note.
If authors cannot secure permission to publish under CC BY, they must identify the material clearly and include a permissions statement on the article page and PDF. Such cases are exceptional and may affect the journal’s licensing default — see “Exceptions” below.
IJRGP may request copies of permission letters during production.

Preprints, postprints and self-archiving

Preprints: Posting a preprint to a recognized non-commercial server (e.g., arXiv, bioRxiv) before submission is permitted. Authors must disclose preprints at submission and may link from the article to the preprint. Preprint text may be updated or replaced by the published version.
Accepted author manuscript (postprint): Authors may self-archive the accepted manuscript (after peer review, before publisher formatting) in institutional or subject repositories. IJRGP asks that authors link to the published version (with DOI) and indicate the published citation. The published PDF will be available under CC BY 4.0.
Version of record: IJRGP’s formatted PDF/HTML (Version of Record) is the authoritative record and will be distributed under the article licence.

Text and data mining (TDM)

Users are permitted to perform automated text and data mining on CC BY-licensed content without additional permission. IJRGP supports lawful TDM and will provide machine-readable metadata and bulk access arrangements where possible to facilitate TDM activities for research.

Commercial reuse & sublicensing

CC BY permits commercial reuse. If authors or third parties require a separate paid licence for uses beyond CC BY (for example, exclusive reprints or large-scale text-mining services under commercial resale), they should contact contact@ijrgp.com to negotiate terms. IJRGP may act on behalf of authors for such licensing where necessary, but by default the article remains available under CC BY.

Exceptions & alternative licences

The default licence is CC BY 4.0. Exceptions are allowed only in rare, justified circumstances (legal constraints, third-party rights that cannot be relicensed, or funder requirements for a different licence).
Requests for an alternative licence (e.g., CC BY-NC, CC BY-ND) must be submitted at submission or at latest at acceptance, with clear justification and any necessary permissions. These requests are considered case-by-case and require written approval from the publisher. Note: non-CC BY licences may limit compatibility with some indexers and funder mandates.

How to attribute (required by CC BY)

When reusing IJRGP content under CC BY, users must:

Credit the author(s) (as listed in the article).
Cite the article (journal name, volume/issue/article number, DOI).
Link to the licence (CC BY 4.0) and indicate if changes were made.

Suggested attribution format:

Author(s) (Year). Title. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Department, Volume(Issue), Article number. https://doi.org/xxxxx — Licensed under CC BY 4.0.

Permissions for uses beyond the licence

For uses outside the terms of the CC BY licence (e.g., exclusive rights, print anthologies sold commercially under different terms), contact contact@ijrgp.com specifying the article DOI, intended use, distribution territory, and duration. Fees may apply for negotiated, exclusive arrangements; all such agreements will be transparent and documented.

Contact for copyright & licensing queries

For licence questions, special permissions, or to request an exception: contact@ijrgp.com.

IJRGP aims to make scholarship as open and reusable as possible while protecting author rights and respecting third-party constraints. Our default CC BY 4.0 licence supports discoverability, text-and-data-mining, and compliance with most funder and indexer expectations — a practical choice for a publisher building long-term trust and global reach.