About the Journal
Sponsoring Organizations
https://hts.org.za/index.php/hts/pages/view/publication-fees
Introduction
All our readers and authors enjoy the benefits of free open access. We believe that open access of the journal promotes accessibility and uptake worldwide, serving the best interests of the professional and scientific community and the public at large. Since no fees are charged for access, AOSIS offsets the publication expenses – including those of peer review management, journal production and online hosting and archiving – by charging Article Processing Charges (APC), also known as page fees, to authors, institutions or funders for each article published.
1. Article Processing Charges
The Article Processing Charges (APC) for this journal is ZAR1738.00 (excl. 15% VAT) per A4 output page in PDF format. The average length of an article in this journal is 8 pages (ideal length 5000-7000 words per article). This APC is valid for the current calendar year and may be changed at any time at the sole discretion of the publisher. The submitting author is responsible for payment of the APC and must confirm, at the time of submission, that s/he will organise payment of the APC, should the article be accepted for publication. This responsibility may not be delegated to any third party unless agreed to by the publisher.
2. Article Submission Charges
Article Submission Charges (ASC) does not apply.
3. Text changes after layout
Articles must be written in acceptable standard academic British English. AOSIS might require for selected articles a formal certificate of an English language practitioner for certification of language editing. Authors will be given the opportunity to revise and approve the text of the accepted manuscript in the final phase of copy-editing. After author approval the manuscript will go to design layout. The author will be asked to proofread the final galleys before going to publishing. Proofreading is intended to correct typesetting mistakes and not to introduce new changes to the text; such changes will require new layout of the pages. If new changes are introduced at this final proofreading stage, the publisher will charge Galley Change Fees (GCF) to the author, based on the cost incurred to make such changes. The GCF per hour is ZAR450.00 (excl. 15% VAT).
Invoicing (if applicable)
The final APC is based on the finally approved manuscript word count, and no changes will be made after invoicing. Only one invoice shall be issued per article (no splitting of invoices) in order to expedite publication and keep costs to a minimum. All amounts are due within 7 days from invoicing. Payment can be made by Credit Card and Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT). The article will only be published once full payment has been received. If payment is done by EFT from a non-South African bank account, the author will be responsible for any bank transfer charges at the time of the transaction. Learn how to make a payment.
Subsidy opportunities
APC fees for Open Access journals have become an increasingly accepted method to defray the costs for publication and, fortunately, most institutions have developed mechanisms and funding sources to cover publication costs in high-quality open access journals. Authors are encouraged to contact their institution, department or funder for more details regarding possible APC subsidy opportunities earmarked for open access publications. As your department benefits directly and/or indirectly from publication of the article, where there is an absence of extramural funding we are confident that your department will be eager to carry the costs of the APC fee.
Funding body agreements
AOSIS complies with the requirements of funding bodies such as the Wellcome Trust and the National Research Foundation, to help authors comply with their open access terms.
Waiver of APC & ASC
This journal offers a limited number of waivers in 2025 for the 'Comparative Theology Studies' special collection. Criteria for consideration to qualify for 100% waivers for the APCs of high-quality accepted articles include (a) deserving authors (b) with good standing, (c) with a quality publication record, and (d) who primarily, but not only, work in Africa and China. This initiative aims to assist deserving authors who cannot afford the APCs of their accepted articles; however, the APCs of the accepted articles of all deserving authors cannot be covered due to the limited number of funds available. Applications for waivers will not be considered prior to a submitted article being accepted for publication.
Publication fee policy
The journal adheres to our publication fee policy, which includes our reimbursement policy.
Peer Review
The journal has a double-blinded peer review process. Manuscripts are initially examined by editorial staff and are sent by the Editor-in-Chief to two expert independent reviewers, either directly or by a Guest Editor(s) and/or Section Editor. Read our full peer review process.
Open Access Policy
This is an open access journal which means that all content is freely available without charge to the user or his/her institution. Users are allowed to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to the full texts of the articles, or use them for any other lawful purpose, without asking prior permission from the publisher or the author. This is in accordance with the Budapest Open Access Initiative (BOAI) definition of open access. Learn more about the journal copyright, licensing and publishing rights.
(source: https://hts.org.za/index.php/hts/pages/view/journal-information)
Publication Scheduling
The journal publishes at least one issue each year. Articles are published online when ready for publication and then printed in an end-of-year compilation. Additional issues may be published for special events (e.g. conferences) and when special themes are addressed.
(source: https://hts.org.za/index.php/hts/pages/view/journal-information)
