Iceland Consortium (Landsaðgangur – hvar.is) has signed transformative agreements for open access publishing with four publishers: Elsevier, Springer Nature, Sage, and Karger.

These agreements enable scholars to publish articles free of charge in open access in so‑called hybrid journals—journals that publish both open access and subscription-based articles.

For Elsevier and Springer Nature, the transformative agreements are solely for hybrid journals.

At Karger, the agreement applies to both hybrid journals and fully open access journals (Gold Open Access). There is no limit on the number of open access publications.

Sage allows authors to publish open access in hybrid journals and provides a 20% discounts on article processing charges (APCs) for fully open access journals (Gold OA) journals. Within the Sage Premier 2019 collection, there is no limit on the number of open access publications.

The Icelandic Consortium is a partnership of approximately 200 participating institutions that pay for subscriptions to electronic journals and databases. Access to subscribed content is available to everyone in Iceland who connects to the internet through Icelandic service providers.
The Consortium’s website is hvar.is.

Iceland Consortium´s Agreement with Elsevier 2026–2028
A transformative agreement has been signed, covering the years 2026–2028.

What does the agreement include?
The agreement permits open access publishing in Elsevier hybrid journals, with Aarticle processing charges (APCs) covered through Iceland Consortium subscriptions.

Limited number of publications
The annual number of articles that can be published is capped:

• 119 articles in 2026
• 127 articles in 2027
• 136 articles in 2028

Once the annual limit is reached, institutions and/or authors must pay APCs themselves.

Who may use the agreement?
The right to publish open access articles in Elsevier‘s hybrid journals applies only to authors affiliated with institutions participating in Landsaðgangur that pay the invoiced journal subscription share.

Journal list:
Journal list – Elsevier hybrid journals (PDF)

Reading access back to 1995
In addition, reading access to ScienceDirect journals is provided, often extending back to 1995.

Elsevier
Elsevier is the largest publisher of scientific journals, covering a wide range of disciplines including natural sciences, health sciences, engineering, social sciences, humanities, and interdisciplinary fields. Elsevier journals are accessible via ScienceDirect.

 

Springer Nature specializes in scientific and academic publishing across engineering, natural sciences, health sciences, social sciences, and humanities. The agreement allows Icelandic authors to publish open access articles free of charge in hybrid journals.

Annual publication caps:

• 45 articles in 2026
• 46 articles in 2027
• 47 articles in 2028

The agreement applies only to authors affiliated with institutions that pay the journal subscription share of Iceland Consortium.

Journal list:
Springer Nature Journal List (PDF)

 

Sage publishes scholarly journals in social sciences, humanities, health sciences, and life sciences.

Under the current transformative agreement, until 31 December 2026, Icelandic institutions and independent scholars may publish articles in Sage hybrid journals free of charge. The agreement also provides discounts on APCs for fully open access journals (Gold OA).

There is no limit on the number of articles that may be published, and no restrictions on institutional affiliation. Sage determines author eligibility.

Authors affiliated with Icelandic institutions who use work-related email addresses are eligible to publish in journals included in the Premier 2019 journal package available through Iceland Consortium.

Journal lists:
Sage Journal List (PDF)
Sage Journal List by Discipline (PDF)

 

Kargerhttps://karger.com// is a publisher specializing in health sciences journals.

The agreement allows Icelandic researchers affiliated with Icelandic institutions to request a waiver of APCs for articles published in Karger journals during 2025–2027.

This applies both to articles in hybrid journals and  fully open access journals (Gold OA).

There is no limit on the number of articles, and no restrictions regarding the author’s institutional affiliation. Karger determines author eligibility.

Important: When submitting manuscripts to Karger journals, authors must use an Icelandic email address (ending in .is).

Note: Submission guidelines for Karger journals (in English)

Journal lists:
Karger Journal List (PDF)
Karger online journals