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In certain circumstances, a paper can be submitted to the Research Excellence Framework (REF) even though it does not comply with the REF Open Access Policy.
Exceptions to the Research Excellence Framework (REF) open access policy may be applied in the following scenarios. Contact the Open Access Team to discuss particular papers.
Scenarios
I was unable to make the paper open access due to COVID-19
An exception can be applied if the manuscript was not uploaded, for example, due to ill health, caring responsibilities, furloughed staff, health-related or clinical staff diverted to frontline services, staff resource diverted to other priority areas within UCL, or other factors related to COVID-19.
I was not employed by a UK university when the paper was submitted
If you joined UCL from a non-UK HEI, and there is no other author with a UCL affiliation on the paper, the Open Access Team will apply this exception to papers when you claim them.
I was employed by another UK university when the paper was accepted
If you joined UCL from another UK university, and there is no other author with a UCL affiliation on the paper, the Open Access Team will apply this exception if it is not possible to determine that the paper complies with the REF open access policy.
There was a delay in obtaining my final accepted manuscript
If you cannot obtain your final accepted manuscript within the required period, this exception may apply. If you are not the corresponding author, you should make all reasonable efforts to obtain the manuscript from the corresponding author, from your co-authors, or from the publisher, before the deadline for uploading has expired. Authors should retain email correspondence to demonstrate that a request for a manuscript was made in time.
It would be unlawful to deposit the paper / depositing the paper would present a security risk
Where there are legal barriers to making a manuscript open access through a repository, or the author's identity needs to be protected (because depositing the paper would put the author or the institution at risk), these exceptions may apply.
The journal's embargo period is too long / the journal does not allow open access
Articles and proceedings published until 31 December 2025 (date of first/online publication)
Most journals are compliant with this original REF open access policy. Where a journal does not comply, because it does not allow open access in a repository within 12 months (REF panels A and B) or 24 months (REF panels C and D) of publication, or doesn't allow open access in a repository at all, the author is encouraged to consider publishing in an alternative journal. See REF Units of Assessment for more information on panels and units of assessment. If the author still wishes to publish in the chosen journal, and considers that it is the most appropriate publication for the work, an exception to the policy applies. The accepted manuscript should still be uploaded to UCL's Research Publications Service (RPS) within the required period.
Articles and proceedings published from 01 January 2026
UCL's updated Publications Policy allows authors to meet the REF open access requirements while still publishing in their journal of choice. If your article is published on or after the start of the updated REF policy, the accepted manuscript will be made open access in UCL Discovery without an embargo, under the Creative Commons Attribution licence (CC BY) licence. See the UCL Publications Policy support pages for more information and actions for authors before submission. Most publishers will not refuse to publish papers that are subject to these rights retention provisions. However, if the publisher indicates that it will not publish an article to which the policy applies, or requests a payment, contact the Open Access Team for advice. It is possible to request an exemption from the UCL Publications Policy if necessary, in which case an exception to the REF policy will also apply. See our UCL Publications Policy FAQs: Is it possible to request an exemption from the UCL Publications Policy?
Open access rights cannot be granted for third-party content
If your paper contains third-party content for which open access rights cannot be granted you have the option to upload the text on its own. However, the REF policy recognises that the third-party content may be essential to the publication, and allows an exception if this is the case. You should upload the manuscript to UCL's Research Publications Service (RPS) as usual, and inform the Open Access Team that your paper includes third-party content and should not be made open access.
The manuscript was uploaded within three months of first online publication, but not within three months of acceptance
Papers accepted are eligible for submission to the REF if they were deposited in an open access repository within three months of first online publication. Papers accepted after this date must be deposited in an open access repository within three months of acceptance, but an exception applies if they were deposited after this date, but still within three months of first online publication.
Other reason not covered by the exceptions above
This exception may only be applied in specific extenuating circumstances, for instance in cases of extended leave.