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Resources for Researchers: NIH Public Access Policy

Library and other resources for researchers

NIH Public Access Policy Update

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has reaffirmed its commitment to transparency in research by updating the effective date for its 2024 Public Access Policy. This new policy will take effect July 1, 2025, replacing the 2008 version.

What does this mean for you?
If you’re involved in NIH-funded research—including through grants, cooperative agreements (including training grants), contracts, or NIH intramural research—any peer reviewed manuscript accepted for publication on or after July 1, 2025 must comply with this updated policy.

Key Points to Know:

  • The policy applies to all NIH-supported research, whether the funding is partial or full.
  • Manuscripts accepted for publication, the Author Accepted Manuscript (AAM), on or after July 1, 2025 must be made publicly available immediately upon acceptance for publication in PubMed Central (PMC) immediately, with no embargo period.

Key Requirements

To comply with the 2024 NIH Public Access Policy on or after July 1, 2025:

  • Deposit: The Author Accepted Manuscript (AAM), which includes all revisions from peer review, must be deposited to PubMed Central as soon as it is accepted for publication.
  • Immediate Public Access: The AAM must be publicly accessible through PubMed Central immediately upon publication. No embargo period is allowed.
  • License Agreement: Authors must agree to the standard government use license when submitting the AAM to PubMed Central (PMC).
  • Demonstrate Compliance: Cite the PMCID in all NIH progress reports, applications, and proposals.

Submission Process:

Suggested steps for all peer reviewed manuscripts supported by NIH funding by University of Utah authors which have been accepted for publication on or after July 1, 2025. See Compliance Checklist PDF at top of page.

At time of acceptance of AAM:

Authors have received manuscript acceptance email and the Author Accepted Manuscript (AAM).

Designated submitter:

After manuscript is submitted to NIHMS:

Designated Submitter/Reviewer must complete the following steps for a citation to be assigned a PMCID:

Approve Submission: Designated Submitter, via NIHMS

Review and approve PMC-ready web version: Designated Submitter/Reviewer, via NIHMS

Note: The assigned author will receive an email notifying him/her when action is required in NIHMS. Any author, or even a Principal Investigator if they are in a position to verify the content, can serve as the assigned author. See the NIHMS FAQ to change the author assignment

My Bibliography will automatically link the forthcoming citation to the published record, and list the PMCID when it is available.

Responsible Party:  NIH Awardee


Key Resources

How can the Library help?

EHSL Library provides resources and services to assist University of Utah researchers in meeting the NIH Public Access Policy requirements. Our goal is to make compliance clear and easy.  Please contact the library to schedule a consultation with a librarian about any of the following topics:

  • Guidance with NIH PAP compliance
  • Assistance with troubleshooting non-compliant papers
  • Assistance with UU funded Open Access publishing options
  • Presentations to department authors and staff
  • See the list of Zero Embargo Publishers or Journals

To  ensure compliance, please review resources at NIH Public Access Policy.
 

NIH Public Access Policy Compliance Resources

  1. Sign in to your My NCBI account
    a. Third party logins or federated credentials are credentials (username, password) you use on other sites such as Google, NIH, eRA Commons, ORCID, Login.gov, or your institution if it participates in InCommon.  You can use these to log into your NCBI account. You can no longer create a standalone MyNCBI account.
    b. Use the steps below to link 3rd party logins to your account.
    1. Sign in directly to NCBI with your username and password.
    2. Click your username, which is located on the top right of the browser page.
    3. Click “Change” in the “Linked Account” portlet.
    4. Locate the 3rd party account of your choice using the search bar.
    5. You will be transferred to the 3rd party’s sign in page. Enter your credentials there for the 3rd party account.
  2. Link your My NCBI login to your eRA Commons account (if eRA Commons is not your primary login)
    a. Listed as "NIH & eRA Commons" in the list of partner accounts
  3. Add citations to My Bibliography via PubMed
    a. Search for your publications on PubMed
    b. Check each publication
    c. Click "Send to:" and choose "My Bibliography"
    d. Save
  4. In the "My Bibliography" section of the My NCBI Home page, click on the link that says some of the citations in "My Bibliography" are not compliant with NIHPA (assuming you have non-compliant citations)
  5. Sort your publications list by Public Access Compliance using the Display Settings

If you find that you have non-compliant citations, you will need to submit them to PMC.  There are four different submission methods.  The method you use will depend on the journal/publisher associated with each citation.

The NIH Public Access website offers overviews of the policy and the recent changes, along with help documents.

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