Springer Nature agreement 2026 FAQs

Q: What reading access will I have?

A: Under the new agreement, USI members will have full reading access to the entire Springer portfolio, to the “Nature” journal and to part of the Nature portfolio.

Q: in which journals can I publish my articles open access?

A: USI members will be able to publish their research results in Springer Nature’s entire journals portfolio in open access. Check the links below for a complete list of journals included:

• Springer Hybrid journals portfolio
• Nature Hybrid journals portfolio
• Springer Nature Gold Open Access journals portfolio

NEW: the agreement now integrates the Gold OA portfolio. What was previously covered by the USI Gold OA fund or by other means, is now fully integrated into the new agreement, thereby streamlining and facilitating the process for researchers and increasing the monitoring for OA administrators.

Q: My article is a result of an SNSF-funded project: how should I proceed?

A: Articles must be processed by the institution that researchers identify as their primary affiliation. During the submission process, the SNSF may be listed as a research funder BUT it should not be entered as an institutional affiliation. The article will therefore be validated by the institutional OA service. 
NEW: You no longer need to submit APCs invoices to the SNSF through Chronoshub.

Q: Retroactive OA: my article was published during the no-deal period in closed access, will it benefit from retroactive OA?  

A: Articles published in closed access between 1st of January and 10th of June 2026 will be converted to OA. The process will be managed by Springer Nature and by the institutions. You will be contacted in due time by the Library OA Service where applicable.

Q: I have a pending invoice for an OA article, what should I do?

A: Invoices issued and sent to authors before 10th of June cannot be transferred to the new agreement. Articles submitted and approved between 1st of January and 10th of June 2026 will not be considered payment.

Please contact us as soon as possible to verify the invoice conditions with us. 

Q: I would like to use AI tools with the Springer Nature content, what am I allowed to do?

A: You can apply artificial intelligence (AI) for the use of Springer Nature publications in research, teaching and innovation. This means, publications may be analysed using any AI tools (eg. for text and data mining), BUT may not be used for training these tools or made available to third parties. The publications may also be used for the development of non-commercial AI applications in research and teaching.

Q: Who can help me navigate the conditions of this new “read & publish” agreement, and, more in general, provide support for OA publishing? 

A: The OA Service of the USI Libraries will be happy to provide further information on the agreement with Springer Nature as well as on OA publication in general. 
You can also check out our dedicated page on current r&p agreements, their conditions and journals included.