In September 2018 cOAlition S, a group of national research funding organisations including the Dutch NWO, and Robert-Jan Smits, Senior Advisor on Open Access at the European Commission, announced the launch of Plan S but the implementation of the plan was at that point unclear.

On 27 November 2018 the coalition announced concrete guidelines for the implementation of the plan. The guidelines describe three ways in which researchers can comply with the funders’ Open Access requirements. In brief these are:

1)    Publication in Open Access journals or on open access platforms;
2)    Publication in a non-Open Access journal and immediate deposition in an open access repository
3)    Publication in a non-Open Access journal that has a clear and time-specified commitment to a full open access transition.

The seven-page implementation guide for Plan S contains more detailed information and outlines the technical requirements.
COAlition S offers the opportunity to provide feedback on the implementation of Plan S. Until 1 February 2019, anyone can respond to the plans via a special feedback page on the coalition's website.
If you have any questions or remarks, please contact the Open Access helpdesk.