Intellectual Property and Copyright

1. Introduction

IJASCE respects the intellectual property rights of authors and upholds the principles of responsible publishing. This policy clarifies the journal’s stance on copyright ownership, licensing, reuse permissions, and protection against plagiarism or unauthorized use. It follows COPE guidelines and aligns with open access principles set forth in the Budapest Open Access Initiative (BOAI).

2. Scope

This policy applies to:

  • Authors submitting original manuscripts to IJASCE

  • Readers, repositories, and third parties seeking to reuse published content

  • Editors and reviewers involved in manuscript handling and evaluation

3. Policy Statement and Guidelines

IJASCE publishes all articles under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0), enabling broad reuse and adaptation with proper attribution. Authors retain full copyright of their work while granting IJASCE a license to publish and distribute the content.

3.1 Copyright Ownership

Authors retain copyright to their submitted and published work. Upon acceptance, authors grant IJASCE:

  • The right of first publication

  • A non-exclusive, worldwide license to publish and distribute the article in any medium or format

  • The right to sublicense commercial use

3.2 Licensing Terms

All published articles are licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. This license allows others to:

  • Share: copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format

  • Adapt: remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, including commercially

Provided that appropriate credit is given, a link to the license is provided, and any modifications are indicated. Derivative works must also be distributed under the same license.

3.3 License to Publish Agreement

Authors declare that:

  • The work is original.

  • That it is free from third-party rights

  • That all necessary permissions have been obtained for copyrighted material used

  • That IJASCE is granted non-exclusive commercial rights and sublicensing authority, where applicable

3.4 Use of Third-Party Material

Authors must obtain written permission for any third-party content (e.g., images, figures, tables) not covered under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license. Proper attribution must be included in the manuscript.

3.5 Preprints and Post-Publication Sharing

Authors are encouraged to deposit preprints or accepted versions of their articles in institutional repositories, personal websites, or preprint servers. Proper citation to the published version in IJASCE must be included.

3.6 Plagiarism and Unauthorized Reuse

IJASCE has zero tolerance for plagiarism. All submissions are screened using plagiarism detection software. Overlapping or redundant publication, misappropriation of content, or unauthorized reuse will be treated as misconduct and may lead to:

  • Rejection or retraction

  • Notification to the author’s institution

  • Banning from future submissions

4. Responsibilities

Authors are responsible for ensuring the originality of their work, acquiring permissions, and complying with licensing terms.
Editors must verify copyright declarations and investigate infringement claims.
Readers and users must follow CC BY-SA 4.0 terms when reusing or adapting IJASCE content.

5. Process for Handling Breaches

The editorial office will investigate any suspected copyright infringement or plagiarism. Action may include:

  • Corrections or retractions

  • Legal notification or take-down requests

  • Institutional notification

Investigations will follow COPE flowcharts and ensure due process.

6. Related Policies and References

  • Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License

  • COPE Guidelines on Intellectual Property and Plagiarism

  • IJASCE’s Allegations of Misconduct Policy

  • BOAI Declaration and 20th Anniversary Recommendations

7. Review and Updates

This policy was last reviewed in August 2025 and is reviewed annually or in response to legal or licensing changes.