This journal provides immediate open access to its content based on the principle that freely accessible research supports wider global dissemination of knowledge. Indonesian Journal of Taxation and Accounting (IJOTA), published by Global Research Collaboration, is fully open access. All published content is freely available without charge to users or institutions. Users may read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to full-text articles without requesting prior permission from either the publisher or the authors. This policy aligns with the Budapest Open Access Initiative.

Budapest Open Access Initiative

An old tradition and a new technology have converged to support global access to scholarly work. The long-standing tradition is the commitment of researchers to share their findings without financial expectation, motivated by advancing knowledge in fields such as taxation, accounting, auditing, and financial management. The new technology is the Internet, which enables worldwide electronic distribution of peer-reviewed literature with unrestricted access for researchers, educators, practitioners, and the broader public. Removing access barriers accelerates the development of accounting and taxation research, strengthens educational practice, reduces global disparities in knowledge dissemination, and supports a more collaborative academic community.

Although open access has been adopted for only a portion of scholarly publications, various initiatives have demonstrated its feasibility and its significant benefits in terms of visibility, readership, and citation impact. Expanding participation in open access helps remove financial and legal constraints that hinder research from reaching its full audience, particularly in fields where knowledge dissemination influences policy development and professional practice.

The scholarly works that should be openly accessible are those authored without expectation of payment—primarily peer-reviewed journal articles in taxation, accounting, auditing, management accounting, capital markets, and related areas. Open access ensures worldwide availability on the public internet, enabling users to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, link, analyze, or use the material for any lawful purpose without barriers, aside from basic internet access. Copyright remains important to ensure proper attribution and maintain the integrity of scholarly work.

While peer-reviewed literature should be freely accessible, it still requires resources to produce. However, studies indicate that supporting open access is generally more cost-efficient than subscription-based publishing models. This strengthens the case for institutions, libraries, professional associations, and funding bodies to support open access as part of their mission in advancing research and education. Diverse funding models may be required, but the overall lower cost increases confidence in the sustainability of open access publishing.

To advance open access to scholarly literature, two complementary strategies are recommended.

I. Self-archiving

Researchers should have the tools and support to deposit their peer-reviewed articles in open electronic repositories, a practice known as self-archiving. When repositories follow Open Archives Initiative standards, search engines can index their content, making scholarly work easily discoverable across institutions and countries.

II. Open-access journals

Researchers also need venues to publish in journals committed to open access. Open-access journals maximize scholarly visibility by removing price and access barriers. Instead of restricting use through copyright, they employ it to ensure long-term open availability. Sustainable publishing may be supported by institutional funding, research grants, foundations, revenue from optional services, or author contributions, depending on the academic discipline and regional context.

The goal is universal open access to peer-reviewed scholarship. Self-archiving (I) and open-access journals (II) offer practical, direct, and academically driven paths toward this vision. These strategies do not rely solely on market forces or legislative change; they can be implemented immediately by the scholarly community. Ongoing experimentation and adaptation across institutions will strengthen global progress toward sustainable open access.

The Open Society Institute has pledged initial support for expanding open access, including funding for repository development, open-access journal sustainability, and long-term strategic initiatives. Broader collaboration among institutions and stakeholders remains essential.

We invite governments, universities, libraries, journal editors, publishers, foundations, scholarly societies, and researchers worldwide to support the removal of access barriers and build a future in which research and education in taxation and accounting can flourish freely.

February 14, 2002
Budapest, Hungary

Leslie Chan: Bioline International
Darius Cuplinskas: Director, Information Program, Open Society Institute
Michael Eisen: Public Library of Science
Fred Friend: Director Scholarly Communication, University College London
Yana Genova: Next Page Foundation
Jean-Claude Gu don: University of Montreal
Melissa Hagemann: Program Officer, Information Program, Open Society Institute
Stevan Harnad: Professor of Cognitive Science, University of Southampton, Universite du Quebec a Montreal
Rick Johnson: Director, Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition (SPARC)
Rima Kupryte: Open Society Institute
Manfredi La Manna: Electronic Society for Social Scientists
Istv n R v: Open Society Institute, Open Society Archives
Monika Segbert: eIFL Project consultant
Sidnei de Souza: Informatics Director at CRIA, Bioline International
Peter Suber: Professor of Philosophy, Earlham College & The Free Online Scholarship Newsletter
Jan Velterop: Publisher, BioMed Central