Withdrawal Policy

Withdrawal Policy for Frontiers in Artificial Intelligence Research

Frontiers in Artificial Intelligence Research values transparency and integrity in the publication process. Authors who wish to withdraw a manuscript from consideration must adhere to the following policy, which ensures fairness and the smooth operation of the journal.

1. Withdrawal Before Peer Review

  • Before Peer Review: Authors may withdraw their manuscript at any time before the peer review process begins without any penalty. To request a withdrawal, the corresponding author must contact the editorial office or use the manuscript submission system to submit a formal withdrawal request.

  • Procedure for Withdrawal: Authors should provide a brief explanation for the withdrawal, and the editorial team will confirm receipt of the request. Once the manuscript is withdrawn, it will not be considered for publication, and no further action will be taken.

2. Withdrawal After Peer Review but Before Final Decision

  • After Peer Review but Before Final Decision: If a manuscript has undergone peer review and the decision is still pending (e.g., awaiting revisions or a final decision), authors can request to withdraw the manuscript. In this case, authors must inform the editorial office promptly and provide a reason for the withdrawal.

  • Revisions in Progress: If the manuscript is in the revision stage, authors are expected to notify the editorial office immediately, and any further review or decision will be paused. The editorial office may request confirmation that the manuscript will not be resubmitted elsewhere.

  • Procedure for Withdrawal: The manuscript will be removed from the editorial process upon receipt of the withdrawal request. If the manuscript has undergone peer review, the editor may inform the reviewers that the manuscript is no longer under consideration.

3. Withdrawal After Acceptance but Before Publication

  • Post-Acceptance but Pre-Publication: If an author wishes to withdraw a manuscript after it has been accepted but before it is published online or in print, the author must provide written notice to the editorial office, stating the reason for withdrawal.

  • Procedure and Costs: Once the manuscript has entered the production process, significant editorial, formatting, and administrative work will have been completed. In such cases, the author may be required to pay an administrative fee to cover the costs incurred before the withdrawal. If no substantial work has been completed (e.g., copyediting or typesetting), a full refund of any fees paid may be issued.

  • Communication with the Production Team: Upon withdrawal, the editorial team will inform the production team to stop the publication process, and the manuscript will be removed from any future issues.

4. Withdrawal After Publication

  • Post-Publication Withdrawal: Once a manuscript has been published online or in an issue of the journal, it is considered part of the permanent academic record and cannot be withdrawn.

  • Retraction Instead of Withdrawal: If there are significant ethical concerns, errors, or misconduct discovered after publication (e.g., data manipulation, plagiarism), the article will be retracted, not withdrawn. The retraction notice will include the reason for retraction, and the article will remain accessible with a retraction statement.

  • Request for Retraction: Authors who request a retraction must provide a valid explanation and work with the editorial team to ensure that the retraction is properly handled, in accordance with ethical publishing practices.

5. Consequences of Withdrawal

  • No Penalty Before Peer Review: Manuscripts withdrawn before peer review will not incur any penalties and can be resubmitted to the same or other journals without any restriction.

  • Penalties After Acceptance: Withdrawals after acceptance but before publication may incur administrative fees, depending on the work already completed during the editorial process. Multiple withdrawals after acceptance may impact the authors' ability to publish in the journal in the future.

6. Ethical Considerations

  • Duplicate Submissions: If an article is withdrawn to submit it elsewhere, authors must ensure that the manuscript has not been published or simultaneously submitted to another journal. Frontiers in Artificial Intelligence Research expects authors to comply with its policy against duplicate submission.

  • Research Integrity: Manuscripts will be withdrawn from consideration if there are concerns about research integrity, including issues of falsification, unethical research practices, or plagiarism.

7. Updates to the Policy

Frontiers in Artificial Intelligence Research reserves the right to amend or update this withdrawal policy as necessary, based on changes in academic publishing standards or feedback from the authors and the academic community. Any changes will be communicated to authors and stakeholders in a timely manner.