Refund Policy

The Journal of Design, Management and Sciences (JODMAS) maintains a transparent and fair Refund Policy to ensure clarity for authors regarding publication charges, print fees, and additional services. As an academic publishing journal, JDMS follows international ethical and financial standards to manage refund requests responsibly.

1. General Rule

All Article Processing Charges (APCs) and service fees are non-refundable once:

  • The manuscript has entered peer review, or

  • Payment has been confirmed and the editorial process has begun.

This is because editorial management, reviewer coordination, and processing activities start immediately after submission.

2. Refund Eligibility Before Processing

A full refund may be granted only if:

  • Payment was made by mistake, and

  • The manuscript has not yet entered editorial screening or peer review.

In such cases, authors must submit a formal refund request within 48 hours of payment.

3. Refund During Editorial or Peer Review

Refunds are not provided once a manuscript:

  • Has passed initial editorial screening

  • Has been assigned to reviewers

  • Has undergone any part of the review process

Editorial and review services involve irreversible resource usage; therefore, refunds cannot be processed.

4. Refund After Acceptance

No refunds are issued once the manuscript has been:

  • Accepted for publication

  • Scheduled for typesetting

  • Assigned a DOI

  • Sent for final production

At this stage, the journal has already incurred significant operational and technical costs.

5. Withdrawal After Payment

If an author withdraws the manuscript after payment and after processing has started, the journal does not issue a refund.

Unethical withdrawal (submitting elsewhere, non-response, or misconduct) will result in:

  • Rejection without refund

  • Possible sanctions in line with COPE guidelines

6. Refunds for Printing and Delivery Fees

Refunds for printed copies are available only under specific conditions:

6.1 Eligible Refund Cases

A refund or replacement may be issued if:

  • The printed copy arrives damaged

  • The wrong article/issue is delivered

  • Shipping errors occur due to the journal’s fault

The author must notify the journal within 7 days of delivery.

6.2 Non-Eligible Cases

No refund is provided for:

  • Delays caused by courier services

  • Incorrect address provided by the author

  • Change of mind after order confirmation

7. Overpayment or Duplicate Payment

If an author accidentally pays twice or overpays:

  • The journal will issue a full refund of the excess amount,

  • After verifying transaction records

  • Within 7–14 working days

Authors must share supporting proof (transaction slip / screenshot).

8. Refund Method

All approved refunds will be processed through:

  • Bank transfer

  • Online payment system (same method used for payment)

Refund processing time: 7–15 working days depending on the banking system.

9. Non-Refundable Services

The following services are strictly non-refundable because they are consumed immediately upon request:

  • Article Processing Charges (APC)

  • Fast-track processing fees

  • Print-on-demand fees (after printing starts)

  • DOI allocation

  • Typesetting and formatting charges

  • Certificate issuance

10. Policy Amendments

JDMS reserves the right to update or modify this Refund Policy at any time to ensure transparency, legal compliance, and operational efficiency.

All updates will be publicly posted on the journal website.