UMCG publications behind a paywall (closed access) will be made freely available on the UG/UMCG research portal 6 months after publication. This is based on Dutch copyright law (Taverne amendment). The Medical Library takes care of this for you — no action needed!

What is the Taverne amendment?
The Taverne amendment (Article 25fa of the Dutch Copyright Act) allows authors of short scientific works (partially) funded by Dutch public money to make their work freely available to the public after a reasonable period post-publication. This law overrides any contract between the author and the publisher.

How does it work?
The publisher's versions of all short works (such as scientific articles and book chapters) published closed access / behind a paywall after 2017, will be made available open access via Pure. This will be done six months after publication and with reference to the source of the first publication.  The researcher reserves the right to share your works on other platforms.

The Medical Library executes this right. Researchers need not do anything, except
- if they are requested to provide a copy of the artcicle.
- if if they want to apply for an opt-out of a specific article. This request can be submitted to the Medical Library via an opt-out form.
UMCG employees can find more deatils on Medical Library intranet pages.

Where can I go when my publisher has questions?
Your publisher may have questions for you or may ask you to delete the entry of your work in the institutional repository. In that case, please contact the Medical Library immediately openaccess@umcg.nl. The ML will respond to the publisher. You do not have to do that yourself.

Nota bene: Social networks like ResearchGate and Academia.edu are great for connecting with others, but not suitable for legally or reliably sharing your publications — even those shared under the Taverne amendment.