Overview
Where NSFC stands on contributorship and open research
The National Natural Science Foundation of China is the principal funder of basic research in China. NSFC has placed strong emphasis on research integrity and the responsible conduct of research, and has supported open access in principle, but it does not mandate the CRediT taxonomy by name in its funding terms. Authorship on resulting publications is governed by journal policy and host-institution research-integrity rules; CRediT is used on the resulting publications where the receiving journal requires it.
CRediT status: Silent - No published funder stance on CRediT or contributor taxonomies.
Open access
NSFC support for open access (in principle); no single immediate-OA mandate equivalent to Plan S
NSFC has expressed support for open access and for the deposit of funded research outputs, and China hosts large national repository and infrastructure efforts. NSFC has not adopted a single immediate, no-embargo open-access mandate equivalent to Plan S; practice is shaped by national policy direction, host institutions, and the receiving journals.
Research data management
Data sharing requirements
Data-sharing expectations aligned with China's national scientific-data-management measures; data-management practice shaped at the institutional level.
Submission and reporting
How NSFC researchers apply and report
| Primary submission system | The NSFC online application and grant-management system (ISIS science fund information system) |
| Biosketch / CV format | NSFC application CV and project records via the ISIS system |
| Reporting cycle | Project progress and final reports via the NSFC online system |
NSFC applicants submit proposals through the NSFC online grant-management system. NSFC places strong emphasis on research integrity - it maintains and enforces research-misconduct rules and has taken visible action against integrity breaches. Funded researchers are expected to acknowledge NSFC support and grant numbers on publications and to follow national scientific-data-management measures. ORCID and persistent identifiers are used in parts of the Chinese research ecosystem but are not uniformly mandated by NSFC.
Contributorship guidance
How NSFC handles contributor attribution
NSFC takes no position on contributor taxonomies for publications. Authorship is governed by journal policy and by host-institution and national research-integrity rules. CRediT is used on NSFC-funded publications where the receiving journal requires it, rather than because NSFC mandates it.
For authors
Publishing from NSFC funding
When publishing from NSFC funding, acknowledge NSFC support and the grant number in the funding-acknowledgement section using the standard format (for example, "This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. ...)"). Follow journal authorship policy and your host institution's research-integrity rules - NSFC places strong emphasis on integrity and acts on misconduct. Include a CRediT statement where the journal requires one. Make outputs openly available where you can, and follow national scientific-data-management measures for any data you generate.
For general CRediT submission guidance across publishers, see CRediT for authors.
Notable initiatives
NSFC programmes and infrastructure
- NSFC research-integrity enforcement
- General, Key, and Major Programmes
- National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars
- China national scientific-data infrastructure
Notes
Caveats and context
NSFC's strongest publication-facing levers are research integrity and funding-acknowledgement compliance rather than a contributorship taxonomy or a Plan S-style open-access mandate.
Frequently asked
Common questions about NSFC
- Does NSFC require CRediT?
- NSFC policy text is silent on CRediT and other contributor taxonomies. Authorship is governed by journal policy and host-institution research-integrity rules. The National Natural Science Foundation of China is the principal funder of basic research in China. NSFC has placed strong emphasis on research integrity and the responsible conduct of research, and has supported open access in principle, but it does not mandate the CRediT taxonomy by name in its funding terms. Authorship on resulting publications is governed by journal policy and host-institution research-integrity rules; CRediT is used on the resulting publications where the receiving journal requires it.
- What is NSFC's open access policy?
- NSFC support for open access (in principle); no single immediate-OA mandate equivalent to Plan S. NSFC has expressed support for open access and for the deposit of funded research outputs, and China hosts large national repository and infrastructure efforts. NSFC has not adopted a single immediate, no-embargo open-access mandate equivalent to Plan S; practice is shaped by national policy direction, host institutions, and the receiving journals.
- How do I report contributorship to NSFC?
- NSFC takes no position on contributor taxonomies for publications. Authorship is governed by journal policy and by host-institution and national research-integrity rules. CRediT is used on NSFC-funded publications where the receiving journal requires it, rather than because NSFC mandates it.
- Where do I submit a NSFC application?
- NSFC applications are submitted through The NSFC online application and grant-management system (ISIS science fund information system). NSFC applicants submit proposals through the NSFC online grant-management system. NSFC places strong emphasis on research integrity - it maintains and enforces research-misconduct rules and has taken visible action against integrity breaches. Funded researchers are expected to acknowledge NSFC support and grant numbers on publications and to follow national scientific-data-management measures. ORCID and persistent identifiers are used in parts of the Chinese research ecosystem but are not uniformly mandated by NSFC.
- What is NSFC's data sharing requirement?
- Data-sharing expectations aligned with China's national scientific-data-management measures; data-management practice shaped at the institutional level. Researchers should follow the data-management plan submitted with the application and deposit data in a recognised repository where appropriate.
References
Sources
- NSFC research-integrity and misconduct rules
- NSFC programmes and funding policy (English site)
- China national scientific-data-management measures
