A checklist is intended primarily to support the work of the Publication Forum’s evaluation panels, but it can also help, for example, researchers assess the reliability and rigor of a publication channel.

The Publication Forum steering group met on September 8, 2025, and approved significant changes to the JUFO classification.

Panels made decisions regarding level 1 and 0 classifications.

The rise of article processing charges (APCs) for open access scholarly articles has also attracted fraudsters. Responsible research assessment and free open access publishing could help eliminate incentives for dishonest practices.

The updated user guide takes into account the new recommendations for responsible research assessment and prohibit the use of the Publication Forum classification in the evaluation of individual researchers.

The level rating of 271 journals will be downgraded from the beginning of next year.

The evaluation of the grey area journals continues at the autumn meetings of the JUFO panels. From the beginning of 2025, MDPI and Frontiers journals, where publication cannot be recommended without reservation, will be downgraded to level 0.