All articles published in CMAJ are protected by copyright. Subject to fair dealing and any applicable legal exceptions, the reproduction of substantial portions of CMAJ content is only permitted as detailed below.

Unless the article has been released under a CC BY content licence, commercial reuse is strictly prohibited without prior consent from the CMAJ. Please email [email protected] to obtain consent.

Any uses or copies of CMAJ — in whole or in part — must include a bibliographic citation including author(s), article title, journal name, year, volume and page numbers, plus the URL www.cmaj.ca, and the copyright notice that appears with each article.

Reuse of Articles Published Prior to January 1, 2021

Single copies of articles published prior to January 1, 2021 may only be copied or shared for non-commercial educational purposes.  Appropriate credits must be given.  The distribution of derivative works is not permitted. Please email [email protected] to obtain consent for any other uses.

Reuse of Articles Published After January 1, 2021

CMAJ has adopted open access policy in respect of articles published after January 1, 2021. Articles are published under one of two Creative Commons licences:

CC BY-NC-ND

Unless otherwise specified, CMAJ articles released after January 1, 2021 are published under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) license. CC BY-NC-ND articles allow the author, and any non-commercial users, to share, copy, and redistribute the material in any format as long as they adhere to the following criteria:

• Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
• Non-Commercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes.
• No Derivatives — If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you may not distribute the modified material.
• No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.

• Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
• No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Do I need permission to include excerpts from a CMAJ article (including tables and figures) in another journal?

You do not need permission as long as you cite the original publication, the excerpt is identifiable, and you do not modify the material included. If you wish to make modifications, they will need to be pre-approved by both CMAJ and the corresponding author of the article. Please see the Metrics table of the article for the corresponding author's contact details.

Note: Images that contain a copyright notice from iStock may only be reproduced as part of the whole work and such images may not be reproduced with part of the work or on a standalone basis”. 

2. Can I include excerpts from a CMAJ article in my thesis?

Yes, assuming you cite the original publication and do not modify the material included.

3. Can I make copies of an article for a classroom?

Yes, this is allowed for both print and digital copies as long as you do not charge for the copies. There is no associated cost for you or your institution.

4. Can I distribute copies of an article at a conference?

Yes, as long as you do not charge for the copies. If you are charging a fee, this is considered commercial re-use and will require permission. Please email [email protected].

5. Can I post a copy of an article on another website?

Our preference is that users link to articles on CMAJ.ca so that additional materials, responses, and corrections are not missed by readers. Having said that, CMAJ does allow users to re-post articles on other websites as long as the website is not a commercial site. If users have to pay to access a website, it is commercial. Posting on it would require permission from the CMAJ.

6. I am an author. Can I post my article on my institutional or personal website?

Yes.

7. I would like to include a figure or table in an upcoming book. Do I need to obtain permission?

Unless the book is being distributed for free, you will need to seek permission for this use in advance. Please email [email protected].

8. Can I use a single copy of an article for use in a regulatory submission?

If the article has been released with a CC BY licence, you can do this at no charge. If the article has been released with a CC BY-NC-ND licence or if it does not have an open access content licence, the fee is $175 USD. Please email [email protected] to proceed.

For more information

For more information, please contact us at:

CMAJ Group
1410 Blair Towers Place, Suite 500,
Ottawa ON, K1J 9B9
Tel: 866-971-9171
Email: [email protected]