New ordinance on charging fees for research infrastructures

On October 1, 2022 a new ordinance entered into force, with the aim of making it easier for higher education institutions to charge fees to external users of research infrastructure.

A long-awaited ordinance for Sweden’s higher education institutions was announced in mid-August (government press release). The ordinance (SFS2022:1378) contains provisions on the charging of fees for the use of research infrastructure provided by universities and colleges, with the state as principal. The ordinance builds on a report from the Swedish National Financial Management Authority (ESV) which was published in February 2020.

In order for higher education institutions (HEIs) to apply the new ordinance, they are required to have established and documented criteria for access to research infrastructures. Developing guidelines for robust and transparent decision-making processes for external users to access open research infrastructures is one of the objectives of the SESAM project, and this work has been initiated within the project. The link between the requirements of the new Fee Ordinance and the objectives of the SESAM project provides an opportunity for SESAM to assist Swedish HEIs with best practice on how criteria for accessibility can be set and applied. Pricing, along with when and how to apply market-based pricing, is also something that both the SESAM project and the new ordinance address.

The aim is that we, together with representatives from Sweden’s HEIs, can work further on these issues within the framework of the project and thereby achieve as unified an approach to accessibility as possible among Sweden’s HEIs.

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