Library
of Congress Library of Congress Help Desk ( October 22, 2020 )
U.S. ISSN Center, Library of Congress
International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
ISSN Uplink is a web-based system to apply for ISSN, track the progress of your application, and communicate with the U.S. ISSN Center. ISSN Uplink replaces all of the U.S. ISSN Center�s previous application processes as of November 23, 2020.
Anyone can use Uplink to apply for ISSN. Accounts are available for staff from organizations of all kinds as well as for self-publishers.
There is no charge to use Uplink. ISSN are free for users in the United States.
First, create a username and password for an individual account. During the registration process you will be asked to provide basic contact information for yourself and your organization. You will be able to invite others in your organization to join your organization�s team(s). Once your registration is complete, you can follow the instructions in Uplink to submit an ISSN application.
A team is a group of ISSN Uplink users that you specify. A team is not required, and you should only add members to a team if you need others from your organization to have access to the ISSN applications that you submit. All team members can submit applications and will receive communications about every application. When you register for an Uplink account, you can invite members of your organization to sign up for Uplink by providing their email address during the registration process. The invited persons will receive an email from Uplink with a hyperlink to create their own individual Uplink account. If they use the hyperlink from the email invitation, they will automatically be added to your team.
Teams are beneficial for groups that want to share responsibility for applications. All team members will be able to review the status of applications, and view any ISSN that are assigned. Since every person on the team will receive communications about each application, it is best to keep teams small and only add individuals that need access to each application.
Once your user registration is complete, you can follow the instructions in Uplink to submit an ISSN application. You may only apply for one title at a time. ISSN applications are subject to review.
If your publication is not eligible according to ISSN Network policy, your ISSN can be denied. Examples of ineligibility include publications that are not continuing resources and publications that are not published in the U.S. If your publication is published in a different country, you may be referred to the appropriate ISSN center for that country.
No. If you wish to apply for more than 5 titles at once, please email [email protected] so we can determine the best approach for your situation. Otherwise, please submit individual applications for each title using the Uplink system.
�Pre-publication� ISSN assignments are made under limited conditions: � You have not already published any issues or content under this title. � Your publication is a print or other tangible format. Special exceptions may be requested to meet specific needs. � Your first issue or release is not more than 6 months in the future unless you have a compelling need. � You must provide a mock-up or other representation of pages requested during the application process. � You understand that your request may be deferred in cases where we need to see the first published issue or release in order to make an authoritative ISSN assignment. If you do not qualify for a pre-publication ISSN, please state �ISSN pending� on your publication and apply for an ISSN after you have published the first issue.
You cannot make edits to your application after it has been submitted or cancel the application on your own. If you need to change or cancel your application before an ISSN has been assigned, go to �View My applications� and select the application you�d like to change. Use the message area to let us know what changes you need (including cancelling). An ISSN staff member will review the messages and respond to you.
If you cannot find an answer in this FAQ, we prefer that you please send an email to [email protected]. You may also call (202) 707-6452 and leave a message. Please be aware there may be a delay in our response to phone messages due to staff working remotely because of the pandemic.
International Standard Serial Number. The abbreviation "ISSN" can denote the singular and plural forms, according to context.
An ISSN is an 8-digit code used to identify continuing resources--publications that are ongoing without any predetermined conclusion such as journals, magazine, newspapers, updating databases and certain types of websites. Resources are eligible whether they are current or ceased, print or electronic. For convenience in this FAQ, continuing resources are being collectively referred to as serials.
The ISSN can be thought of as the social security number of the serials world. Just as an individual's social security number is used in many automated systems to distinguish that person from others with the same or similar names, the ISSN distinguishes a particular serial from others with which it might be confused. The ISSN also helps library patrons, libraries, and others who handle large numbers of serials to find and identify titles in automated systems more quickly and easily.
Unlike the ISBN, which contains country and publisher prefixes, the ISSN contains no inherent meaning.
An ISSN is composed of eight digits: the arabic numerals 0 to 9, except that in the case of the last digit, which is a check digit, the upper case X can appear. The purpose of the check digit is to guard against errors caused by the incorrect transcription of the ISSN. The method of determining the check digit for the ISSN is the modulus 11 basis, using the weighting factors 8 to 2. In the case of the ISSN, the Roman numeral X is used where the check digit calculation results in a remainder of 10.
ISSN are assigned by a network of over 90 centers worldwide, coordinated by the ISSN International Centre located in Paris. ISSN are assigned to serials published in the United States by the U.S. ISSN Center at the Library of Congress. Serials published outside of the United States are assigned ISSN by the national center in their country of publication, or, in the case of countries lacking a national center, by the ISSN International Centre. Information about the ISSN network and ISSN centers worldwide can be found on the ISSN International Centre's home page. Information about the ISSN network and ISSN centers worldwide can be found on the ISSN International Centre's home page.
The U.S. ISSN Center generally only assigns ISSN at the direct request of the publisher, distributor, digitizer or an agent (such as an attorney) acting on the publisher's behalf. Libraries and other ISSN users interested in obtaining ISSN for serials in their collections or databases should contact the head of the U.S. ISSN Center, Regina Reynolds, [email protected], to discuss other possible arrangements.
There is no charge for the assignment of the ISSN, or for the use of an ISSN once assigned. (However, the Library of Congress incurs substantial costs to staff and maintain the U.S. ISSN Center. Additionally, the Library of Congress is assessed a considerable fee to belong to the ISSN Network.)
No. ISSN are assigned to the entire serial and stay the same from issue to issue unless you change the title of your serial in any way except to increment the date (e.g., The World of Serials 1996 to The World of Serials 1997).
Title changes are costly for libraries and can be costly to publishers as well. If you must change the title, please apply to the U.S. ISSN Center for a new ISSN at least a month in advance. If you are in doubt as to whether a contemplated title change would require a new ISSN, please contact the center ([email protected]). The What's in a Name? brochure has further information about the costs of serial title changes.
That depends. For most serials one ISSN for each title under which it has been published is sufficient. But, if your serial is published in different language, regional, or physical editions (e.g., print, electronic), you will probably require a separate ISSN for each edition. Further information about electronic serials is available.
The preferred location for printing the ISSN on a printed serial is on the upper right-hand corner of the cover. Other good locations are the masthead area, the copyright page, or in the publishing statement where information about the publisher, frequency, and other publication facts are given. On a non-print serial, the ISSN should be printed, if possible, on an internal source, such as on a title screen or home page. Other suggested locations on non-print serials are on external sources such as microfiche headers, cassette or disc labels, or other containers. If a publication has both an ISSN and an ISBN, each should be displayed. If a publication is in a series which has its own ISSN, both ISSN should be displayed, accompanied by the title to which it pertains.
No. The ISSN office only needs to see one published issue either at the time of registration, or after publication, for ISSN issued prior to the publication of the first issue of a serial. However, please see Copyright Circular 7d, Mandatory Deposit of Copies or Phonorecords for the Library of Congress for information on Copyright deposit requirements you may be subject to.
ISBN or International Standard Book Number is the book counterpart to the ISSN. It is a national and international standard identification number for uniquely identifying books, i.e., publications that are not intended to continue indefinitely.
Yes. This situation occurs most commonly with books in a series and with annuals or biennials. The ISBN identifies the individual book in a series or a specific year for an annual or biennial. The ISSN identifies the ongoing series, or the ongoing annual or biennial serial.
CIP or Cataloging in Publication information is only available for books. So, unless the cataloging in publication data is for an individual book in a series, a publication will not normally be eligible for both cataloging in publication and ISSN.
There is no connection between Copyright and ISSN. Having an ISSN does not confer any Copyright protection, nor does sending a serial to the Copyright office eliminate your need to send the U.S. ISSN Center a sample issue of a serial for which you were given a prepublication ISSN.
No. Getting an ISSN for a title does not confer any exclusive rights to that title. Nor can titles be copyrighted. The best way to protect a title is to register it with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office.
No. The U.S. Postal Service uses the ISSN as an identification number for periodicals rate mailing privileges, but all publications have to meet the same requirements for a periodicals mailing permit regardless of whether they have an ISSN or not. Contact your local postmaster about obtaining a periodicals rate permit.
The ISSN is used in several bar codes as the title identifier portion of the code. One such code, the SISAC bar code symbol, can be found on scholarly, technical, medical and other subscription-based serials. The SISAC symbol is used by libraries and library-affiliated organizations. The symbol can also represent articles within journals and is used by document delivery services. The other major bar code that uses the ISSN is the EAN (International Article Number). The EAN is used in the U.S. by major bookstore chains for trade and other book publications. It is used extensively in the U.K. for magazines.
Although the ISSN is used as an element of the above bar codes, the U.S. ISSN Center does not issue the actual bar codes. Further information concerning the SISAC bar code symbol is available from Publication ID Division of Product Identification & Processing Systems, Inc. (PIPS), on the Web at http://www.pips.com/
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