For a journal to be considered for Scopus it needs to be at least 2 years old. This time frame has been put in place not only because most of the metrics need to analyze the last 2 years in order to be generated, but also because it helps the evaluators to see how the journal has developed and its growth potential. Being a young journal is to some extent an advantage because there is still time to update all the necessary changes.

We do not recommend to use the title, and submit journal title, which is identical to those already indexed in Scopus. It has ethical implications as well since authors could be misled to believe they are submitting articles to a specific journal while in fact it may be submitting to a different one.

All journals must have a peer-review system. Peer review is defined as obtaining advice on individual manuscripts from reviewers expert in the field who are not part of the journal's editorial staff. Policies should be clearly described on the website.

English language title, abstracts, keywords and authors' affiliations for all articles is a mandatory requirement. As well as authors in Roman script.

It is highly recommended those journals offer translated (or transliterated) references together with the references in original languages. This supports broader global readership and higher impact.

Publishing regularity is a key requirement. The journal should have a set date of publication that must be respected. A fixed number of issues per year is a clear approach.

The Ethics and Malpractice statement is a mandatory requirement. It should cover authorship, review, conflicts of interest, and consequences of misconduct.

Journals must list editorial boards whose members are recognized experts, including their full names, affiliations, and roles.

Ethical policies should be clearly visible on the website. It must include authorship, data sharing, conflicts of interest, oversight, and corrections.

Editors shall follow COPE guidelines in dealing with allegations of research misconduct such as plagiarism and data falsification.

The copyright and licensing policies must be clearly stated, and licensing terms must appear on all published articles.

Any manuscript processing or publishing charges must be clearly stated. If no such fees exist, that must also be declared.

Journals must state how articles are accessed, and whether subscription or pay-per-view fees are applied.

Journals should have a clear plan for electronic backup and preservation (e.g., CLOCKSS, PubMedCentral).

Ownership or managing organization of the journal must be clearly stated and not misleading.

Journals shall provide the full names and affiliations of the editors and contact information for the editorial office.

Business models or revenue sources must be disclosed and should not influence editorial decisions.

Advertising policies must ensure ads are not related to editorial decisions and are kept separate from content.

Any marketing activities must be appropriate, truthful, and not misleading for readers or authors.

ISSN must be displayed clearly and validated by the official ISSN Center.

All journals must have a website in English to be considered for evaluation by Scopus.

A clear set of author instructions must be provided in English, covering formatting and submission.

Aims and Scope must be explained in English and aligned with journal content.

Editors should come from different countries and reflect the journal's stated aims and scope.

Authors should also be from diverse geographical locations in line with journal scope.

Citation from Scopus-indexed journals indicates international visibility of the journal.

Editors must be domain experts, with Scopus Author Profiles demonstrating their credentials.

DOI helps improve searchability and proper indexing of the journal articles.

Articles must be scientifically sound and relevant to an international academic audience.

Published content should align with the stated aims and scope and reflect academic excellence.

Tables and figures should be clear, properly formatted, and embedded in the article body.

Articles should use good grammar and be logically structured and readable.

Abstracts must be clear and provide a comprehensive summary of the article.