Withdrawal of Manuscript Policy

ARISTHA: Ar-Risalah Journal of Islamic Tourism and Hospitality

Publisher: Sekolah Tinggi Agama Islam (STAI) Ar-Risalah Sumatera Barat, Indonesia

1. Purpose and Scope

ARISTHA: Ar-Risalah Journal of Islamic Tourism and Hospitality recognizes that authors may, under certain circumstances, need to withdraw a manuscript from editorial consideration before publication.

This policy establishes transparent, fair, and responsible procedures for requesting, evaluating, and confirming manuscript withdrawal while protecting authors' legitimate interests, editorial integrity, and the resources contributed by editors and peer reviewers.

The policy applies to manuscripts submitted to ARISTHA that have not yet been formally published, including submissions undergoing initial editorial screening, peer review, revision, copyediting, or production.

Withdrawal of an unpublished manuscript is distinct from retraction of a published article. Concerns involving published articles are addressed under the journal's Retraction and Correction Policy.

2. General Principles

ARISTHA handles manuscript withdrawal requests according to the following principles:

  1. Author autonomy: Authors may request withdrawal of an unpublished manuscript for legitimate reasons.

  2. Transparency: Requests and editorial responses should be communicated through appropriate official channels.

  3. Accountability: Withdrawal should not be used to conceal research misconduct, evade legitimate ethical inquiries, or facilitate simultaneous submission.

  4. Fairness: Requests should be assessed objectively and without unnecessary administrative obstacles.

  5. Editorial integrity: The journal should maintain appropriate records of withdrawal requests and their outcomes.

  6. Respect for scholarly contributions: Authors should recognize the time and effort invested by editors and reviewers.

  7. Proportionality: Administrative procedures should correspond to the manuscript's editorial stage and the circumstances of the request.

The journal seeks to resolve withdrawal requests promptly and professionally.

3. Circumstances Supporting Manuscript Withdrawal

Authors may request withdrawal for legitimate reasons, including:

  • Discovery of substantial errors in the manuscript or underlying research.

  • Identification of problems affecting the reliability or interpretation of the findings.

  • Concerns regarding research ethics, participant consent, or data confidentiality.

  • Authorship disagreements requiring resolution before publication.

  • Changes in the availability or authorization of essential research data.

  • Discovery of an unintended duplicate submission.

  • Significant personal, institutional, legal, or professional circumstances affecting the submission.

  • Other reasonable circumstances that make continued editorial consideration inappropriate.

The journal may request clarification when necessary to understand the implications of the withdrawal.

A request should not be rejected merely because the editorial process has already begun.

4. Withdrawal During Initial Editorial Screening

Authors may request withdrawal while the manuscript is undergoing initial editorial assessment.

The corresponding author should submit a written request through the OJS discussion function or another official editorial communication channel.

The request should identify the manuscript and explain the reason for withdrawal.

The editorial office should verify the submission details, consider any relevant ethical concerns, and communicate confirmation of the withdrawal when the process is complete.

Where appropriate, the manuscript's editorial status should be updated in OJS.

5. Withdrawal During Peer Review

Withdrawal requests may also be submitted after the manuscript has been assigned to reviewers.

Because peer review involves contributions from independent scholars, authors are encouraged to communicate withdrawal requests as soon as the need becomes apparent.

The editorial office should assess the request and, where appropriate, discontinue outstanding review assignments and notify affected reviewers without unnecessarily disclosing confidential information.

The journal should not require authors to complete a review round solely because reviewers have already been invited or have begun their evaluations.

Any credible research integrity concerns identified during review may still require appropriate assessment under the journal's publication ethics procedures.

6. Withdrawal During Revision

Authors may request withdrawal after receiving an editorial decision requiring revisions or resubmission for review.

The request should identify the manuscript, explain the reason for withdrawal, and indicate whether the authors intend to discontinue editorial consideration permanently.

Authors are encouraged to communicate their decision rather than simply leaving a revision request unanswered.

Failure to submit a revision by a deadline does not automatically constitute a formal author-initiated withdrawal.

The editor may close an inactive submission in accordance with the journal's editorial procedures after appropriate communication.

7. Withdrawal After Acceptance but Before Publication

A manuscript may be withdrawn after acceptance but before formal publication when justified by relevant circumstances.

Because accepted manuscripts may have entered copyediting, layout preparation, or other production activities, the editorial office should assess the request carefully and communicate any implications to the authors.

The journal may seek clarification concerning significant errors, ethical concerns, authorship disputes, or other reasons affecting the accepted manuscript.

Withdrawal should ordinarily remain possible before publication, subject to appropriate verification and resolution of any material ethical or legal concerns.

Acceptance does not eliminate the journal's responsibility to protect the integrity of the publication process.

8. Withdrawal Request Procedure

A withdrawal request should be submitted by the corresponding author through the official OJS submission discussion function or the journal's designated editorial contact channel.

The request should contain:

  1. Manuscript title: The complete title of the submitted manuscript.

  2. Submission identification: The OJS submission ID, where available.

  3. Corresponding author: Name and contact information.

  4. Reason for withdrawal: A clear and concise explanation.

  5. Authorship confirmation: Confirmation that all co-authors have been informed and agree to the withdrawal, or an explanation of any unresolved disagreement.

  6. Supporting information: Relevant documentation when necessary to clarify the request.

The journal may contact other listed authors to verify the request when circumstances warrant.

9. Agreement Among Co-authors

Withdrawal requests should ordinarily reflect the knowledge and agreement of all listed authors.

The corresponding author is responsible for communicating the proposed withdrawal to co-authors.

Where disagreement exists, the editorial office may request clarification or documentary evidence before determining the appropriate administrative response.

The journal should not attempt to adjudicate complex authorship disputes that require institutional investigation.

When necessary, the matter may be referred to the relevant institution or other competent body.

10. Editorial Assessment of Withdrawal Requests

The Editor-in-Chief or an appropriately designated editor should assess withdrawal requests in a fair and proportionate manner.

The assessment may consider:

  • The current editorial or production stage.

  • The stated reason for withdrawal.

  • Confirmation from the corresponding author and relevant co-authors.

  • Any unresolved research integrity concerns.

  • Any legal or ethical issues requiring additional action.

  • Whether publication has already occurred.

The purpose of this assessment is to ensure that the request is authentic and appropriately documented, not to impose unnecessary barriers to legitimate withdrawal.

11. Confirmation and Effective Date of Withdrawal

A manuscript should be considered formally withdrawn when the editorial office has confirmed the withdrawal through an official communication channel and updated the submission record as appropriate.

Authors should not assume that a withdrawal is complete merely because a request has been submitted.

The journal should provide written confirmation identifying the manuscript and indicating that editorial consideration has ended.

Once withdrawal has been confirmed, the manuscript will no longer be considered for publication under the existing submission.

12. Submission to Another Journal

Authors must not submit the same manuscript simultaneously to ARISTHA and another journal.

When authors intend to submit a manuscript elsewhere, they should first obtain confirmation that withdrawal from ARISTHA has been completed.

After formal withdrawal, authors may submit their work to another journal, subject to applicable ethical, contractual, and legal obligations.

Withdrawal does not remove the obligation to disclose relevant prior dissemination or unresolved ethical concerns when required.

13. Withdrawal and Research Misconduct

A withdrawal request does not automatically terminate the journal's responsibility to assess credible allegations of research or publication misconduct.

If significant concerns arise regarding plagiarism, data fabrication, falsification, unethical research practices, inappropriate authorship, or other serious issues, the journal may continue an appropriate ethical assessment even after the manuscript has been withdrawn.

Where warranted, the journal may seek clarification from authors or refer relevant concerns to an appropriate institution or competent authority.

Such actions should follow the journal's Publication Ethics and Allegation of Misconduct policies.

Withdrawal should not be used to conceal or prevent appropriate examination of serious research integrity concerns.

14. Withdrawal Fees and Financial Considerations

ARISTHA does not impose a manuscript withdrawal penalty solely because an author requests withdrawal before publication.

Any separately applicable publication-related charges must be governed by the journal's publicly disclosed Article Processing Charges policy.

No undisclosed administrative fee or financial penalty should be introduced as a condition of processing a withdrawal request.

If the journal adopts a different financial arrangement in the future, the relevant policy must be revised and disclosed transparently before it is applied.

15. Confidentiality and Data Protection

The journal should handle withdrawal requests and associated communications with appropriate confidentiality.

Unpublished manuscripts, reviewer reports, editorial correspondence, and relevant author information must be protected in accordance with applicable ethical and privacy requirements.

Withdrawal does not necessarily require the immediate deletion of all submission records.

The journal may retain information reasonably necessary for editorial accountability, research integrity inquiries, legal obligations, and appropriate recordkeeping.

Access to retained records should be restricted to authorized individuals.

16. Responsibilities of Authors

Authors are expected to:

  • Submit withdrawal requests through official communication channels.

  • Provide accurate information about the manuscript and the reasons for withdrawal.

  • Inform and consult co-authors.

  • Avoid simultaneous submission.

  • Respond to reasonable requests for clarification.

  • Cooperate with legitimate research integrity inquiries.

  • Await formal confirmation before treating the manuscript as withdrawn.

Authors should communicate promptly and professionally throughout the process.

17. Responsibilities of Editors

Editors are responsible for:

  • Reviewing withdrawal requests fairly and without unnecessary delay.

  • Verifying the identity and authority of the requesting author when appropriate.

  • Considering the manuscript's editorial stage.

  • Communicating with relevant parties when necessary.

  • Discontinuing editorial or review activities after withdrawal is confirmed.

  • Updating submission records appropriately.

  • Preserving necessary confidential documentation.

  • Addressing significant ethical concerns under the applicable journal policies.

Editorial actions should remain independent from inappropriate personal, institutional, financial, or commercial influence.

18. Withdrawal Versus Retraction

Manuscript withdrawal and article retraction serve different purposes.

Manuscript withdrawal concerns a submission that has not yet been formally published. It ends editorial consideration of the unpublished manuscript.

Article retraction concerns a work that has already been published and requires a public notice indicating that its findings or publication circumstances are sufficiently problematic to justify retraction.

Once an article has been formally published, requests concerning its validity or publication status must be handled under the Retraction and Correction Policy rather than through ordinary manuscript withdrawal procedures.

19. Appeals and Complaints

Authors who believe that a withdrawal request has been handled improperly may raise a concern through the journal's official editorial communication channel.

The complaint should identify the manuscript and explain the procedural or substantive issue.

Where appropriate, the matter should be reviewed by an editor who was not directly responsible for the disputed action.

The journal should seek a fair and reasoned resolution while maintaining appropriate records of the communication.

20. Relationship with Other Editorial Policies

This Withdrawal of Manuscript Policy should be read together with the journal's:

  • Editorial Decision Policy.

  • Publication Ethics.

  • Allegation of Misconduct.

  • Peer Review Process.

  • Plagiarism Policy.

  • Retraction and Correction Policy.

  • Article Processing Charges Policy.

Where multiple issues arise, the relevant policies should be applied consistently.

21. Policy Review and Updates

ARISTHA may periodically review this policy to reflect developments in scholarly publishing practices, publication ethics guidance, institutional procedures, and applicable legal requirements.

The journal remains committed to respecting legitimate author requests while protecting the integrity, fairness, and transparency of its editorial process.

Withdrawal Eligibility: Manuscripts not yet formally published.

Withdrawal Request Channel: Official OJS submission discussion or designated editorial communication channel.

Co-author Agreement: Ordinarily required or verified as appropriate.

Withdrawal Penalty: None solely for requesting withdrawal before publication.

Formal Withdrawal Status: Effective upon editorial confirmation.

Published Articles: Governed by the Retraction and Correction Policy.