Submission Preflight (jfi-submission)
When to trigger
- "Submitting tomorrow" — last check before pressing submit in Editorial Manager
- Confirming what Editorial Manager expects at initial submission
- Checking the fee, abstract/keyword metadata, data links/statements, and required declarations
Process facts (verified 2026-06-22; re-confirm on the official Guide for Authors)
- JFI is published by Elsevier (ISSN 1042-9573); submission is via Editorial Manager, which
converts uploaded files into a single PDF for peer review. Editable files (Word/LaTeX) are needed
only for typesetting after acceptance.
- A US$500 submission fee applies to all new submissions, paid in Editorial Manager before the
paper is considered; desk-rejected papers are not refunded. Transferred manuscripts do not pay
another submission fee.
- Requires a concise factual abstract not exceeding 250 words and 1-7 English keywords.
-
"Your-paper-your-way": no strict reference style at submission as long as it is internally
consistent; the author–date Elsevier style is applied at proof.
- A Declaration of Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process must appear
before the References if such tools were used; AI cannot be an author.
- Optional but encouraged: Highlights (3–5 bullets, max 85 characters each) and free SSRN preprint
posting during submission (not prior publication).
Preflight checklist
Fee-gated go/no-go before pressing submit
Because the fee is non-refundable on desk-reject, treat submission as a gated decision, not a formality:
-
Gate 1 — fit: the jfi-topic-selection verdict is "strong," not "borderline"; a borderline
intermediation fit means you are likely paying for a desk rejection.
-
Gate 2 — frame: the abstract names the intermediary, friction, mechanism, and consequence
(jfi-contribution-framing) — the desk screen reads no further.
-
Gate 3 — design: the first objection a banking referee will raise (usually a demand-side confound)
is already pre-empted in the introduction, not saved for Section 6.
Cover-letter calibration for this desk screen
Three short paragraphs: what the paper shows about intermediation (one identified or proved claim, with
the headline magnitude or proposition); why this journal (name the sub-literature — relationship lending,
capital regulation, deposit competition — not "fits the aims and scope"); and any editor-expertise match
if you request a Managing Editor. Do not paste the abstract.
Last-mile glitches that cost real money here
- The EM-built review PDF scrambles landscape tables — proof the system's PDF, not your local compile.
- Keywords are generic ("banking," "finance") rather than naming the intermediation mechanism and data.
- Highlights written as full sentences exceeding the 85-character limit, truncated badly by the system.
- Fee paid but Data Statement or declarations missing, triggering an administrative return that delays
triage. Confirm the current declaration list against the journal's live author guidelines before final
filing.
Anti-patterns
- Submitting without paying the fee, or expecting a refund after desk-reject
- Submitting an abstract over 250 words or fewer than 1 / more than 7 English keywords
- Omitting the generative-AI declaration when such tools were used
- Anonymizing the manuscript as if it were double-blind — JFI is single-blind
Output format
【Review PDF】one clean file? [Y/N]
【Fee】US$500 ready in Editorial Manager? [Y/N]
【Abstract / Keywords】<=250 words and 1-7 English keywords? [Y/N]
【AI declaration】present-if-used, before References? [Y/N]
【Option C data plan / Data Statement / [dataset] tags】[Y/N]
【Next step】single-blind review → jfi-rebuttal on R&R
