Journal profile · BUSINESS, FINANCE
China Journal of Accounting Research
ISSN 1755-3091 · eISSN 2214-1421 · Elsevier · Netherlands
China Journal of Accounting Research: CAS Zone 4 · Management (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 5.4 (journal website); fully open access; APC about USD 1,800; review about 280 days (submission to acceptance, publisher); acceptance rate 9% (journal website); 33 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
China Journal of Accounting Research is published by Elsevier and is in Zone 4 of Management in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Corporate Finance and Governance, Auditing, Earnings Management, Governance and Financial Markets and Investment Strategies, together about 54.9% of its articles. Its main subfields are Accounting. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The China Journal of Accounting Research (CJAR) is dedicated to publishing high-quality theoretical and empirical studies that explore critical issues in accounting, corporate finance, auditing, and corporate governance. The journal’s scope primarily focuses on research related to the Greater China region, countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative, the Oceania region, as well as other emerging and developed markets. CJAR strongly encourages the application of economic and sociological theories to examine and interpret accounting-related phenomena within the context of diverse legal and institutional environments. Additionally, the journal promotes cross-market comparative studies that address accounting issues across varying capital markets. Research published in the journal typically employs analytical, empirical archival, experimental, or field study methods. China Journal of Accounting Research has achieved notable indexing in the following directories and databases:ScopusCImago Journal Rank (SJR)Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ)Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI)Source Normalized Impact per Paper (SNIP)Australian Business Deans Council (ABDC) Journal Quality ListExcellence in Research for Australia (ERA) Journal ListABS Journal ListCabell’s DirectoryCNKI“FMS High Quality Journal List in Management Science” in China
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): BUSINESS, FINANCE
Editor-in-chief Yangyang ChenPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 6 in mainland China (about 40%); most named Mainland China 6, Hong Kong, China 5, Singapore 2, Macau, China 1, France 1 (15 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Corporate Finance and GovernanceBusiness, Management and Accounting26.4%
- Auditing, Earnings Management, GovernanceBusiness, Management and Accounting21.1%
- Financial Markets and Investment StrategiesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance7.4%
- Corporate Taxation and AvoidanceBusiness, Management and Accounting5.4%
- Financial Reporting and Valuation ResearchBusiness, Management and Accounting3.6%
- Diverse Scientific and Economic StudiesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance3.3%
- Corporate Social Responsibility ReportingBusiness, Management and Accounting3%
- Human auditory perception and evaluationEngineering2.9%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Management Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Management | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Business, Finance | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Management Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Management | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Business, Finance | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
Database indexing
ESCIScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
CImago Journal Rank (SJR), Source Normalized Impact per Paper (SNIP), Excellence in Research for Australia (ERA) Journal List, ABS Journal List, Cabell’s Directory, CNKIPublisher website
As the journal's website lists them, not checked against each database; for Web of Science editions the records above apply.
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 5.4Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 6.6LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 6.6Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.11LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.32LetPub ·
- h-index
- 51OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 219OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 3.21OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 5.6%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 100%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 33LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 425 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 42 | 42 | 15 |
| 2025 | 33 | 33 | 69 |
| 2024 | 42 | 42 | 292 |
| 2023 | 30 | 30 | 618 |
| 2022 | 39 | 39 | 578 |
| 2021 | 30 | 30 | 313 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Publisher-reported review time from the journal's website
280 dayssubmission to acceptance · community reports about 15 weeks
The publisher's own definition applies; dates from this journal's articles in the last 24 months are not available yet, so the publisher's figure is used.
Figures by source
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 15 weeksLetPub ·
- Acceptance rate (publisher)
- 9%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision
- 15 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 57 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance
- 280 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 48 weeksDOAJ ·
- Peer review
- Double anonymous peer reviewDOAJ
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Fully open accessDOAJ
Every article is open access; authors usually pay an article processing charge (APC).
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOAJ | USD 1,800 | Yes | CC BY, CC BY-NC-ND | |
| OpenAlex | USD 1,800 / EUR 1,680 / GBP 1,440 / JPY 223,250 | — | — | |
| LetPub | USD 1,800 | Yes | — | |
| Publisher website | Yes, amount not published | — | — |
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
What to prepare3 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 250 words
- Keywords
- ≥ 1
- Reference style
- Numbered, in order of citation
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Preprints
- AI use Declaration of generative AI use
Authors must declare the use of generative AI tools in the manuscript preparation process upon submission of the paper.Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies (“AI tools”) have been rapidly adopted in research and scholarly publishing, offering significant benefits while requiring clear standards for responsible and transparent use.Authors preparing a manuscript for this journal may use AI tool…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Group authorship
Group authorship refers to the attribution of an article to a defined and named group of authors whose members have contributed to the work. Examples include research consortia, clinical trial groups, collaborative networks, task forces or working groups, expert panels or consensus groups, and participatory research groups. Group authorship must be declared on the title page at submission. When av…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Declaration of competing interests
All authors must disclose any financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence or bias their work. Examples of potential competing interests include:EmploymentConsultanciesStock ownershipHonorariaPaid expert testimonyPatent applications or registrationsGrants or any other fundingAffiliation with the journal as an Editor or Advisory Board …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright License options
Authors will be offered open access user license options which will determine how you, and third parties, can reuse your open access article. We advise that you review these options and any funding body license requirements before selecting a license option.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access
We refer you to our open access information page to learn about open access options for this journal.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer review
Double anonymized peer review Model summary
This journal follows a double anonymized review process. Your submission will initially be assessed by our editors. If your submission is deemed suitable, it will typically be sent to be reviewed by a minimum of two reviewers for an independent expert assessment of the scientific quality. The decision as to whether your article is accepted or rejected for publication will be made by our editors.Re…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprints
Preprint sharingAuthors may share preprints in line with Elsevier's article sharing policy. Sharing preprints, such as on a preprint server, will not count as prior publication.We advise you to read our policy on multiple, redundant or concurrent publication.
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Elsevier
- Country or region
- Netherlands
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 1755-3091
- Electronic ISSN
- 2214-1421
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗DOAJ
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗DOAJ
- Aims & Scope ↗DOAJ
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Fee waivers ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗DOAJ
- Editorial board ↗DOAJ
- Plagiarism policy ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about China Journal of Accounting Research
What CAS zone is China Journal of Accounting Research in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, China Journal of Accounting Research is in Zone 4 of Management, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Business, Finance. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 2 of Management. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of China Journal of Accounting Research?
The journal's website gives an impact factor of 5.4; this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; CiteScore 6.6, h-index 51.
How long does peer review take at China Journal of Accounting Research?
The publisher reports about 280 days (submission to acceptance); authors report an average review time of about 15 weeks; the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 9%. Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
What are the manuscript requirements of China Journal of Accounting Research?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 250 words; Keywords: ≥ 1; Reference style: Numbered, in order of citation. A model extracted these from the author guidelines and each was checked against the text; check the latest version on the journal's website before submitting.
Where are the editorial board members of China Journal of Accounting Research based?
Of the 15 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 6 (about 40%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Mainland China (6), Hong Kong, China (5) and Singapore (2). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index China Journal of Accounting Research?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, China Journal of Accounting Research is indexed in ESCI, Scopus and DOAJ.
Is China Journal of Accounting Research open access, and what is the APC?
China Journal of Accounting Research is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 1,800.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex, DOAJ; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-25). Last updated: .