The National Plan for Open Science (NPOS) 2021-2027 was established by Ministerial Decree No. 268, which aims to make open science the standard practice in Italy. It focuses on transparency, cooperation, and the accessibility of scientific knowledge. A distinctive feature of Italy's approach is the establishment of the Italian Competence Centre on Open Science, FAIR, and EOSC. This center serves as a national network of experts providing support and guidance on open science practices, the application of FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) principles, and participation in the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC).
The plan mandates that research data, publications, software, and other digital objects funded by public resources should be openly accessible by default, in alignment with FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable) principles.
Exceptions to openness (e.g., data confidentiality, security concerns, or intellectual property rights) must be explicitly justified, following the concept of "as open as possible, as closed as necessary."