Codelist Issue 72 for ONIX 3.0 has been released.* Complete listings of the ONIX codelists can be downloaded from the EDItEUR website.

Issue 72 stand-alone codelist documentation as a readable PDF or HTML file (open and read it in your web browser)
Issue 72 TXT, CSV, XML, JSON files for loading into your data management applications
Issue 72 XSD, RNG, DTD schema modules for use with existing XML schema files (but note that it's better to download the latest 3.1 schemas since they incorporate a couple of small improvements as well as the new Block 8)
The ‘strict’ XSD 1.1 with Issue 72 (the strict XSD must be updated each time there is a new issue of the codelists, as it includes some codelists within the XSD itself)
The online browser for the ONIX code lists at ns.editeur.org/onix has been updated to issue 72

Need help finding and using the documentation? Read this.

There were an exceptional number of additions and changes so everyone should review the document summarizing the changes and update their systems. Ask if you have questions but out of that list, these are of particular note to the Canadian book supply chain.

Graham Bell, EDItEUR’s Executive Director writes:

This update includes a relatively small number of updates:
an extra contributor role code for cover design (for use when both a graphic designer and a photographer or illustrator are both credited)
changes arising from expansion of the Eurozone to include Bulgaria
extension of the list of potential differentiated target audiences for marketing collateral and supporting resources
additional publishing date for the first unabridged version (for use with abridged editions)
several updates that add notes to existing codes, or provide clearer wording of existing notes

List 5 – Product Identifier Type

List 5 for Product Identifier Type sees new code 6 added to indicate a “digital file internal version number.” Use this code when you have included an Identifier for a specific revision of a particular product file or package of files, changed each time the file or package is modified in any way (e.g., to correct errors, update the content, or rebuild the package, whether the change is visible to the reader or not. For example, the ‘release identifier’ within an EPUB package such as “urn:uuid:a1b0d67e-2e81-4df5-9e67-a64cbe366809@2011-01-01T12:00:00Z.” Only for use in ONIX 3.0 or later.

A few details about this new code:

this can be thought of as a version number;
it's an exact copy identifier and useful for version checking; and
the identifier is not visible outside the EPUB or PDF, it's inside the manifest and only meant for use within the digital supply chain.

List 17 – Contributor Role Code

List 17 for Contributor Role Code sees new code A56 added to indicate a contributor contributing the graphic design for the book cover. Use where the overall graphic designer of the cover is credited separately from the creator of the cover artwork. Use code A36 for the creator of the cover artwork (who could be a photographer, illustrator, etc.) or where only a single cover creator is credited.

List 163 – Publishing Date Role

List 163 for Publishing Date Role sees new code 36 added to indicate the date of first unabridged publication, or the date when the unabridged version of the work incorporated in a product was first published. (Note: Use only on abridged works, and also see code 11 for the first publication date of the abridgement.)

*An updated note to ONIX 2.1 users: Update your records

As we’ve stated several times in these update posts, ONIX 2.1 users should note that codelist updates no longer apply to ONIX 2.1 and users should continue to use Issue 36. ONIX 3.0 code lists and schema modules no longer contain codes or lists unique to ONIX 2.1. You can still obtain the correct ONIX 2.1 schema and codelists from the Archived Previous Releases page.

BookNet Canada still recommends that you use and periodically update your copy of EDItEUR's best practices guide. It’s an essential ONIX 3.1 guide, but much of the information in it applies equally to ONIX 2.1.

*And a note for the forthcoming codelist 73, expected in April 2026: upon the release of list 73 list, ONIX 2.1 documentation will remain available as an archive but the online browser for ONIX 2.1 will be removed and no longer available. There is a full HTML (and PDF, etc.) version of codelist 36 for ONIX 2.1 in the archive so it always possible to have the 2.1 code list available on a computer; so download it now.