Check ORCID Format Before Linking Author Records

Preserve the sixteen characters

Import ORCID iDs as text so leading zeros survive. Keep the submitted string in one field and its normalized HTTPS form in another. Check the four groups, hyphens, and final check character. ORCID's documented checksum allows a final uppercase X. A spreadsheet numeric column can lose meaningful zeros or reject a valid X-ending identifier.

Use the published checksum procedure to screen for transcription errors. Then follow the identifier to the registry and compare the available evidence with the article's author attribution. Where authenticated collection is available, retain that provenance separately from a value copied from a reference source. A checksum validates a character pattern, while the registry and attribution establish what can be said about the person.

Classify a hypothetical batch

Twenty submitted strings contain two formatting errors repairable from the original source and one checksum failure that remains unresolved. After confirming the two repairs, 19 pass structural validation. Of these, four lack enough attribution evidence to link confidently to the intended contributor. The count of verified links is therefore 15, or 75% of all submissions.

Document the unresolved cases separately. Avoid guessing an identifier from a person's name or institutional affiliation. Keep the exact evidence for a confirmed link so a subsequent author-name change or affiliation move does not break an assignment that was well supported at the time.

ORCID identifier structure and checksum

Related worksheet: Contributor role confirmation worksheet.

Source checked on 5 November 2026.