When authors register at the RePEc Author Service, they are asked to provide their affiliation(s). Here, I want to clarify a few items about how affiliations are handled within RePEc. It is important that authors maintain their affiliations current, so that the proper institutions can get credit for their accomplishments.
What an affiliation is
An institution that pays the authors for his work. This may include current visiting positions, courtesy appointments and emeritus status. This is basically the institution(s) one would put under one’s name in a publication.
What an affiliation is not
Former place of study or work. Societies or associations. Consulting gigs. Banks where you hold an account (we have seen it all).
How to affiliate yourself in the system
There is a database of institutions derived from EDIRC that is used for affiliations. For universities, affiliations are listed at the department, center or institute level. Search in the database first, and only if you do not find your affiliation, suggest a new entry (90% of received suggestions are already in the database). Only affiliations from the database will count towards rankings, suggestions will not. Accepted suggestions will be converted.
About multiple affiliations
One can have multiple affiliations. But be aware that, for ranking purposes, each affiliation is attributed a share of the author’s scores. This means in particular that an author with affiliations in several countries will not count fully in each. We want to let authors decide what the shares should be, but until this is instituted, the temporary solution is a probabilistic calculation of what the main affiliation could be. The author’s email address, personal homepage and the number of affiliates at each institution are inputs in the formula. Authors can see their weights by following the ranking analysis link in their month email from RePEc. Affiliations not listed in EDIRC get a default value in the calculation.
Removing affiliations
To adjust affiliations, authors should log into the RePEc Author Service and click on “affiliations”. We leave authors authority on what they consider their proper affiliations and will not override their choices. The only exception is when some authority from an affiliated institution asks the author to be removed from the list.
Special cases
Deceased authors are considered to be unaffiliated. We welcome notifications and will adjust records in this respect. In particular, some of the authors with whom we have lost contact may have left us. Note that the latter do not count towards their affiliations either, the presumption being that the reason their email address is not valid any more is that they have changed employment.
Authors with write-in affiliation(s) are ranked in a country if it can be guessed from the URL of the affiliation (country domain), and if not from their email address.
The RePEc Blog 
What if one is emeritus?
Emeritus is still affiliated.
What if you retired from a 30 year research and evaluation position in a Federal government agency in Washington, DC after previously teaching at universities and now work from home on your writing and research?
As a retiree from a government agency, I would still consider you affiliated with it, unless you have now a new employer.
What if I have no institution paying for my work? What should I mention? “Unaffliliated” or “Independent”, or other form? Thanks.
Then put no affiliation.
what should i inscribe as institution,if i am not under anyone,as economist, at this preciselly moment.what about if i am working on tourist bussisnes institution. Could i say any other govermental institution,once i am working on it?………………
sincerelly yours, Leóndas Guerra U.
Put the institution you are working for.
Hi, I want to publish my PhD (just graduated from Siena university) and I have no other research position yet. I do have a low teaching position in the open university but they have no relation to my research. Which, if any, institution should I write as my affiliation? If none should I write in the paper “no affiliation” ? (I did see two examples of “independent scholar” )
If you want to publish your PhD dissertation, I would certainly mention it was written at the University of Sienna. If you currently have no attachment to Siena, put that in a footnote and write something like “independent scholar” indeed. Regarding your affiliation in your RePEc profile, which this blog post is about, put nothing in that case, and update it once you have a position.
Thank you very much, you were a great help.
The second part of the above affiliation definition includes the possibility of “emeritus” status, but someone with this status is not usually being paid for their work, the first part of the definition. So, in REPEC at least, would the emeritus-granting institution(s) nevertheless be affiliation(s) if the person is not being paid?
If the institution is granting emeritus status, there clearly is a relationship. To me, this looks like an affiliation.
My affiliation, Landmark University, is not appearing in the list of affiliations that already stored up in your system. What should be done?
Suggest a new affiliation using the suggestion form on the affiliation page.