The statutory principal task of LOFAR ERIC is: “to assure coordinated exploitation of the LOFAR infrastructure, to produce world-class scientific research and to pursue further development, with the aim to maximise productivity and impact for the Members and the international scientific community, positioning LOFAR ERIC as a world-leading research infrastructure with a long-term perspective”. The Access Policy contributes to the success of the principal task by regulating user access to the suite of scientific research services provided by LOFAR ERIC, given that the infrastructure operated by LOFAR ERIC has a finite capacity (for observing, data analysis, etc.), and that the LOFAR ERIC operations budget to carry out activities is finite also.