PERRLA/Guides/MLA 9/White paper

How to Cite a White Paper in MLA 9

An MLA 9 Works Cited entry for a white paper follows the report format: the authors named in the paper, the title in italics and title case, any edition or paper number, the organization as the publisher, the date, and the URL without https://. You can end with the description White paper. When the organization wrote and published the paper, skip the author and start with the title. The in-text citation is the first thing in the entry, plus the page: (Perlo et al. 8).

The format

Last Name, First Name, et al. Title of the White Paper. Edition or No. (if any), Publisher, Day Mon. Year, www.url.com. White paper.

PERRLA MLA Experts · Updated October 29, 2026
Checked against the MLA Handbook, 9th edition. Every example is formatted by PERRLA's reference engine.

First, the easy way: PERRLA

Paste the link to the white paper's PDF into PERRLA's reference search. PERRLA reads the PDF and builds a Gray Literature reference with the authors, the title, the publisher, the date, and the link.

Then check four things against the paper. First, the authors: they're often listed a page or two in, under a heading like Authors. Second, Format or Type: if it's empty, type White paper there, and PERRLA ends the entry with it. Third, the title and edition: compare the title with the cover, and if the cover shows an edition or a paper number, like Second Edition or CP 381, type it in Identifying Information (2nd ed. for a second edition). Fourth, the publisher: if the organization wrote the paper and no people are named, its name must be in the publisher Name box exactly as it is in the author box. PERRLA then leaves the author out and starts the entry with the title, the MLA way.

Adding one by hand? Choose Gray Literature (Reports, Briefs, Codes), then A standalone work: report, brief, codes, etc. Add each person as an Author, or the organization as a Group Author (Organization). Type the title in Title of the Work, any edition or paper number in Identifying Information, and White paper in Format or Type, then fill in Publication Year (with the month and day if the paper gives them), the publisher, and the URL.

Not using PERRLA yet? Here is how to build the same works cited entry by hand.

The parts of the works cited entry

1. Author

If people are named as the paper's authors, the first one leads: last name, a comma, and the first name as printed, with any middle initial. With three or more authors, give the first one, then a comma and et al.

Perlo, Jessica, et al.

Many white papers put the organization's logo on the cover and the authors a page or two in, under a heading like Authors. Those people are still the authors. Names in an acknowledgments section are not.

If only the organization is named and it also published the paper, skip the author element and start with the title.

2. Title

A white paper stands on its own, so its title goes in italics, in title case, followed by a period. Capitalize the first word, the last word, and every main word; keep articles, prepositions, coordinating conjunctions, and the to of an infinitive lowercase in the middle.

IHI Framework for Improving Joy in Work.

A subtitle follows a colon, even when the cover prints it on its own line.

3. Edition or paper number

If the paper has an edition, write it after the title, abbreviated, followed by a comma: 2nd ed. for Second Edition.

2nd ed.,

A government white paper often carries a number, like the UK's command paper numbers. Put it in the same spot, as the paper prints it.

CP 381,

4. Publisher

Name the organization that published the white paper, in plain text, followed by a comma. No city, even if the paper's own "How to cite this paper" line gives one.

Institute for Healthcare Improvement,

When the organization is also the author, this is the only place its name appears.

5. Date

Give the date as fully as the paper gives it, written day, month, year. Abbreviate months longer than four letters.

11 Feb. 2021,

Most white papers print only a year, on the cover or in the copyright line, and then the year is enough: IHI's papers say 2017 and 2008.

6. URL

End with the link to the white paper's PDF, or to the page where readers can get it, without the https://, and a period.

www.ihi.org/sites/default/files/IHIWhitePaper_FrameworkForImprovingJoyInWork.pdf.

If the publisher asks for your name and email before the download, link to the white paper's landing page so readers can get it the same way.

7. White paper (optional)

MLA lets you add a short description at the very end of the entry when it helps your reader know what kind of work it is. For a white paper, write White paper, capitalized like a sentence, and a period. It's not in italics or brackets.

White paper.

Examples

A white paper with individual authors

The Institute for Healthcare Improvement's IHI Framework for Improving Joy in Work is widely cited in nursing leadership and burnout papers. Its cover shows IHI, and its second page lists six authors under the heading Authors, so the first author leads with et al., and IHI is the publisher. The citation points to page 8, where the paper's four steps for leaders begin.

  • In-text citation(Perlo et al. 8)
  • Narrative citationPerlo et al. describe four steps leaders can take (8).

A white paper with an edition

IHI's Seven Leadership Leverage Points for Organization-Level Improvement in Health Care is in its second edition, from 2008. The edition goes right after the title, as 2nd ed., before the publisher.

  • In-text citation(Reinertsen et al.)
  • Narrative citationReinertsen et al. argue that …

A government white paper the department wrote and published

In the United Kingdom, a White Paper is a government document that sets out plans for new laws. The Department of Health and Social Care's white paper on health and care integration was presented to Parliament as Command Paper 381 and published 11 February 2021. The department wrote and published it, so the entry starts with the title and names the department once, as the publisher. The citation points to page 10, where the paper calls itself a White Paper.

  • In-text citation(Integration 10)
  • Narrative citationThe white paper Integration and Innovation sets out … (10).

In-text citations

A white paper's in-text citation works like any report's: the first thing in the Works Cited entry, plus the page when the paper has page numbers. No comma, and no p.

  • Three or more authors: the first author and et al.: (Perlo et al. 8) or (Reinertsen et al.)
  • Two authors: both last names joined by and, every time
  • Title first, because the organization also published it: a short form of the title in italics, its first noun phrase: (Integration 10)
  • Name in your sentence: give the page alone at the end: Perlo et al. describe four steps leaders can take (8).
  • Title in your sentence: The white paper Integration and Innovation sets out the plans (10).

The description White paper stays in the Works Cited entry. You can call it a white paper in your own sentence, though.

Common mistakes

  • Perlo J, Balik B, Swensen S, Kabcenell A, Landsman J, Feeley D. IHI Framework for Improving Joy in Work. IHI White Paper. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Institute for Healthcare Improvement; 2017.Perlo, Jessica, et al. IHI Framework for Improving Joy in Work. Institute for Healthcare Improvement, 2017, www.ihi.org/... White paper.White papers often print a "How to cite this paper" line in a medical style. Don't copy it. Rebuild it in MLA order, with the first name spelled out, et al., the title in italics, and no city.
  • Institute for Healthcare Improvement. IHI Framework for Improving Joy in Work. 2017.Perlo, Jessica, et al. IHI Framework for Improving Joy in Work. Institute for Healthcare Improvement, 2017.The organization's logo on the cover doesn't make it the author when the paper lists people under Authors. The organization becomes the publisher.
  • IHI Framework for Improving Joy in Work [White paper].IHI Framework for Improving Joy in Work. Institute for Healthcare Improvement, 2017, www.ihi.org/... White paper.The square brackets after the title are APA. In MLA, the description is optional and goes at the very end of the entry, with no brackets.
  • Department of Health and Social Care. Integration and Innovation: Working Together to Improve Health and Social Care for All. Department of Health and Social Care, 2021.Integration and Innovation: Working Together to Improve Health and Social Care for All. CP 381, Department of Health and Social Care, 11 Feb. 2021.When the department wrote and published the paper, name it once, as the publisher. Add the paper number, and give the date as fully as the paper does.
  • Seven Leadership Leverage Points for Organization-Level Improvement in Health Care (Second Edition).Seven Leadership Leverage Points for Organization-Level Improvement in Health Care. 2nd ed.,The edition isn't part of the title. Write it after the title, abbreviated, in plain text.

Quick checklist

  • The people listed as authors, with et al. for three or more
  • Same organization wrote and published it? Start with the title
  • Title in italics and title case
  • Edition or paper number after the title, then the publisher, with no city
  • The date as fully as the paper gives it
  • The URL without https://, then White paper. if you want it

Questions students ask

What is a white paper?

A white paper is a document an organization or a person writes to make the case for a position or an approach to a problem, often with a recommended solution. Health systems, quality groups, technology companies, and governments all publish them. They usually aren't peer reviewed, which is why it helps to tell your reader what they are.

Is a white paper cited differently from a report in MLA?

No. MLA uses the same core elements for both: author, title in italics, publisher, date, and URL. The only extra is the optional description White paper at the end of the entry.

Do I have to add White paper at the end?

No, it's optional in MLA. Add it when the title doesn't make clear what kind of document it is, or when your instructor wants it. If the document calls itself something else, like a policy brief or position paper, use that word instead.

How do I cite a UK government White Paper?

If the department wrote and published it, start with the title in italics, then the command paper number, the department as publisher, the date, and the GOV.UK link: Integration and Innovation: Working Together to Improve Health and Social Care for All. CP 381, Department of Health and Social Care, 11 Feb. 2021, assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/… White paper.

Can I cite a white paper from a company?

Yes, with the same format: the authors (or the title, if the company wrote and published it), the title, the company as publisher, the date, the URL, and White paper. Keep in mind that a company's white paper often promotes its own product, so check its claims against peer-reviewed research before you lean on it.

Rules checked against the MLA Handbook (9th ed.), chapter 5 (authors, titles, the version, number, publisher, and date elements, URLs, and optional elements) and chapter 6 (in-text citations), and the MLA Style Center's posts "How do I cite a source that has no author?" (an organization that is author and publisher is named once, as publisher), on the type-of-work description at the end of an entry (the travel brochure answer), and on shortening titles to their first noun phrase. Example sources are the ones verified for the APA 7 page, re-read on October 29, 2026: IHI's two white paper PDFs (cover, author page, copyright line, and their "How to cite this paper" notes) and the Department of Health and Social Care paper's PDF cover (CP 381, Published 11 February 2021) and its GOV.UK publication page.

PERRLA builds a white paper entry from its PDF link and ends it with White paper when you type it in Format or Type.

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