ICANN FY26 Annual Report Details New gTLD Program 2026 Launch

ICANN published its FY26 Annual Report on 27 October 2026. The document covers the fiscal year that ended 30 June 2026 and highlights the start of the New gTLD Program 2026 Round as a central operational milestone.

Financial Results and Program Funding

Funding increased with domain name registrations during the year. Expenses rose in line with the approved budget and remained within planned limits. Funds Under Management reached approximately $542 million, an increase of $7 million from the prior year, driven by investment gains and operating surplus that were partly offset by costs tied to the New gTLD Program and the Grants Program.

The New gTLD segment recorded pre-investment expenses that exceeded support by roughly $36 million, covering work on both the 2012 and 2026 rounds plus the Grants Program. Staffing levels stayed stable at 449 to 454 full-time equivalents. Audited financial statements received an unmodified opinion from Baker Tilly and were released earlier on 14 October 2026.

The report also addresses progress on Bylaws obligations, the start of the FY26–30 Strategic Plan, accountability reviews, transparency measures, and diversity initiatives. These elements form the core of ICANN’s reporting on its five-year planning cycle that began in FY26.

New gTLD Program 2026 Round Milestones

The application window for the 2026 Round opened on 30 April 2026 and closed on 12 August 2026. More than 1,600 applications were received, with 1,615 confirmed to proceed after fee processing. Reveal Day took place on 7 October 2026, when strings, applicants, and contention sets were published.

The data showed roughly 1,615 applications from 450 to 480 applicants covering 980 to 986 strings. There were 263 contention sets, 333 brand applications, 16 community applications, 15 geographic applications, and 21 IDN applications. North America and Europe accounted for the largest share of submissions. A replacement period ran from 8 to 21 October 2026, and String Confirmation Day is scheduled for 17 November 2026, when the final list will be issued and the objections period will begin.

The 2026 Round marks the first major expansion of the DNS since the 2012 round, which added more than 1,200 TLDs. The current round incorporates an Applicant Support Program and built-in safeguards aimed at increasing diversity, competition, and choice in domain name infrastructure.

Upcoming Evaluation and Delegation Timeline

Community input and the objections period will run through approximately March 2027. Prioritization and evaluation work is expected to begin in 2027, followed by contention resolution and auctions. Delegations are projected to start around 2028. Program operations are currently paused for ICANN’s year-end closure from late December 2026 into early January 2027.

Further details on application volumes and contention sets from Reveal Day are available in the related coverage of the 7 October 2026 publication. The FY26 report places the 2026 Round within ICANN’s broader operational and financial framework for the year.