ICANN - Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers
ICANN - Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers
03/12/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 03/12/2026 09:04
ICANN Board Approves 2026 Base Registry Agreement
On 12 March 2026, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) Board of Directors approved the standard Registry Agreement (RA) that applicants in the New gTLD Program: 2026 Round would enter into with ICANN, should their application be successful.
Applicants in the New gTLD Program: 2026 Round will find the 2026 Base RA of critical importance, as it defines the rights, obligations, and responsibilities of a registry operator to run a top-level domain. The 2026 Base RA establishes specifications that clearly define the responsibilities, technical and operational standards, and obligations that registry operators must follow to ensure the stable and secure operation of top-level domains.
The 2026 Base RA is the culmination of multiple discussions with the Implementation Review Team and four Public Comment proceedings, which provided the ICANN community with the opportunity to provide feedback. ICANN appreciates the time taken and input provided by the ICANN community in these proceedings.
The contractual requirements in the 2026 Base RA are rooted in the outputs from policies developed through the multistakeholder process. For more information, visit the 2026 Round Base RA webpage.
About ICANN
ICANN's mission is to help ensure a stable, secure, and unified global Internet. To reach another person on the Internet, you need to type an address - a name or a number - into your computer or other device. That address must be unique so computers know where to find each other. ICANN helps coordinate and support these unique identifiers across the world. ICANN was formed in 1998 as a nonprofit public benefit corporation with a community of participants from all over the world.
ICANN - Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers published this content on March 12, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on March 12, 2026 at 15:04 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]