ICANN Announces Date for Reveal Day and Other 2026 Round Milestones

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) announces the date for Reveal Day and subsequent milestones in the New Generic Top-Level Domains (gTLD) Program: 2026 Round through the end of the year. For a closer look at each, please visit the program resources page.

Reveal Day: 7 October 2026

This is the day on which ICANN publishes the list of new gTLD applications proceeding through the program, revealing entities that applied and the strings applied for. Published information will include all applied-for primary strings and any applicable variant or replacement strings, a list of contention sets, and public portions of each application. This information will be made available on the 2026 Round Application Publication and Statistics website at 18:00 UTC on 7 October 2026.

Replacement Period: 8 October 2026 (00:01 UTC)-21 October 2026 (23:59 UTC)

Following Reveal Day, applicants that applied for a second-choice or alternate "replacement" string when they submitted their gTLD application have two weeks to switch from their primary applied-for string to their replacement string. Applicants may switch to the replacement string only during this period, and only if their replacement string is eligible. If the replacement string is identical to another applied-for primary string, or another replacement string, it cannot be used. Applicants should be aware that replacement strings could end up in contention in the later stages of the program (e.g., as a result of a singular/plural notification or String Confusion Objection). More information on the Replacement Period is available on this webpage.

String Confirmation Day: 17 November 2026

Following the String Replacement Period, a final list of all the applied-for gTLD strings is published on String Confirmation Day, as well as an updated list of contention sets. String Confirmation Day marks the start of the Community Input and Objections Period and the final 10 days during which applicants can withdraw their application to receive a 65 percent refund of the gTLD evaluation fee paid. To receive a refund during this refund window, a request must be submitted by 23:59 UTC on 27 November 2026. More information on refunds and timing is available on this webpage.

Community Input and Objections Period: 17 November 2026-16 March 2027

The ICANN community and members of the public will have an opportunity to provide feedback on applications following String Confirmation Day. Input may come via application comments, Governmental Advisory Committee Member Early Warnings, singular/plural notifications, or objections using the Application Comment Forum. More information, including details on additional objections periods, can be found on this webpage.

ICANN Office Closure

2026 Round operations will be paused during ICANN's end-of-year office closure from 1:00 UTC on 19 December 2026 until 16:00 UTC on 4 January 2027. This pause has been factored into the Community Input and Objections Period to ensure that applicants, the community, and the public retain the full amount of allotted time to provide input or respond to objections. Additional details will be made available in the coming months.

Prioritization Draw: 2027

The Prioritization Draw sets the order that applications and contention sets will be processed following the conclusion of the String Evaluation Stage. The String Evaluation Stage is the process of reviewing applied-for gTLD strings (and their allocatable variant strings) to ensure they meet the requirements of the New gTLD Program; all strings are reviewed concurrently. As application and contention set processing will not start until after the conclusion of the String Evaluation Stage (expected to last 180 days), the Prioritization Draw will take place on a to-be-determined date in the first half of 2027. Applicants cannot attend the Draw in person but can follow the live event virtually. More information will be provided at a later date.

Future 2026 Round Milestones

ICANN will continue to work on the planning and confirmation of timelines for later 2026 Round milestones, such as the publication of String Evaluation Results and the start dates for Applicant and Application Evaluation and contention resolution, and will communicate them accordingly.

Additional Resources

More information on the key phases of the application lifecycle can be found on the 2026 Round Applicant Journey webpage.

Be sure to check the program's News and Announcements page frequently for the latest news and updates. This information also will be sent directly to entities that have submitted an application in the TLD Application Management System.

About ICANN