{"id":523,"date":"2026-09-29T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-09-29T09:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/2026-gtld-round-timeline-reveal-day\/"},"modified":"2026-09-29T09:00:00","modified_gmt":"2026-09-29T09:00:00","slug":"2026-gtld-round-timeline-reveal-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/blog\/2026-gtld-round-timeline-reveal-day\/","title":{"rendered":"Reveal Day set for 7 October: the 2026 gTLD calendar through March 2027"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>ICANN has fixed the 2026 gTLD round timeline through March 2027: Reveal Day on 7 October 2026 at 18:00 UTC, a replacement period from 8 to 21 October, String Confirmation Day on 17 November and a community input and objections period from 17 November 2026 to 16 March 2027. For brand owners, these are the dates that decide whether an infringing top-level domain can still be challenged before it is evaluated and delegated.<\/p>\n<h2>Key takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>The applied-for strings and applicants become public on <strong>7 October 2026 at 18:00 UTC<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>Strings can still change until 21 October, when the replacement period closes; the final list comes on 17 November.<\/li>\n<li>Comments, objections and GAC Early Warnings run from 17 November 2026 to <strong>16 March 2027<\/strong>; singular and plural notifications have only the first 30 days.<\/li>\n<li>ICANN expects the prioritisation draw, which sets the processing order, in the first half of 2027.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>What dates did ICANN announce on 29 September?<\/h2>\n<p>In its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.icann.org\/en\/announcements\/details\/icann-announces-date-for-reveal-day-and-other-2026-round-milestones-29-09-2026-en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">announcement of 29 September 2026<\/a>, ICANN (the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) set the following milestones. It had confirmed a week earlier that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.icann.org\/en\/announcements\/details\/icann-confirms-number-of-applications-proceeding-in-the-2026-round-22-09-2026-en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">1,616 of the 1,663 applications<\/a> submitted would proceed.<\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Milestone<\/th>\n<th>Date (UTC)<\/th>\n<th>What happens<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>Reveal Day<\/td>\n<td>7 October 2026, 18:00<\/td>\n<td>ICANN publishes the applications proceeding, the applicants and the strings on its Application Publication and Statistics website<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Replacement period<\/td>\n<td>8 October, 00:01, to 21 October 2026, 23:59<\/td>\n<td>Eligible applicants may switch from their primary string to their pre-selected replacement string<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>String Confirmation Day<\/td>\n<td>17 November 2026<\/td>\n<td>Final list of applied-for strings with updated contention sets<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Last day for the 65% refund<\/td>\n<td>27 November 2026, 23:59<\/td>\n<td>Final window for applicants to withdraw with a 65% refund of the evaluation fee<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Community input and objections period<\/td>\n<td>17 November 2026 to 16 March 2027<\/td>\n<td>Application comments, GAC Early Warnings, singular and plural notifications and objections<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>ICANN office closure<\/td>\n<td>19 December 2026, 01:00, to 4 January 2027, 16:00<\/td>\n<td>Factored into the community input period<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Prioritisation draw<\/td>\n<td>First half of 2027, date to be set<\/td>\n<td>Sets the processing order after the String Evaluation stage<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h2>Why does the objection window in the 2026 gTLD round run until 16 March?<\/h2>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/newgtldprogram-2026-agb.icann.org\/en\/5-module-1-the-applicant-journey.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2026 Applicant Guidebook<\/a> (section 1.2.3) sets a 104-day community input period from String Confirmation Day. ICANN&#8217;s office closure over the year-end holidays has been factored in, which is why the window ends on 16 March 2027. String Evaluation, which covers string similarity, name collision, geographic names and singular and plural checks, runs in parallel for around 180 days (section 1.2.4).<\/p>\n<h2>What can a brand owner do in each window?<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>7 to 21 October: screen the list against your marks, including replacement strings, which some applicants may adopt during the replacement period.<\/li>\n<li>17 November: check the confirmed strings and contention sets again; this is the list that objections are filed against.<\/li>\n<li>First 30 days after 17 November: file singular and plural notifications if a string is the singular or plural of an existing or applied-for string; under section 4.4 of <a href=\"https:\/\/newgtldprogram-2026-agb.icann.org\/en\/8-module-4-community-input-objections-and-appeals.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Module 4<\/a>, they must cite authoritative dictionaries.<\/li>\n<li>Until 16 March 2027: submit application comments and, where a string infringes your rights, a Legal Rights Objection, administered by WIPO. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/en\/web\/amc\/domain-name-disputes\/lro\/fees\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIPO fee schedule<\/a> sets a non-refundable USD 2,000 filing fee and USD 8,000 for a single-expert panel.<\/li>\n<li>After a panel determination: the losing party may file a notice of intent to appeal within 15 days.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>String Confusion Objections remain limited to existing TLD operators and other applicants, so most brand owners rely on the Legal Rights Objection and on comments.<\/p>\n<h2>What this means for your business<\/h2>\n<ol>\n<li>Put 7 October, 21 October, 17 November and 16 March in the legal calendar now.<\/li>\n<li>Have the watchlist and the trademark evidence ready before Reveal Day.<\/li>\n<li>Decide who approves an objection and the budget, so the 30-day notification window is not lost to internal sign-off.<\/li>\n<li>Remember the year-end closure when planning work in December.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Our <a href=\"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/services\/domain-names\/\">new gTLD monitoring and objection service for the 2026 round<\/a> can track each milestone for your portfolio and flag the strings that need a decision.<\/p>\n<h2>Where brand owners lose time in this calendar<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Treating Reveal Day as the deadline. It opens the work; the window to act closes on 16 March.<\/li>\n<li>Checking only the 7 October list and missing changes made by 21 October.<\/li>\n<li>Missing the short 30-day window for singular and plural notifications.<\/li>\n<li>Filing an objection without solid rights. Review your <a href=\"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/services\/trademarks\/\">trademark protection in your key markets<\/a> before the window opens.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Frequently asked questions<\/h2>\n<h3>When is Reveal Day for the 2026 gTLD round?<\/h3>\n<p>On 7 October 2026 at 18:00 UTC. ICANN will publish the applications proceeding in the round, including applicants and applied-for strings, on its Application Publication and Statistics website. Applicants then have until 21 October to switch to an eligible replacement string, and the final list follows on 17 November.<\/p>\n<h3>Until when can I object to a new gTLD application?<\/h3>\n<p>The community input and objections period runs from 17 November 2026 to 16 March 2027. It combines the 104-day period in the Applicant Guidebook with ICANN&#8217;s year-end office closure. Legal Rights Objections are filed with WIPO, while singular and plural notifications must be made within the first 30 days.<\/p>\n<h3>Can IP Global Guard track the 2026 round calendar for my brands?<\/h3>\n<p>Yes. We monitor each milestone, screen the published and confirmed strings against your marks and tell you in time whether a comment, notification or Legal Rights Objection is justified. We prepare and coordinate objections with WIPO, directly where our professionals are entitled to act and through qualified representatives otherwise.<\/p>\n<h2>How IP Global Guard keeps you on top of the 2026 round<\/h2>\n<p>IP Global Guard, the IP services line of META Channel Corporation Limited, manages domain names and trademarks with one strategy and one billing relationship across more than 25 jurisdictions; see our <a href=\"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/coverage\/\">coverage in Europe, Latin America and Africa<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Tell us which marks matter most and who in your team signs off on action. We will follow the calendar from Reveal Day to 16 March and bring you only the strings that need a decision. <a href=\"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/contact\/\">Get in touch with our domain team<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><em>This article is general information, not legal advice, and reflects ICANN&#8217;s calendar on its publication date.<\/em><\/p>\n<h2>Sources<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.icann.org\/en\/announcements\/details\/icann-announces-date-for-reveal-day-and-other-2026-round-milestones-29-09-2026-en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ICANN, ICANN announces date for Reveal Day and other 2026 Round milestones (29 September 2026)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.icann.org\/en\/announcements\/details\/icann-confirms-number-of-applications-proceeding-in-the-2026-round-22-09-2026-en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ICANN, ICANN confirms number of applications proceeding in the 2026 Round (22 September 2026)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/newgtldprogram-2026-agb.icann.org\/en\/5-module-1-the-applicant-journey.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ICANN, 2026 Round Applicant Guidebook, Module 1: The Applicant Journey<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/newgtldprogram-2026-agb.icann.org\/en\/8-module-4-community-input-objections-and-appeals.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ICANN, 2026 Round Applicant Guidebook, Module 4: Community Input, Objections and Appeals<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/en\/web\/amc\/domain-name-disputes\/lro\/fees\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center, Legal Rights Objection schedule of fees<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>ICANN sets Reveal Day for 7 October 2026, String Confirmation Day for 17 November and the comment and objection period until 16 March 2027. What to do in each window.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1151,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wds_primary_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[60,62,58],"class_list":["post-523","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-domain-names","tag-icann","tag-new-gtlds","tag-wipo"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/523","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=523"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/523\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1151"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=523"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=523"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=523"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}