- ICANN invites feedback on the Draft FY26–30 Operating & Financial Plan
- Public comments also requested on ICANN and IANA Operating Plans and Budgets
What happened: Key stakeholder participation crucial for ICANN’s financial and operational planning
ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) is inviting public feedback on several key draft documents that will shape its operations from Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 to FY2030. These include the Draft ICANN FY26–30 Operating and Financial Plan, Draft ICANN FY26 Operating Plan, Draft ICANN FY26 Budget, and the Draft IANA FY26 Operating Plan and Budget.
The ICANN FY26–30 Operating and Financial Plan outlines 35 Strategic Initiatives that are designed to help achieve the 28 strategies specified in the ICANN FY26-30 Strategic Plan. These initiatives cover both ongoing activities and new projects that support ICANN’s mission.
The community is specifically asked to provide input on the term “Strategic Initiatives” to ensure its clarity and relevance. Additionally, ICANN has released documents detailing financial projections for FY26, including anticipated funding sources, which will play a crucial role in the execution of these plans.
Stakeholders can submit comments on these drafts, which will be considered by the Board before they are adopted.
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Why it’s important
The community feedback process is a vital component of ICANN’s governance structure, ensuring the multistakeholder model remains central to its operations. By engaging a diverse set of stakeholders, ICANN aims to refine its strategies, financial assumptions, and plans for the future.
This process is particularly important for aligning its priorities with the evolving needs of the global internet community, which relies on ICANN’s services for domain name system (DNS) stability, allocation of IP addresses, and other critical functions. Moreover, the documents also provide a transparent view of ICANN’s budgeting for FY26, which helps stakeholders better understand the allocation of resources and the organisation’s long-term financial sustainability.
The documents also specify the roles of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) and Public Technical Identifiers (PTI), whose operations are key to global internet governance. Given that ICANN’s plans significantly affect internet infrastructure and the broader tech ecosystem, input from community members ensures that ICANN’s strategies are reflective of stakeholder needs and expectations, keeping it accountable and aligned with its mission.
