The European Commission has released the 2026 edition of the Rolling Plan for ICT Standardisation, the key reference document coordinating EU policy priorities with ICT standardisation activities across technologies, industries, and societal challenges. The 2026 edition identifies approximately 260 standardisation actions grouped across 40 technology and application domains, reflecting the growing scope and ambition of Europe’s digital regulatory agenda.

What is the Rolling Plan for ICT Standardisation?

The Rolling Plan is an annual working document developed by the European Commission in close collaboration with the European Multi-Stakeholder Platform on ICT Standardisation (MSP). It serves as a practical bridge between EU digital policy objectives and the standardisation activities carried out by European and international standards development organisations — including CEN, CENELEC, and ETSI, all partners in the InDiCo-Global consortium.

Unlike formal regulatory instruments, the Rolling Plan is a living document that is updated each year to remain aligned with an evolving policy and technology landscape. It is complementary to the Annual Union Work Programme and focuses specifically on areas where ICT standardisation can have a direct impact on EU policy implementation.

What’s new in the 2026 edition

The 2026 edition introduces three new chapters: Trusted and Secure Chips, covering standardisation for hardware security components underpinning trusted digital infrastructure; Internet, addressing the foundational protocols that ensure an open, resilient, and interoperable internet; and Trust in Media, a new societal chapter on standards for content authenticity and provenance. The chapter on ePrivacy has also been repositioned under Societal Challenges, more accurately reflecting its policy scope.

Several existing chapters have been substantially revised. Data Economy and Data Interoperability have been updated to reflect progress on the EU Data Strategy and the Data Act, which entered implementation in 2025. The chapter on Electronic Identification and Trust Services has been comprehensively revised in line with the updated eIDAS Regulation and the EU Digital Identity Wallet. Cybersecurity and Network and Information Security has been updated to reflect the implementation of NIS2 and the Cyber Resilience Act. eProcurement, eInvoicing, and Web 4.0 and Virtual Worlds have also been revised to incorporate the latest policy and standards developments.

Key trends

Artificial Intelligence remains one of the most active areas of the Rolling Plan, having featured prominently for more than five years. The plan’s content has directly informed the EU Standardisation Request in support of the AI Act, and standardisation activity in this domain will continue to intensify as the Act moves through its implementation phases.

Data economy standardisation is gaining significant traction, driven by the Data Act and the EU’s broader data strategy. The Rolling Plan’s content on data economy similarly informed the Standardisation Request published in 2025 in support of the Data Act. Accessibility continues to grow in prominence across multiple chapters, in line with the European Accessibility Act entering into force. Looking further ahead, 6G, digital twins, and quantum technologies are expected to feature more prominently in future editions, alongside potential standardisation requests in support of the forthcoming Quantum Act, Digital Networks Act, and Cloud and AI Development Act.

Relevance for InDiCo-Global

The Rolling Plan directly reflects the technology domains at the heart of InDiCo-Global’s work: AI governance, cybersecurity, data protection, electronic identity, interoperability, and accessibility. CEN, CENELEC, and ETSI — three of InDiCo-Global’s consortium partners — are among the standards development organisations contributing to the MSP and the standardisation activities identified and supported by the plan. For partner countries and regions engaged through InDiCo-Global’s capacity building and open call activities, the Rolling Plan provides a useful reference for understanding where EU standardisation priorities are headed.