What this guide covers
- Which rules apply, and what changed
- Commencement — the Request
- The Answer and any counterclaim
- Jurisdiction and the Article 7 filter
- Constituting the tribunal
- Disclosure, conflicts and funding
- Transmission of the file
- The initial case management conference
- New claims
- Establishing the facts and hearings
- Interim measures and the emergency arbitrator
- Early determination
- The Expedited Procedure
- Highly Expedited Arbitration
- Closing the proceedings and the time limit
- Scrutiny of the award by the Court
- Making, signing and notifying the award
- Correction, interpretation and additional awards
- Costs, the advance and waiver
- Frequently asked questions
The 2026 ICC Rules are the most substantial rewrite the institution has issued in a decade. Terms of Reference — the step that defined ICC practice for generations — are gone. In their place sit an initial case management conference, a new early determination power, and a third procedural track for cases the parties want decided in three months. This is the sequence from Request to award under the Rules now in force, with the article numbers.
Which rules apply, and what changed
The 2026 Rules apply to any arbitration commenced on or after 1 June 2026, unless the parties agreed to submit to the Rules in effect on an earlier date (Article 1(2)). Anything commenced before then runs under the 2021 Rules.
Because the 2026 edition renumbers nearly every provision, an article number cited without the edition is now ambiguous. The Request moved from Article 4 to Article 5, the Answer from 5 to 6, the emergency arbitrator from Appendix V to Appendix IV, and the Expedited Procedure Provisions from Appendix VI to Appendix V. Check the edition before relying on any older note or precedent.
The changes that alter how a case is actually run:
- Terms of Reference abolished. Replaced by an initial case management conference within 30 days of the file reaching the tribunal (Article 24(1)).
- No fixed six-month award deadline. The President of the Court now sets the limit by reference to the procedural timetable (Article 34).
- Early determination of manifestly unmeritorious claims or defences (Article 30).
- Highly Expedited Arbitration — a three-month track by consent (Article 33 and Appendix VI).
- Arbitrators owe an express confidentiality duty (Article 12(8)), which the 2021 Rules did not impose.
- Conflict-check lists. Each party must file a list of persons and entities the arbitrators should consider (Article 12(5)).
- Electronic signature and notification of awards (Article 38(1)).
Commencement — the Request
The claimant submits its Request to the Secretariat, which notifies the claimant of receipt and its date (Article 5(1)). The date the Secretariat receives the Request is the date the arbitration commences, for all purposes (Article 5(2)). Unlike DIAC, where commencement depends on a complete filing including the fee, the ICC date is fixed by receipt of the Request itself.
The Request sets out the parties and their representatives, the nature and circumstances of the dispute and the basis of the claims, the relief sought with quantification, the relevant agreements and in particular the arbitration agreement, which agreement each claim is made under where there is more than one, observations on the number and choice of arbitrators with any nomination, and proposals on the place, applicable law and language (Article 5(3)). It must also carry the conflict-check and funding information required by Articles 12(5) and 12(6).
The filing fee is payable with the Request. If it is not paid, the Secretariat may fix a time limit; if it is still not paid, the file is closed — though without prejudice to submitting the same claims later in a fresh Request (Article 5(4)). The Request is transmitted to the respondent only once the fee has been received (Article 5(5)), so non-payment delays service even though it does not move the commencement date.
On timing generally: periods run from the day after a communication is deemed made, holidays are counted, but a period whose last day is a holiday or non-business day expires at the end of the next business day (Article 4(1)). The parties may now modify time limits — the 2021 Rules allowed only shortening — with the tribunal’s approval if the agreement comes after constitution (Article 4(2)).
The Answer and any counterclaim
The respondent files an Answer within 30 days of receiving the Request from the Secretariat (Article 6(1)), commenting on the dispute and the relief sought, responding on the number and choice of arbitrators with any nomination, and giving its position on place, law and language. It too must include the Article 12(5)–12(6) information.
An extension is available, but only if the application already contains the respondent’s observations on the number and choice of arbitrators and any required nomination (Article 6(2)). A respondent cannot buy time while reserving its position on the tribunal.
Counterclaims are submitted with the Answer (Article 6(4)), and the claimant replies within 30 days of their communication (Article 6(5)).
Jurisdiction and the Article 7 filter
If a respondent files no Answer, or a party pleads that the arbitration agreement does not exist, is invalid or does not cover the claims, or that the claims cannot be determined together, the arbitration proceeds. The tribunal decides those questions directly — unless, before the tribunal is constituted, the Secretary General refers the matter to the Court under Article 7(2) (Article 7(1)).
That referral is a filter on administration, not a ruling on the merits of jurisdiction: where the Court is satisfied an ICC arbitration agreement may exist, the case proceeds and the tribunal decides jurisdiction for itself.
Constituting the tribunal
Disputes are decided by a sole arbitrator or by three (Article 13(1)). Absent agreement on number, the Court appoints a sole arbitrator unless it determines that the dispute warrants three (Article 13(2)).
Where the parties have agreed on a sole arbitrator, they may nominate jointly for confirmation; failing nomination within 30 days of the other party receiving the Request, the Court appoints (Article 13(3)). Where they have agreed on three, each nominates in the Request and the Answer respectively (Article 13(4)); where it is the Court that decided on three, each party has 15 days (Article 13(5)). The Court appoints the president unless the parties agreed another procedure, which must produce a nomination within 30 days (Article 13(6)).
Multiple claimants or respondents nominate jointly (Article 13(7)); an additional party joined under Article 8(1) may nominate jointly with the side it aligns with (Article 13(8)). Absent a joint nomination and any agreed method, the Court may appoint the entire tribunal and designate its president (Article 13(9)). It may also do so, notwithstanding any agreement on the method of constitution, in exceptional circumstances to avoid a significant risk of unequal treatment or unfairness affecting the validity of the award (Article 13(10)).
Disclosure, conflicts and funding
Every arbitrator must be and remain impartial and independent (Article 12(1)) and signs a statement of acceptance, availability, impartiality and independence disclosing anything that might call independence into question or give rise to reasonable doubts as to impartiality. New in 2026: any doubt about whether to disclose is to be resolved in favour of disclosure (Article 12(2)). The duty is continuing (Article 12(3)).
Balancing that, the 2026 Rules add that a disclosure does not by itself establish a lack of independence or impartiality (Article 12(4)) — directed at the tactical challenge built on the fact of disclosure rather than its content.
Also new: with the Request, Answer, Request for Joinder or any application to extend time for the Answer, each party must submit a list of the persons and entities it believes the arbitrators should consider, with reasons (Article 12(5)). Third-party funding must be disclosed — existence and identity of any funder with an economic interest in the outcome (Article 12(6)).
And, for the first time, arbitrators themselves owe a confidentiality duty over all matters relating to the arbitration, subject to the public domain, party agreement, applicable law and the protection of legal rights (Article 12(8)).
Transmission of the file
The Secretariat transmits the file to the tribunal as soon as it is constituted, provided the advance on costs requested at that stage has been paid (Article 17). Non-payment stops the case at the threshold.
The initial case management conference
This is where the 2026 Rules diverge most sharply from ICC practice as it has been understood for decades. There are no Terms of Reference. Instead, within 30 days of receiving the file the tribunal holds an initial case management conference to consult the parties on procedural measures (Article 24(1)). The Secretary General may extend that period on a reasoned request or on their own initiative.
At or as soon as possible after that conference the tribunal establishes the procedural timetable, which is communicated to the Secretariat and the parties (Article 24(2)). It may hold further conferences as it thinks appropriate (Article 24(4)), and may conduct them in person, in hybrid form or by video or telephone (Article 24(5)).
Two consequences follow from the abolition of Terms of Reference. There is no longer a signed document fixing the issues and the list of claims at the outset — so the procedural order following the CMC does more work, and should be scrutinised accordingly. And the award deadline, which used to run from signature of the Terms of Reference, now runs from what the President fixes by reference to this timetable.
Case management techniques are no longer set out in an appendix to the Rules; they now sit in guidance notes issued by the Secretariat (Article 23(2)), which the ICC can revise without amending the Rules.
New claims
After the initial CMC, no party may make new claims unless the tribunal authorises it (Article 25). Under the 2021 Rules the cut-off was signature or approval of the Terms of Reference; the trigger has moved but the discipline is the same. Anything a party may want to advance should be on the table before that conference.
Establishing the facts and hearings
The tribunal and the parties must make every effort to conduct the arbitration in an expeditious and cost-effective manner having regard to the complexity and value of the dispute (Article 23(1)), and the tribunal adopts such procedural measures as it considers appropriate after consulting the parties (Article 23(2)). It must act fairly and impartially and give each party a reasonable opportunity to present its case (Article 23(4)), and the parties undertake to comply with its orders (Article 23(5)).
On a party’s request the tribunal may make orders on the confidentiality of the proceedings and take measures to protect trade secrets and confidential information (Article 23(3)) — the ICC imposes no general confidentiality obligation on the parties themselves, which is a point worth addressing in the clause or at the first CMC.
The tribunal may deliberate wherever it considers appropriate, and now expressly in hybrid form or by video or teleconference (Article 19(3)). Hearings and meetings may be held at any location it considers appropriate unless the parties agree otherwise (Article 19(2)) — which does not change the place of the arbitration, fixed by the Court where the parties have not agreed it (Article 19(1)).
Interim measures and the emergency arbitrator
Once the file has been transmitted, the tribunal may order any interim or conservatory measure it considers appropriate, in the form of a reasoned order or an award, and may require security (Article 29(1)).
Before transmission — and in appropriate circumstances afterwards — the parties may apply to any competent judicial authority. Doing so is not an infringement or a waiver of the arbitration agreement and does not affect the tribunal’s powers, but the application and any measures granted must be notified without delay to the Secretariat and the tribunal (Article 29(2)).
Where measures cannot await constitution of the tribunal, a party may apply for an emergency arbitrator under Appendix IV (Article 31) — note the appendix renumbering; this was Appendix V in 2021.
Early determination
Article 30 is new. A party may apply for the early determination of one or more claims or defences on the ground that they are manifestly without merit or manifestly outside the tribunal’s jurisdiction (Article 30(1)). The tribunal decides in its discretion whether to let the application proceed, and if it does, adopts the procedural measures it considers appropriate after consulting the parties (Article 30(2)).
The Rules set no deadline for the decision — unlike arbitrateAD, which requires early dismissal to be decided within 30 days. The ICC power is more open-ended and correspondingly more dependent on the tribunal.
The Expedited Procedure
By agreeing to ICC arbitration the parties agree that the Expedited Procedure Provisions in Appendix V take precedence over any contrary terms of the arbitration agreement (Article 32).
They apply where the amount in dispute does not exceed the threshold, or where the parties agree to them (Appendix V, Article 1(2)). The threshold is tiered by the date the arbitration agreement was concluded (Appendix V, Article 1(3)):
- USD 4,000,000 — agreement concluded on or after 1 June 2026
- USD 3,000,000 — agreement concluded on or after 1 January 2021 and before 1 June 2026
- USD 2,000,000 — agreement concluded on or after 1 March 2017 and before 1 January 2021
They do not apply where the agreement predates 1 March 2017, where the parties have opted out, or where the Court determines it inappropriate in the circumstances (Appendix V, Article 1(4)). The Court may also decide at any point that they should cease to apply, in which case the tribunal normally remains in place (Appendix V, Article 1(6)).
Under the expedited track the Court may appoint a sole arbitrator notwithstanding any contrary provision of the arbitration agreement (Appendix V, Article 2(1)). The initial CMC is held no later than 15 days after the tribunal receives the file (Appendix V, Article 3(1)). The tribunal may refuse document production altogether, limit the number, length and scope of written submissions and witness evidence (Appendix V, Article 3(2)), and decide the dispute on documents alone with no hearing (Appendix V, Article 3(3)). The final award is due within six months of the initial CMC, extendable only by the President (Appendix V, Article 4).
Highly Expedited Arbitration
Entirely new in 2026, and available only where all parties agree (Article 33, Appendix VI). It compresses the front end of the case as well as the back.
The Request doubles as the statement of claim: it must set out the legal grounds and the facts supporting the claim and, so far as possible, be accompanied by the evidence relied on (Appendix VI, Articles 2(1) and 2(2)). If the Secretary General is not prima facie satisfied that a binding agreement to highly expedited arbitration may exist, the case simply continues under the Expedited Procedure or the ordinary Rules (Appendix VI, Article 2(3)).
The respondent supplies its basic details and observations on the sole arbitrator within 20 days (Appendix VI, Article 2(4)), and its Answer and Statement of Defence, with any counterclaim and the supporting evidence, within 30 days (Appendix VI, Articles 2(5) and 2(6)).
A challenge to the sole arbitrator must be brought within seven days (Appendix VI, Article 5). The initial CMC is held within seven days of the file reaching the tribunal (Appendix VI, Article 6(1)), and the tribunal may refuse document production, limit submissions and decide on documents alone (Appendix VI, Articles 6(2) and 6(3)).
The final award is due within three months of the initial CMC (Appendix VI, Article 7(1)). Most striking of all: unless the parties agree that no reasons are to be given, the award shall state its reasons (Appendix VI, Article 7(2)) — so the parties may agree to an unreasoned award. That is a meaningful trade. An unreasoned award is faster and cheaper, and correspondingly harder to challenge; it is also harder to understand, and in some jurisdictions harder to enforce. It should be a deliberate choice, not an oversight.
Post-award timetables are compressed too: a correction on the tribunal’s own initiative goes to the Court within 21 days, a party’s application within 14 days, and comment periods normally do not exceed 14 days (Appendix VI, Articles 7(3) to 7(5)).
Closing the proceedings and the time limit
As soon as possible after the last hearing or the last authorised submissions, whichever is later, the tribunal declares the proceedings closed on the matters to be decided and tells the Secretariat and the parties the date by which it expects to submit its draft award for the Court’s approval (Article 28). After closure no further submission, argument or evidence may be put in on those matters unless the tribunal requests or authorises it.
On the deadline itself, the 2026 Rules make a structural change. There is no longer a fixed six-month period, because there are no Terms of Reference for it to run from. Instead the President fixes the time limit — and may later extend it — taking into account the procedural timetable established at the CMC, or a reasoned request from the tribunal (Article 34).
Scrutiny of the award by the Court
Before signing any award the tribunal submits it in draft to the Court (Article 37(1)). The Court may require modifications to the form of the award and, without affecting the tribunal’s liberty of decision, may draw its attention to points of substance. No award may be rendered until the Court has approved its form (Article 37(2)).
The 2026 Rules widen what scrutiny looks at. The Court now considers, so far as practicable, the validity and enforceability of the award as well as the requirements of mandatory law at the place of arbitration (Article 37(3)); the 2021 formulation covered only the latter. This remains the strongest institutional quality control of any major arbitral body, and it is the main reason ICC awards are comparatively difficult to challenge.
Making, signing and notifying the award
Where the tribunal has more than one member the award is made by majority; if there is no majority, the president makes it alone (Article 35(1)). The award states its reasons (Article 35(2)) and is deemed made at the place of arbitration on the date stated in it (Article 35(3)).
New in 2026: after consulting the parties and considering all relevant circumstances, the tribunal may sign electronically, sign in counterparts, and ask the Secretariat to notify the award in paper or electronic form or any other manner the law permits (Article 38(1)).
The Secretariat notifies the award to the parties only once the costs of the arbitration fixed by the Court have been fully paid (Article 38(2)).
Where the parties settle after the file has been transmitted, the settlement is recorded as an award by consent if the parties ask and the tribunal agrees (Article 36).
Correction, interpretation and additional awards
The tribunal may correct a clerical, computational or typographical error on its own initiative after seeking the parties’ comments, provided the correction goes to the Secretariat in draft within 45 days of notification of the award (Article 39(1)) — extended from 30 days under the 2021 Rules.
A party’s application to correct or to interpret must be submitted within 30 days of its receipt of the award (Article 39(2)), as must an application for an additional award on a claim the tribunal omitted to decide (Article 39(3)). The other parties then have a short period, normally not exceeding 30 days, to comment (Article 39(4)).
Costs, the advance and waiver
The advance on costs governs progress at two points: the file is not transmitted until the advance requested at that stage is paid (Article 17), and the award is not notified until the costs fixed by the Court are paid in full (Article 38(2)).
On reasons for the Court’s own decisions, a party may request them for decisions on the Article 7(2) referral, challenges, constitution of the tribunal under Articles 13(9) and 13(10), and replacement — but the request must be made in advance of the decision (Article 43).
Finally, waiver. A party that proceeds with the arbitration without raising its objection to a failure to comply with the Rules, any other applicable rules, a direction of the tribunal, or a requirement of the arbitration agreement as to constitution or conduct, is deemed to have waived its right to object (Article 42). As with arbitrateAD, no number of days is specified; the safe course is to object at once and in writing.
Frequently asked questions
Which ICC Rules apply to my arbitration?
The 2026 Rules apply to any arbitration commenced on or after 1 June 2026, unless the parties agreed to submit to the Rules in effect on an earlier date (Article 1(2)). Anything commenced before that date runs under the 2021 Rules. Because the 2026 Rules renumber almost every provision, citing an article number without saying which edition you mean is now genuinely ambiguous.
Have Terms of Reference been abolished?
Yes. The 2026 Rules remove Terms of Reference entirely — the single largest change in this edition. Their case-defining function passes to the initial case management conference, which the tribunal must hold within 30 days of receiving the file (Article 24(1)). The cut-off for new claims now runs from that conference rather than from signature of the Terms of Reference (Article 25).
Is there still a six-month deadline for the final award?
Not as a fixed rule. Under the 2021 Rules the limit was six months running from signature of the Terms of Reference. With Terms of Reference gone, the President of the Court now fixes the time limit, taking into account the procedural timetable established at the case management conference or a reasoned request from the tribunal (Article 34). The six-month figure survives only in the Expedited Procedure, where it runs from the initial CMC (Appendix V, Article 4).
What is the expedited threshold under the 2026 Rules?
It is tiered by when the arbitration agreement was concluded, not by when the dispute arose: USD 4,000,000 for agreements concluded on or after 1 June 2026, USD 3,000,000 for agreements from 1 January 2021, and USD 2,000,000 from 1 March 2017 (Appendix V, Article 1(3)). The Expedited Procedure Provisions take precedence over contrary terms of the arbitration agreement (Article 32).
What is Highly Expedited Arbitration?
A new third track introduced by the 2026 Rules, available only when all parties agree (Article 33, Appendix VI). The Request doubles as the statement of claim with the evidence attached, the initial CMC is held within seven days of the file reaching the tribunal, and the final award is due within three months of that conference. The parties may even agree that the award need give no reasons (Appendix VI, Article 7(2)).
Can a hopeless claim be struck out at the ICC?
Yes, since 2026. Article 30 introduces early determination of claims or defences that are manifestly without merit or manifestly outside the tribunal's jurisdiction. Whether to let the application proceed is in the tribunal's discretion, and it then adopts the procedure it considers appropriate after consulting the parties.
Does the ICC Court still scrutinise every award?
Yes, and the 2026 Rules widen it. The tribunal submits every award in draft before signing, and no award may be rendered until the Court has approved its form (Article 37(2)). The Court may also draw attention to points of substance. New in 2026: the Court considers, so far as practicable, the validity and enforceability of the award as well as the mandatory law of the place of arbitration (Article 37(3)).
Will the ICC release an award if the costs are unpaid?
No. The Secretariat notifies the award to the parties only once the costs of the arbitration fixed by the Court have been fully paid (Article 38(2)). Where one side has funded the arbitration alone, that party generally pays the balance to obtain the award and recovers it under the costs order.