September 14, 2026 Call for Candidate Devices and Services for "Information Accessibility Good Practices 2026"

　In order to promote the spread of accessible ICT devices and services, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC) has decided to solicit submissions of ICT devices and services with excellent information accessibility to be designated as "Information Accessibility Good Practices 2026."

Note: The published materials are in Japanese only.

1　 Background and outline

　In order to realize a society where everyone can enjoy the convenience of digital utilization and live a fulfilling life, it is becoming increasingly important to ensure the information accessibility of ICT devices and services.

　To ensure information accessibility, it is vital for companies and public organizations to understand the necessity of such accessibility and to consider how to ensure information accessibility at the development, manufacturing, and procurement stages of ICT devices and services.

　Based on this, the MIC is designating ICT devices and services with excellent information accessibility as "Information Accessibility Good Practices 2026," for the purpose of promoting the spread of accessible ICT devices and services.

2　 Application period

　From Monday, September 14, 2026, to Friday, November 13, 2026, 17:00

3　 Applicable products and services

　ICT devices and services that meet all the requirements (1) through (5) below are eligible:

• (1) ICT devices and services designed with consideration for information accessibility*
  　 * Information accessibility means that anyone, regardless of their age or disability, can obtain and use information and communicate with others. Applicable ICT devices and services are those designed with information accessibility in mind and which are for (i) the public, (ii) people with disabilities or their helpers, and (iii) the elderly or their helpers.
• (2) Each ICT device or service mentioned in (1) above must be developed, manufactured, and sold by a company as its own product and must fall under one of the following categories:
  (If a company incorporates technologies, components, software, etc. from other companies into its final product, that product is also eligible for evaluation.)
  • (a) Personal computers (products that comply with JIS X 8341-2)　
  • (b) Web content and applications (products that comply with JIS X 8341-3/WCAG 2.1)
  • (c) Telecommunications equipment* (products that comply with JIS X 8341-4)
  • (d) Office equipment (products that comply with JIS X 8341-5)
  • (e) Interactive software (products that comply with JIS X 8341-6)
  * Telecommunications equipment refers to equipment related to telecommunications that is directly operated by users of telecommunications services. A new concept product or product group that does not fall under the category of conventional telecommunications equipment is considered to fall under (c) if it has functions typically found in conventional telecommunications equipment.
• (3 )The ICT device or service must be sold or provided to businesses or consumers at the time of the application. Note that only functions that have already been implemented shall be applicable, so functions, etc. that are currently under development shall not be eligible for evaluation.
• (4) Companies can submit one product.
• (5) In principle, devices or services that have already been evaluated as having information accessibility good practices in the past are not eligible for application.

4　 How to apply

Please fill out the application form provided in the Call for Applications Guidelines, and send it by email to the address in "5. Where to submit."
Note: Please refer to the attachments for the Call for Applications Guidelines and the application form.
Note: To apply, you must attend the "Corporate Seminar for Promoting Information Accessibility" (Basic and Practical Sessions) - archived viewing.

< Attachments >
○Information Accessibility Self-Evaluation Forms (Forms 1-1 and 1－2 )*
"Information Accessibility Good Practices 2026" Application Materials (Form2)
　* Forms published by the MIC that explain how companies should self-evaluate the accessibility of their ICT devices and services.

5　 Where to submit

• Operations Office for "Information Accessibility Good Practices 2026"
  Nomura Research Institute, Ltd.
  Email：accessibility_koujirei2026/atmark/nri.co.jp
  Note: The "@" symbol is represented as "/atmark/" to prevent spam emails. Please replace it with "@" when sending emails.
  Note: The subject line of your email should be "Information Accessibility Good Practices 2026 – Application for candidate product/service."

6　 Evaluation criteria, etc.

1．Evaluation method

　The ICT devices and services to be selected as "Information Accessibility Good Practices 2026" will be evaluated by a review committee consisting of academic experts, industry organizations, and organizations for people with disabilities, based mainly on the following evaluation items.

　(Evaluation items)

（1）Consideration for information accessibility of a device or service:
　（1）－1　Is the ICT device or service designed to be easy to use by the elderly, persons with disabilities (such as physical disabilities, intellectual disabilities, or developmental disabilities), etc. according to their own conditions and degrees of disabilities?
　（1）－2　Can the elderly, persons with disabilities, etc. achieve an accessible environment by using the ICT device or service (e.g., does it make it easier for them to move around by themselves or to grasp the content of conversations)?
　 （1）－3　When providing the ICT device or service, are measures taken such as explaining to the elderly and persons with disabilities how to use it through instruction manuals and websites, etc., as well as responding to their inquiries by telephone, email, chat rooms, etc.?

（2）Development based on the needs of stakeholders:
In developing the ICT device or service, are the opinions considered of the elderly and persons with disabilities, etc., their helpers, and the experts who understand their situation?

（3）Efforts to ensure information accessibility as a company policy:
Does the company have measures in place to address information accessibility (e.g., company-wide rules for information accessibility during development or the formation of information accessibility teams)?

2．Implementation of the Special Award (Accessibility Advancement Award)

　Among the ICT devices and services selected as "Information Accessibility Good Practices 2026," those that are particularly outstanding in terms of stakeholder participation are scheduled to be recognized with the "Accessibility Advancement Award." The award recipients will be selected by the aforementioned review committee based mainly on the following items. This special award will be presented in separate categories for large enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises, etc.* No award ceremony or other event is planned for this special award. Instead, when the selection results are announced, the name of the relevant device or service and the background to the award will be introduced in the materials announcing the Information Accessibility Good Practices.
* The definition of "small and medium-sized enterprises, etc." is based on Article 2 of the Small and Medium-sized Enterprise Basic Act. For details, please refer to the application materials.

(Evaluation items for the Special Award)

（1）Substantive participation:
Do multiple stakeholders with different characteristics and positions participate, and, depending on the nature of the product, are the voices of stakeholders reflected in the device or service from the initial planning and design stages of development, or throughout the entire process from identifying issues to improvement and verification?

（2）Impact on the device or service:
Can the applicant specifically explain which functions or specifications of the device or service were changed, and how, as a result of stakeholder involvement?

（3）Institutionalization and reproducibility of the approach:
Has the approach of stakeholder participation become established within the organization in a manner that allows it to be extended or carried over not only to the relevant device or service but also to other devices or services and other departments?

7　 Publication of evaluation results

　The results are scheduled to be announced around March 2027.