IAC 2026 Antalya: Dates, Organizer & Exhibition Rules Guide

Congress or Exhibition? Knowing the Difference

IAC has two sides that are easy to confuse, and it matters for planning. The congress is the scientific programme: technical sessions, plenary sessions, the IAF Global Networking Forum and special sessions, all of which require full delegate registration. The exhibition is the show floor, where agencies, manufacturers, suppliers and national pavilions present their work. The key point: an exhibition badge does not grant access to the technical and plenary sessions. If your team needs to attend those, they need delegate registration on top of their exhibition badges.

Exhibition Space: Shell Scheme, Raw Space and Two-Level Stands

There are three ways to take part on the show floor. Shell scheme is a ready-built package with set panels, flooring and furniture; exhibitors may apply graphics to the internal panel surfaces but may not alter the structure. Raw space is a marked floor area only, with no structure, flooring or electrical supply included, so the exhibitor designs and builds a custom stand and must submit the design for approval. Two-level stands are allowed in Hall 1 only, may use a second floor of up to 50 percent of the contracted area, carry a fee of 70 percent of the base rate for that upper level, and require a structural engineer's certification before approval.

The Halls and Stand Height Limits

The exhibition uses two halls connected by a balcony level that also houses the meeting rooms, and the official floor plan is published on iac2026.org. The two halls are quite different, and the design has to respect each one:

• Hall 1 is a permanent building with a 10 m ceiling. Standard stands may reach 4 m, wall-adjacent and perimeter stands are limited to 3.80 m, and two-level stands may reach 5.50 m. The floor supports a live load of 400 kg/m². Ceiling rigging is allowed at a maximum of 200 kg per point.
• Hall 2 is a steel-framed building with a pitched roof, so the usable clear height changes by position: about 2.60 m for wall-adjacent stands and 3.66 m elsewhere, after a safety margin. The floor load is capped at 300 kg/m² as a hard limit, and ceiling rigging is not permitted at all.

Anyone planning heavy equipment or a dense floor structure should send a load distribution plan to the organizer before design approval.

Stand Design and Build Rules

Custom stands must be submitted to the Exhibition Portal by 5 August 2026, including a scaled design with elevations, the contractor's details, and a structural report for any stand 4 m and above. The core build rules are practical and strict:

• All construction must stay within the contracted boundary. Nothing may extend into the aisle.
• Welding, cutting and painting inside the halls are prohibited, so stands must arrive as pre-built, boltable elements.
• Nothing may be fixed to the venue walls, doors, ceilings or pillars by any means, including tape and adhesives.
• Each open facade of a stand may be closed off by walls up to a maximum of 40 percent, keeping stands open to the aisles.
• The rear of any wall facing a neighbour must be finished in a compatible colour with no branding, and shared boundaries must be fully walled on each side.
• Sound must stay low, with a maximum of 50 dB at the stand boundary, and demonstrations must reflect the scientific character of the congress.
• Packaging and empty crates must be out of the hall before the show opens, and stands must be left clean or face a per-square-metre penalty.

Accessibility Requirements

IAC 2026 makes several accessibility rules mandatory rather than optional. Steps are prohibited in any raised stand area; every raised floor must be reached by a non-slip ramp at least 80 cm wide, with a maximum gradient of 1:12 and protective edging on both sides. Raised platforms must contrast visually with the surrounding floor, and their corners must be rounded or chamfered rather than left at right angles. Any on-screen video with audio narration must include subtitles or captions, and touchscreens are recommended between 38 and 122 cm above the floor so wheelchair users can reach them.

Technical Services: Electrical, Internet, Water and Rigging

Services are ordered through the Exhibition Portal to fixed deadlines. Electrical and internet orders are due by 17 August 2026, as is water and drainage for Hall 1, which must be arranged before floor installation. All electrical work must be done by a qualified electrician with RCD protection, extension cables are limited to 2 m, daisy-chaining multi-socket adapters is banned, and a 1 m clear zone must stay open in front of every distribution board. Rigging requests are due by 5 August 2026, apply to Hall 1 only, and must be carried out exclusively by the organizer's official rigging contractor, with a secondary safety wire on every suspended element.

Fire Safety, Prohibited Items and Export-Controlled Technology

Stands that fail fire safety checks will not be allowed to open. Drapes and curtains need non-combustible certification, and fire cabinets must stay fully accessible. A clear list of items is banned from the venue, including pyrotechnics and open flames, flammable and explosive gases and liquids, radioactive materials, unapproved compressed gas cylinders, and live animals other than certified service animals. Drones and UAVs require prior written approval.

Because this is a space congress, one rule stands out that you will not see at a typical trade fair: export-controlled technology. Lasers, lidar, radiation-generating equipment and controlled space technologies all need prior written approval, and exhibitors are solely responsible for compliance with ITAR, the US EAR, the EU Dual-Use Regulation and Turkish export legislation, including Law No. 7262. If your display involves sensitive hardware, this is worth checking early with your legal and logistics teams.

Freight, Customs and the ATA Carnet

GrupTrans is the official freight forwarding and customs agent, and coordination with them is mandatory. Türkiye is part of the ATA Carnet system, so display items can be temporarily imported without Turkish customs duties as long as they are re-exported within the permitted timeframe. Carnets must be obtained in the exhibitor's home country before shipment. Recommended shipping windows depend on origin: roughly 10 to 12 weeks ahead for North America and Asia Pacific, 8 to 10 weeks for Asia and Central Asia, and 6 to 8 weeks for Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.

Badges and Access

Exhibition badge allocation scales with stand size: two badges for the first 9 sqm, one more for each additional 9 sqm, up to a maximum of ten for a single booth. Pavilions have their own limits. Exhibition badges cover the exhibition area, the opening ceremony and the welcome reception, but not the technical, plenary or special sessions, which require delegate registration. Badges are personal, non-transferable and must be worn at all times.

Key Deadlines at a Glance

• 15 July 2026 - visa invitation letter requests, important for countries with long visa processes.
• 5 August 2026 - stand design and contractor details, rigging requests, insurance certificates, badge holder information, and Hall 1 water and drainage.
• 11 August 2026 - logo and sponsor advertisement material.
• 17 August 2026 - electrical, internet and water orders, plus pavilion co-exhibitor registration.
• 21 September 2026 - final personnel and contractor list. Anyone not on the approved list is denied venue access.

On site, build-up starts 30 September 2026, stands must be fully finished with aisles cleared by 4 October at 12:00, the congress runs 5 to 9 October, dismantling begins at 19:00 on 9 October, and the booth area must be handed back empty by 11 October at 15:00.

A Few Practical Tips

Start early: visa processing for some nationalities and the freight windows above can quietly become your critical path. Use an accredited stand contractor, since SAHA EXPO keeps a list and any outside contractor needs accreditation before working on site. Design for accessibility from the first sketch rather than retrofitting ramps later. Keep the show politically and commercially neutral, as the organizer can order the removal of content it considers inappropriate or politically contentious. And if any of your display hardware could fall under export controls, resolve it long before shipping.

The Theme: "The World Needs More Space"

Every IAC runs under a theme, and the 2026 motto is "The World Needs More Space." It works on two levels. On the surface, it is a call to explore and protect outer space in a way that is safe, sustainable and inclusive, keeping space a peaceful frontier whose benefits are shared by all nations and future generations. Underneath, it is a reminder that humanity increasingly needs the practical benefits that space delivers on Earth, from climate monitoring and connectivity to navigation and disaster response. The programme built around the theme invites visionary ideas, new technologies and pioneering research from across the sector.

About the IAC and the Antalya Edition

The International Astronautical Congress is the largest annual gathering of the global space community. Organized every year by the International Astronautical Federation (IAF), it brings together space agencies, industry, researchers, startups and students for a week of technical sessions, plenaries, networking and a large exhibition. The 2026 edition is the 77th, and it is the first time in history that Türkiye hosts the event, with the Turkish Space Agency (TUA) as host and the SAHA Istanbul Defence, Aviation and Space Cluster as co-host.

The venue, NEST Convention Center, is one of the largest conference and exhibition facilities in Türkiye, with capacity for up to 20,000 participants. It sits in the Belek district near Antalya, surrounded by five-star hotels, championship golf courses and blue-flag beaches, with more than 12,000 hotel rooms within walking distance. Turkish Airlines is the official carrier, and the event even has an official mascot, the Caretta Caretta sea turtle, under the tagline "From the Turquoise to the Stars." For a space community used to gathering in cities like Milan, Sydney and Paris, Antalya offers a rare mix of a major congress venue and a Mediterranean resort setting.

For a broader look at building stands in Türkiye, our Turkey exhibition stand design guide covers the practical side of design and build across Turkish venues. This article is based on the official IAC 2026 Exhibition Manual and iac2026.org; always confirm the latest details on the Exhibition Portal before you commit.