The Aid Transparency Index relaunched in 2026 with a new paid-for accreditation model. International organisations were given the opportunity to sign up to participate fully in the Index accreditation and assessment process, including full engagement, capacity building and formal recognition for their transparency performance.

The Index accreditation and assessment process is open to all aid organisations that meet a set of minimum criteria:

1. Organisations engaged in international aid, development, humanitarian, climate change or related activities.
2. Organisations with an annual budget of at least $20 million and at least 50 ongoing projects, investments or programmes. Smaller organisations would have limited benefits from the process.
3. Organisations should have a formal commitment to transparency outlined in a policy or strategic document.

To maintain the Index’s role as an independent assessment of the leading aid and development organisations globally, the 2026 Index will also include 18 of the major bilateral donors assessed in the 2024 Index. These agencies opted not to sign up for the full accreditation process, but they will be scored alongside the accredited organisations, using the same assessment method and scoring approach, and will all appear in the Index ranking. A full list of the agencies assessed in the 2026 Index is included in the 2026 technical paper.