FM 2026

Call for Papers

FM 2026 is the 27th international symposium on Formal Methods in a series organized by Formal Methods Europe (FME), an independent association whose aim is to stimulate the use of, and research on, formal methods for software development. The FM symposia have been successful in bringing together researchers and industrial users around a program of original papers on research and industrial experience, workshops, tutorials, reports on tools, projects, and ongoing doctoral research. FM 2026 will be both an occasion to celebrate and a platform for enthusiastic researchers and practitioners from a diversity of backgrounds to exchange their ideas and share their experiences.

Important Dates

Key Events	Dates
Abstract Submission	November 25, 2025 23:59 AoE
Full Paper Submission	December 2, 2025 23:59 AoE
Paper Notification	January 30, 2026 23:59 AoE
Final Version	February 23, 2026 23:59 AoE
Main Conference	May 20–22, 2026

In addition, information about Artifact Submission will be informed soon.

Topics of Interest

FM 2026 will highlight the development and application of formal methods in a wide range of domains including trustworthy AI, computer-based systems, systems-of-systems, cyber-physical systems, security, human-computer interaction, manufacturing, sustainability, energy, transport, smart cities, smart contracts in blockchain, healthcare and biology. We particularly welcome papers on techniques, tools, and experiences in interdisciplinary settings. We also welcome papers on experiences of applying formal methods in industrial settings, and on the design and validation of formal method tools.

The topics of interest for FM 2026 include, but are not limited to: Interdisciplinary formal methods: Techniques, tools, and experiences demonstrating the use of formal methods in interdisciplinary settings. Formal methods in practice: industrial applications of formal methods, experience with formal methods in industry, tool usage reports, experiments with challenge problems. The authors are encouraged to explain how formal methods overcame problems, led to improved designs, or provided new insights.

Tools for formal methods: Advances in automated verification, model checking, and testing with formal methods, tools integration, environments for formal methods, and experimental validation of tools. The authors are encouraged to demonstrate empirically that the new tool or environment advances the state of the art.

Formal methods in software and systems engineering: Development processes with formal methods, usage guidelines for formal methods, and method integration. The authors are encouraged to evaluate process innovations with respect to qualitative or quantitative improvements. Empirical studies and evaluations are also solicited.

Theoretical foundations of formal methods: All aspects of theory related to specification, verification, refinement, and static and dynamic analysis. The authors are encouraged to explain how their results contribute to the solution of practical problems with formal methods or tools.

We are particularly interested in submissions that apply formal methods on autonomous systems, including AI - and non-AI-based perception, decision, and control algorithms, compilers, middleware, operating systems, virtual machines, communication protocols, and hardware. Example application domains are increasingly automated vehicles, robots, and drones.

Submission Guidelines

We solicit various categories of papers:

• Regular Papers (max 15 pages)
• Long tool papers (max 15 pages)
• Case study papers (max 15 pages)
• Short papers (max 6 pages), including tool demonstration papers.

All page limits do not include references and appendices.

Papers should be original work, not published or submitted elsewhere, in Springer LNCS format, and written in English.

Each paper will be evaluated by at least three members of the Program Committee. Authors of papers reporting experimental work are strongly encouraged to make their experimental results available for use by the reviewers.

Case study papers should describe significant case studies, and the complete development should be made available at the time of review. The usual criteria for novelty, reproducibility, correctness and the ability for others to build upon the described work apply.

Tool papers and tool demonstration papers should explain enhancements made compared to previously published work. A tool demonstration paper need not present the theory behind the tool, but can focus on the tool’s features, how it is used, its evaluation and examples and screenshots illustrating the tool’s use. Authors of tool and tool demonstration papers should make their tools available for use by the reviewers and are highly encouraged to participate in the artifact evaluation once their paper is accepted.

Reviewing is single-blind.

For all papers, an appendix can provide additional material such as details on proofs or experiments. The appendix is not part of the page count and will only be read at the discretion of the reviewers. Thus, it should not contain information necessary for the understanding and evaluation of the presented work.

Papers will be accepted or rejected in the category in which they were submitted and will not be moved between categories. At least one author of an accepted paper is expected to present the paper at the conference as a registered participant.

Proceedings

The conference proceedings will be published open access by Springer in the LNCS series, as part of the FM subline.

Submissions

The submission link will be announced soon.

Authors of all accepted papers are invited to submit an artifact for evaluation by the FM 2026 Artifact Evaluation Committee after the paper notification. For long tool papers and tool demonstration papers, submission of an artifact is strongly encouraged.

Best Paper Award

At the conference, the PC Chairs will present an award to the authors of the submission selected as the FM 2026 Best Paper.

Special issue

Extended versions of selected papers will be invited for publication in a special issue of a journal to be announced soon.

Program Committee Chairs

Augusto Sampaio, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Brazil

Marielle Stoelinga, University of Twente, the Netherlands