Generations of Mobile Standards

Work on 5G Advanced

Release 20 is the final '5G‑Advanced only' release, and as such there is a determined focus in the groups to meet 5G market and deployment needs. Some of the major Rel-20 5G Advanced work areas for enhancement are:
  • Energy Efficiency & Sustainability
  • AI/ML
  • Satellite & NTN in 5G Architecture
  • NR Mobility 
  • NR Coverage 
  • Public‑Safety 
  • Sensing + Communications

The 3GPP Work Plan, presented during TSGs#111 in March 2026 (SP-260360), reported on the status of the 5G Advanced normative work in Rel-20. The Stage 1 work was completed in June 2025 (service requirements frozen), clearing the way ahead for architecture and protocol work in later stages.

Stage 2 & 3 progress

(Source: March 2026 Work Plan)

Currently, 126 Work Items and 74 Study Items for 5G-Advanced in Rel-20 - across the RAN, SA and CT groups - are underway:

Rel-20 early 6G Studies

Source: Work Plan, March 2026.

SID / WID Title Acronym Working Group
1050110  Study on 6G Use Cases and Service Requirements* FS_6G_REQ WG SA1
1060079 Study on 6G Scenarios and Requirements* FS_6G_RAN_Scen_Req TSG RAN
1080057 Study on Architecture for 6G System FS_6G_ARC WG SA2
1080072 Study on 6G Radio FS_6G_Radio WG RAN1
1100019 Study on 6G Application Enablement FS_6G_APP WG SA6
1090044 Study on Security for the 6G System FS_6G_SEC WGSA3
1100010 Study on Media Aspects for 6G System FS_6G_MED WG SA4
1090013 Study on Charging Aspects of 6G System FS_6G_CH WG SA5
1100014 Study on 6G Management and Orchestration FS_6G_OAM WG SA5
1100011 Study on Lawful Interception for 6G FS_6G_LI WG SA3LI
1110045 Study on Mission Critical Services for 6G FS_MCS_6G WG SA6
1090028 Study on supporting AEAD algorithms FS_AEAD WG SA3
1080045 Study on Transitioning to Post Quantum Cryptography in 3GPP FS_CryptoPQC WG SA3

 

March plenaries saw note worthy progress on these two studies*. Both are essential indicators of what will follow, as further studies and later specification work.

6G System Requirements

TR 22.870, Study on 6G Use Cases and Service Requirements (Stage 1), is now complete (Approved - TSG SA#111). It identifies use cases and requirements for the 3GPP 6G system, including:

  • System and Operational aspects
  • AI
  • Integrated Sensing and Communications
  • Ubiquitous Connectivity
  • Immersive Communication
  • Massive Communication
  • Support for Industrial and 'Vertical' use cases

6G Radio

The Technical Specification group (TSG) RAN: Study on 6G Scenarios and Requirements (TR 38.914) is now taking shape, with the work 60% complete in March 2026.

The report covers the high level scenarios and requirements for 6G Radio, intended for use as a guide to the 3GPP RAN WGs and also an initial input for the ITU-R's IMT-2030 technical performance requirements process.

Look to TR 38.914 to help define a time plan and steer work as appropriate for the RAN WGs to begin their studies in the following areas:

  • Fundamental 6G radio design aspects: waveform, numerology, channel coding, etc…
  • Overall high-level aspects of 5G to 6G migration
  • RAN architecture and interfaces, including RAN-Core interface
  • Coordination of 6G AI/ML framework

The Rel-20 Work Plan

(For information - Text from December 2025)

As for previous generations, ITU defines the 6G calendar and 3GPP develops the standardized technology that will be the project’s candidate to the ITU international mobile telecommunications (IMT) process. On this occasion, the target date for “Technology proposals for IMT-2030” has been defined by ITU to be early 2029, and resulting specifications (i.e. full system definition) are to be submitted by mid-2030 at the latest.

To meet these target dates and to give 3GPP enough time to perform relevant studies, 3GPP has concluded that two 3GPP Releases are needed to specify 6G:

  • Release 20 for Studies
  • Release 21 for the normative work

5G-Advanced in Rel-20: Building on the Foundations of 5G

For Rel-20 5G-Advanced, 3GPP has set an 18-month roadmap focused on enhancing the current capabilities of 5G. The planned schedule ensures a steady progression toward critical upgrades, with progressive freezes as follows:

  • Stage-1 (service requirements) freeze in June 2025.
  • Stage-2 (system architecture aspects) has a two-tier timeline, with 80% completion anticipated by June 2026, leading to a final freeze in September 2026.
  • Stage-3 (protocol details) is targeted for March 2027, followed by the final ASN.1/OpenAPI freeze in June 2027.

In TSG SA Rel-20 5G-Advanced studies are advancing steadily. Three to highlight are: Satellite Access - Phase 4 (FS_5GSAT_Ph4), Future Railway Mobile Communication System - Phase 6 (FS_FRMCS_Ph6), and Energy Efficiency as Service Criteria Phase 2 (FS_EnergyServ_Ph2). 

RAN plans for 5G-A in Rel-20

Following the TSG RAN workshop at RAN#106 was summarized in RP‑243292

  • RAN WG capacity has to be carefully shared between 5G-Advanced and 6G in Rel-20
  • Critical to have reasonable amount of TUs accommodating necessary 5G-Advanced items to address commercial needs, with sufficient TUs given to 6G to ensure successful studies.
  • It is necessary to avoid duplicate scope in 5G-Advanced and 6G in Rel-20 - As an example, a study planned for 5G-Advanced (with the intention to convert to specifications later in Rel-20) should not conflict or overlap with the corresponding 6G study.

Some Background on Release 20