The FIA will enforce a new minimum weight livery rule from next season as part of a series of updates agreed by the F1 Commission.
The move comes after several teams ran large bare-carbon sections in recent years to cut weight.
Following discussions with the Technical Advisory Committee, the Commission backed a “minimum surface requirement limit” for 2026 liveries.
The FIA confirmed that “a minimum of 55% of surface area must be covered by painted or stickered liveries as opposed to bare carbon fibre surfaces.”
It added: “The objective of this measure is to increase visual differentiation between cars.”
The rule aims to prevent a repeat of 2022. The first year of new technical regulations pushed teams toward aggressive weight-saving.
With the minimum weight set to drop again next year, officials acted early to stop teams stripping back their designs.
Driver numbers will also see their first shake-up since the permanent system arrived in 2014.
The Commission noted that “a proposal for drivers to change their numbers during their career would be permitted.”
The discussion followed a review of the current structure, in which drivers choose a number between #2 and #99 – excluding the retired #17 – while the reigning champion can run #1.
Their regular number, such as Max Verstappen’s #33, remains frozen during that period.
Work also continues on the aerodynamic testing rules.
The FIA said that “changes to Aerodynamic Testing Restrictions (ATR) are being developed to bring Formula 1 into line with contemporary processing and simulation technology while mindful of cost considerations.”
The system currently scales each team’s wind-tunnel and CFD allowance based on championship position.
Tyre strategy rules remain unresolved. The Commission again debated mandatory two-stop races, an approach introduced only in Monaco this season, but no agreement was reached.
The FIA confirmed that talks will continue for 2026. Another idea, requiring drivers to run all three tyre compounds in a race, also came up for discussion.
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