[Builder106]

The "Annotations Best Practices" HOWTO recommended reading a class's annotations via cls.__dict__.get('__annotations__', None) as a general fallback for "earlier versions of Python." Under PEP 649/749 (Python 3.14), annotations are evaluated lazily, and how they're stored in the class __dict__ is a private implementation detail, so that pattern is no longer reliable on 3.14+.

This re-scopes the __dict__ workaround to Python 3.9 and earlier (where neither inspect.get_annotations nor annotationlib.get_annotations is available), and adds a note directing 3.14+ readers to annotationlib.get_annotations / inspect.get_annotations instead.

Docs-only change; no Misc/NEWS.d entry needed.

Fixes #139140

• Issue: Document that accessing __annotations__ through __dict__ no longer works #139140

[python-cla-bot]

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[read-the-docs-community]

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± howto/annotations.html

[github-actions]

This PR is stale because it has been open for 90 days with no activity.

[Builder106]

@JelleZijlstra

Could someone review this docs change? It limits the __dict__ workaround to Python 3.9 and earlier and points readers on 3.14+ to the supported annotation APIs. CI is passing, including the docs checks.

[miss-islington-app]

Thanks @Builder106 for the PR, and @JelleZijlstra for merging it 🌮🎉.. I'm working now to backport this PR to: 3.14.
🐍🍒⛏🤖

[miss-islington-app]

Thanks @Builder106 for the PR, and @JelleZijlstra for merging it 🌮🎉.. I'm working now to backport this PR to: 3.15.
🐍🍒⛏🤖

[bedevere-app]

GH-161050 is a backport of this pull request to the 3.14 branch.

[bedevere-app]

GH-161051 is a backport of this pull request to the 3.15 branch.