Domain Name Transfer Process
Easy to Understand Instructions

Everything having to do with getting a website online starts with a domain name.  You have to have a domain name to have a website, unless you are hosting your website at a free service where they give you a subdomain, like www.bob.freehost.com, which is not a good idea if you want to earn good search engine rankings, or some other arrangement, which is also not a good idea for rankings.

Read how to choose a great domain name, if you are interested in some savvy ideas.

I Can if You Can

The rules for domain names and registrar conduct are controlled by ICANN, the Internet Corporation For Assigned Names and Numbers.  All registrars must follow the ICANN guidelines.

Buying An Existing Domain Name

If you are purchasing a domain name from the owner, here is the process to transfer a domain name to your ownership.

Choose a registrar (an online company that provides domain name registration) and set up a domain transfer account.  Unless you are transferring the ownership at the same registrar as the current owner, you will have to pay for a minimum one year additional registration.  If the domain that is being transferred to you has some time left on the current registration, you get to keep this time as part of the deal.

You're A Winner!

The registrar to whom the domain is being transferred is referred to as the winning registrar.

When you pay for the new domain account the winning registrar sends an email to the registrant (current owner) email address on record.  The email includes a transaction ID and a security code.  The ID and code are uniquely generated when you create your new domain registration account.  The current owner of the domain name will need to send this information to you.

You will need to return to your new domain registration account at the winning registrar and enter the code and ID at the winning registrar’s transfer interface. The winning registrar will send a transfer authorization request to the domain registrant email advising the request for transfer.

They're A Loser )-:

At the losing registrar the domain name must be unlocked and the owner will need to send to you the Authorization Code which comes from the losing domain registration account.  The authorization code must be entered into the transfer interface at the winning registrar account you have sent up.  Also, if the current domain owner has used a WhoIs protector service, the protector service must be disabled before the transfer can take place.

The Three Things You Need to Know

When the transaction ID, security code and Authorization Code are determined to all be correct, the winning registrar will automatically send a transfer request email to the previous owner.  Some registrars allow for accelerated approval.  If not, without further action from the previous owner or you, the domain will automatically transfer to your ownership in five days.

You can then change the name servers to the hosting service where you will be hosting your new website and you should be able to be online in less than an hour if your content is ready to go.

Note that you must remain with your new registrar for 60 days before you can change registrars.

Recommendations About Domain Ownership

The registrant email address is the key to the control of your domain name.  If you change your email address for any reason, immediately go to your registrar and update the WhoIs information with your new email address.

I do not recommend WhoIs protector service unless you need to conceal your home address and phone number.  If you are legit and not doing anything online that your mother would not approve of, be yourself about your domain ownership information and save the money for another year of registration.

DO NOT let your webmaster, friend or anyone else register the domain name on your behalf in their name.  This eventually causes a problem that you may not be able to fix, if the webmaster goes out of business or the friend moves to Tahiti, or changes his or her email address, or gets hit by the bus.

A recent experience with a client here in Tennessee who let a buddy register his domain name ended up costing about $400 of our time to get WhoIs protector service removed from the domain so we could see who the registrant email address belonged to.  We then had to establish proof of ownership by having the client dig out of storage 6 year old records showing their previous office location, utility bills, etc. so we could get the domain transferred back into their name.  What a pain in the caboose?

You Could Be Held Hostage!

If you let an unscrupulous webmaster control your domain name and you have a disagreement about something, your website is in his or her total control.  This is not a very good bargaining position?

I had a situation recently with a new client in Texas wanting to move their website from the old webmaster who was doing a less than stellar job to the us, and to move the hosting to our server.  About $2,800 later, we were able to make the move.  Another similar situation for a Long Island client only cost him $85.  Who says New York is expensive?

Some webmasters have what is known as a bulk account where they register client domain names in their name and make a few bucks a year from the registrar.  They usually don't tell you why they want to register your domain for you.  Don't do it.

Repeat after me - I won't do it I won't do it I won't do it I won't do it - even if it seems like the easy way out.

Need Help?

We are here to help.  If you are interested in purchasing a domain name and need help, please contact us.  Note that we do not have any affiliate or agency relationship with any registrar and we do not have any bulk accounts.  But, we will be pleased to help you get what you need if you pay for our time.

We would also be pleased to discuss our website design and search engine optimization services.