General Information About .Name Registrations

Who can register .Name domain names?

.Name is designed exclusively for individuals. Any person can register a .name domain. But you may not register any word. Please see eligibility rules in the next answer.

What .Name domains one can register?

The .Name domain is for individuals' Personal Names. A Personal Name may be, without limitation, a name, nickname, pseudonym, alias, or something an individual or fictional character is commonly known as in its own social context. An individual can register a Personal Name, or a company or individual can register a fictional character to which it has rights. For example for a person named John Doe, eligible domain name samples would be: doe.name, doe1.name, doe1970.name, johndoe.name, doejohn.name,jdoe.name, doejr.name etc. Please refer to Appendix L of ICANN for details.

Are there any specifications regulating which .Name domains can or cannot be registered?

ICANN has sanctioned that all single-character labels and two-character labels be initially reserved. There are also restrictions on certain words such as country names, and domains with certain endings. You can find a detailed list at Appendix K of ICANN. Second level domains consisting entirely of numbers or a combination of numbers and hyphens may not be registered as part of a domain name. Any second level domain that already has third level registrations, or has defensive registrations on them cannot be registered.

What is the impact of second level registrations on third level registrations?

Third level domain registrations and email registrations will continue to be available exactly like before. There are no changes to the existing third level space. Opening the second level means that additionally, second level domains can be registered and fully delegated to the registrant's nameservers.

How much does registration cost?

Domain registration price is USD $13.50 per domain/year.

What are the registration period terms?

Minimum registration period is 1 years (since April 14, 2004) and a domain name can be registered up to 10 years.

Do you register third level .name domains?

We do not offer third level (i.e. john.doe.name) .name registrations

Do you offer other .Name services?

No. We do not offer .name email, third level domain, defensive registrations or domain watch registrations. We are offering only second level (i.e. johndoe.name) domain registrations.

How long does it take to register a domain name?

Your domain name will be registered instantly.

How much will domain name renewals cost?

Renewals cost USD $13.50 domain for one year. A domain can be renewed for a maximum of ten years.

When can I start using a registered domain?

Your registered domain name is by default assigned to our name servers. If you are ready to host this domain name, you can login to your account to change its name servers to the name servers of the hosting service you will be using. Please note that you have to assign at least two name servers to your .Name domain name. This is a registry requirement and otherwise your domain name will not function.

What can I do if my name is taken?

Domain names are registered on a first come, first served basis. If the name is taken by someone with an eligible claim on the name, you may consider registering an alternative name. If you think the current registrant of the name is not eligible, you can apply for a dispute under Eligibility Requirement Dispute Resolution Policy (ERDRP). Or if you have a claim on the name by a trademark, you can apply for a dispute based on Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP).

How can I change the domain information?

You can login to your account at our web site to make changes to your domain record. You can make changes to owner, admin, billing, and technical contact information, as well as the name servers of the domain name. Please note that you have to assign at least two name servers to your .Name domain name. This is a registry requirement and otherwise your domain name will not function.

I have registered a domain but WHOIS doesn't show any info.

Currently both WHOIS and nameservers for successfully registered .Name names are being updated within 15-30 minutes. If it has been that long and you cannot see any information, you may want to make sure domain is successfully registered.

I get "domain taken" but WHOIS doesn't show any info.

The domain could be registered recently and its info is not updated in WHOIS yet (see question above). Also, certain domain names are in reserved status, taken due to third level registrations, or taken due to defensive registrations and may not display any whois info.

When I login to my account I cannot see some of my domain names.

The domain names that you cannot see must have a different contact ID (even if you have used the same username/password). Try to login to your account directly with the domain name that you cannot see. Then change its contact ID to the same contact ID you have for your other domain names.