Consistent with ICANN’s obligation to promote and encourage robust competition in the domain name space, the Inter-Registrar Transfer Policy aims to provide a straightforward procedure for domain name holders to transfer their names from one ICANN-accredited registrar to another should they wish to do so. The policy also provides standardized requirements for registrar handling of such transfer requests from domain name holders.

The Inter-Registrar Transfer Policy was developed through ICANN’s consensus policy development process. The 29 policy recommendations contained in the Transfer Task Force’s report to the GNSO were accepted by the GNSO Council and adopted by the ICANN Board in early 2003. As instructed by the Board, ICANN staff consulted with a Transfer Assistance Group (TAG) consisting of members of the community and GNSO constituencies in order to coordinate implementation of the new transfer procedures. All ICANN-accredited registrars and unsponsored gTLD registry operators are required to follow this policy.

On 12 July 2004, ICANN announced the adoption of the Inter-Registrar Transfer Policy comprised of finalized policy documents, available below. The policy is in effect beginning on 12 November 2004. The original policy recommendations require a review of the policy at intervals of three, six, and twelve months after implementation. This area will be updated as necessary with requests for public input into the review process and any revised implementation details.

Inter-Registrar Transfer Policy

The Inter-Registrar Transfer Policy has been adopted by all ICANN-accredited registrars. All requests to transfer a domain name to a new registrar must be handled according to the procedures detailed in this policy, incorporating the Standardized Forms below. Dispute proceedings arising from a registrar's alleged failure to abide by this policy may be initiated by any ICANN-accredited registrar under the Transfer Dispute Resolution Policy.

Inter-Registrar Transfer Policy (12 July 2004)
The Transfer Dispute Resolution Policy (12 July 2004)
Standardized Form for Gaining Registrars (12 July 2004)
Standardized Form for Losing Registrars (12 July 2004)

Inter-Registrar Transfer Information

Background Documents

Staff Report on Experiences with Inter-Registrar Transfer Policy (14 April 2005)
Announcement: ICANN Requests Comments on Experiences with Inter-Registrar Transfer Policy (12 January 2005)
Announcement: ICANN Domain Name Transfer Policy Becomes Effective (12 November 2004)
Announcement: ICANN Approves Dispute Resolution Providers for Transfer Dispute Resolution Policy (8 November 2004)
Update: Implementation of New Consensus Policies Applicable to gTLD Registrars (21 September 2004)
Advisory concerning Inter-Registrar Transfers (12 July 2004)
Call for Interest of Dispute Resolution Service Providers
Second Update on Transfer Policy Implementation Process (31 March 2004)
First Update on Transfer Policy Process (5 November 2003)
Task Force’s Final Report on Gaining and Losing Registrars (February 2003)

GNSO Review of Inter-Registrar Transfer Policy

GNSO Review of Inter-Registrar Transfer Policy [PDF, 41K] (19 March 2008)
DRAFT Advisory Concerning Inter-Registrar Transfer Policy [PDF, 96K] (23 August 2007)
Communication to GNSO on Policy Issues Arising from Transfer Review [PDF, 88K] (23 August 2007)
Points of Clarification Inter-Registrar Transfer Policy [PDF, 88K] (23 August 2007)