Can I Keep My .eu Domain Name?

• Published date: 26 January 2021
• Subject Matter: Media, Telecoms, IT, Entertainment, Compliance, IT and Internet
• Law Firm: Marks & Clerk
• Author: Mr Matthew Parr

On 1 October 2020, the European Registry of Internet Domains ('EURid') contacted UK holders of .eu domain names with the stark warning that they would lose their .eu domain name on 1 January 2021 unless they were able to update their registration details to show compliance with the .eu regulatory framework. The .eu regulatory framework sets out who can hold a .eu domain name, namely:

• EU/EEA citizens;
• Residents in the EU/EEA;
• Organisations established in the EU/EEA.

On the 1 January 2021 many domain names owned by UK registrants had their domain names suspended as they no longer meet the eligibility requirements to hold a .eu domain name. These organisations and individuals include:

• UK organisations established in the UK, but not in the EU/EEA;
• UK citizens who are not a resident of an EEA Member State and
• UK residents who are not EU citizens.

The withdrawal of a .eu domain, may have had a significant impact for some businesses. For instance, those exclusively using a .eu domain without a redirection facility to a main website lost all traffic on 1 January 2021 - no doubt resulting in missed business opportunities and potential damage to reputation.

Issues will also have arisen if a .eu domain was being used as the basis for email addresses - allocating new email addresses to staff, and informing customers and business associates, is expensive and a time consuming exercise.

As it stands, any .eu domain held by an ineligible UK organisation or individual is now officially 'suspended' until 31 March 2021. A 'suspended' domain can no longer support any service, but may be reinstated if the owner's registration data is updated to meet the eligibility criteria set by the .eu regulatory framework.

The recently announced 'suspended' status effectively gives a 3 month grace period for an affected owner to update their registration details to show compliance with the .eu regulatory framework and request reactivation of their suspended .eu domain.

According to EURid, there are 81,000 suspended .eu domains, and many of the owners of these domains may have abandoned their .eu domain. However, a substantial number will wish to take advantage of the grace period and take remedial steps to recover their .eu domain. For any organisations or individuals with substantive links to the...