You will need to do the following:

1. Request your current domain registrar to unlock your domain
2. Request your current domain registrar for domain transfer password (authorization code)

While the domain is in the middle of a transfer, it cannot be altered. You will either have to request the domain’s current registrar to cancel the transfer, or wait until the transfer is complete before any changes can be made.

An authorization code is a unique code assigned to each domain name by its registry that proves registration ownership of a domain. It can include numbers, letters, and symbols.

If your authorization code is not available in your account with your current registrar, you can contact your current registrar and have them send it to you.

When transferring a domain to us, you will pay the transfer fee as shown on our pricing page, and, upon transfer completion, one year will be added to the expiration date of the domain.

Do note ** This extra year is added at no additional cost to you. For example, if your domain expires on March 1, 2015, upon transfer completion the domain will expire March 1, 2016.

Some transfers can be completed within 30 minutes, while others will take 5-6 days.

This difference is entirely based upon the registrar from which the domains are being transferred. Some registrars allow expediting outgoing transfers, while others do not. It is not required that registrars provide this option. Please ask your current registrar if you do not know.

Other factors impacting the time it takes to complete transfers include how quickly the domain is unlocked, retrieving the correct EPP authorization code and verifying the email our system sends to confirm the transfer.

This is unfortunately a question that we cannot answer with a definitive yes or no since there are a few things to consider.

The first thing to know is that registrars are prohibited from rejecting a transfer based solely upon the fact that the domain has expired This goes for any domain that is still in the registry’s renewal grace period which is typically around 30 days post-expiration. Once a domain has entered the redemption period it cannot be transferred. The next thing to consider is what will happen to your domain at the current registrar once the domain expires. Registrars are free to handle domain expiration in any way they see fit. Some registrars immediately deactivate the domain, some do nothing, some place them in auctions, some re-direct to a parked page, and so on.

Therefore, if you have an expired domain you wish to transfer to us, we would recommend that you contact your current registrar and inquire what happens to your domain once it expires. This also goes for domains that will expire during the 5-6 day waiting period associated with domain transfers from registrars that do not allow approving outbound transfers.

Also, some registrars allow you to transfer your domain without waiting the typical 5-6 days that it normally takes. These registrars allow customers to manually approve outgoing transfers immediately once the transfer is pending at the registry. This can help in scenarios where the domain expires in a few days and you are concerned your registrar may disable DNS once it does expire – if your registrar supports immediate outgoing transfer approvals, you have nothing to worry about as long as you utilize the immediate transfer approval. Unfortunately, most registrars do not support this transfer approval mechanism (We do of course!) – if you are not sure, ask your registrar.

We typically recommend removing domain privacy services prior to transfer. This is not always a requirement, but some registrars do not permit transfers if privacy services are used.

Additionally, some privacy services shield the email addresses associated with the domain in WHOIS and we therefore cannot complete the step above. You can leave the privacy service on for your domain if you are sure that your registrar will still permit the transfer, and you verify that you can receive email addressed to the administrative contact address in WHOIS.