How to Transfer a Domain to Another Registrar¶
Generally, when transferring your domain away from Gandi, you will follow the transfer process given to you by the registrar you are moving to, not Gandi’s process. Most of the time, all you will need to do at Gandi is to obtain your authorization code and be sure that your domain is not locked against transfer.
Warning
The Gandi mail service associated to your domain name will stop working immediately after your transfer, and your email data will be deleted seven days later.
The transfer process varies by extension. For the most common extensions, transfers are validated via one or more confirmation emails (FOA) sent to the email address of the owner listed for the domain.
In these cases, when you initiate the transfer the gaining registrar will notify the appropriate registry, who will then notify Gandi. Within 24 hours we will send the verification email(s), which must be confirmed before the transfer can go through.
Generally, in the event of a problem transferring a domain away from Gandi, you will need to contact the support of the domain’s new registrar.
Once a transfer has been successfully initiated, there is a five-day finalization period where you have the opportunity to contact us to cancel the transfer on your behalf. At the end of the five-day waiting period, the transfer will be completed automatically.
Note that changing web hosts does not require that you transfer your domain name to them, but rather, simply updating your nameservers or DNS records on our website, which is free of charge.
Often, when users want to change web hosts, they are led to transfer the domain away from Gandi. However, in many cases this means that they are transferring to a reseller (as the webhost is usually not a registrar themselves) of a different registrar. This can make managing your domain not only more complicated, but also more expensive.
The decision is up to you; just be aware that changing web hosts often only requires updating your nameservers or DNS records, and that you must be wary of any ownership change that is requested.
Tip
Transfers are handled by the gaining (new) registrar. You need to initiate the transfer at the new registrar and follow their instructions.
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