How to transfer a domain name without losing your email

How do you transfer a domain name?

You move a domain name by asking your current registrar to let it go and asking the new one to take it. The registrar is the company your domain is registered with. For most names the process takes five steps.

1. Check the domain is registered in your business name and that you can read the owner email address on the record.
2. Write down every Domain Name System (DNS) record for the domain, especially the ones for your email.
3. Remove the transfer lock at your current registrar.
4. Ask the current registrar for the transfer code, sometimes called an authorisation or auth code.
5. Start the transfer at the new registrar, enter the code and approve any confirmation email that arrives.

Once the request reaches your old registrar, the rules for names such as .com give it five calendar days to object. If it does not respond, the transfer goes ahead. Your website and email keep working throughout, as long as the DNS records stay the same.

Is moving your domain the same as moving your hosting?

No, and mixing the two up is the most common cause of a broken website or lost email. They are three separate things that often sit with one company.

• The registration: who holds the name and renews it each year. A transfer moves only this.
• The DNS: the records that point your name at your website and your email. They live wherever your nameservers point.
• The hosting: the servers that run your website and, often, your mailboxes.

You can move your website to new hosting without transferring the domain at all, just by changing its DNS records. You can also transfer the domain and leave the website where it is. Our guides to what a domain name is and what website hosting is explain each part in more detail.

What should you check before you transfer a domain?

Ten minutes of checks now saves weeks of trouble later. Look at four things before you ask for a transfer code.

• The owner name: the domain should be registered to your business, not to a web designer, an agency or a former employee. Only the registered owner, or an administrator they name, can start the transfer.
• The owner email: transfer codes and approval messages go to the email address on the record, so make sure it is one you check today.
• The age of the name: for names such as .com, a registrar may refuse a transfer in the first 60 days. That covers 60 days after registration and 60 days after a previous transfer.
• The expiry date: if the name expires soon, renew it or start the transfer early, so it never lapses half way through.

It is also worth checking the price. Our guide to how much a domain name costs covers transfer fees and renewals.

How do you keep your email working during a domain transfer?

Your email depends on DNS records, not on the registration itself. Email usually stops when those records are lost, not when the name moves. Before you start, export or copy every record in your current DNS settings and keep the list somewhere safe.

• Mail exchange (MX) records: these tell the world which servers receive your email.
• Sender Policy Framework (SPF): a record that lists which servers may send email for your domain.
• DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM): a key that signs your outgoing email, so receivers can check it really came from you.
• Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting and Conformance (DMARC): a policy that tells receivers what to do with email that fails those checks.

The National Cyber Security Centre explains these records in its guide to email security and anti-spoofing. If your DNS will move to the new registrar as part of the transfer, rebuild every record there before you switch. If it stays where it is, change nothing until the transfer has finished.

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How long does it take to transfer a domain name?

For names such as .com, plan for up to two working weeks, though many moves are quicker. Two five-day limits set the pace.

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) sets the rules for these names. Its Transfer Policy says your current registrar must give you the transfer code within five calendar days of asking. Once the transfer is requested, the old registrar has five calendar days to respond. If it stays silent, the transfer is approved by default.

A .uk name works differently. Nominet, the registry that runs .uk, calls the move a registrar change. Its registrar guidance says a registrar change can take place immediately after registration. So a new .uk name has no 60-day wait. Your new registrar will tell you exactly what it needs from your old one.

Can your current registrar or agency refuse to transfer your domain?

Only for a few reasons, set out in the policy. For names such as .com, a registrar may refuse a transfer in the first 60 days after registration or after a previous transfer. It may also refuse during a 60-day lock that follows a change of owner, unless the owner opted out of that lock before the change.

A registrar may not refuse just because you have not paid for a future renewal. If there is a dispute over payment, it must not use the transfer process to secure that payment. ICANN's guide to transferring your domain name sets out what you can expect.

The harder case is a domain held in an agency's name. You then need the agency to change the owner to your business first. Ask whether that will trigger the 60-day lock, and whether you can opt out of it, before you agree the change.

A checklist for changing agency without losing your domain

Changing agency is when most domains go missing. Work through this list before you give notice, while relations are still friendly.

• Ask for written confirmation of who owns the domain, and get it moved into your business name if it is not.
• Get your own login to the registrar account, or ask for the transfer code by email.
• Export every DNS record, including MX, SPF, DKIM and DMARC.
• Check the expiry date and who pays the renewal.
• Make a full copy of your website files and any email stored on the old servers.
• Agree a moving day, and test your website and send yourself an email the same afternoon.

If you are also changing your website, read our guide to redesigning a website without losing your search rankings first.

Can Buzzozo move your domain for you?

Yes. Buzzozo is a premium, done-for-you service for UK small businesses, and moving from your current host is free. We move your site, your email and your DNS for you, with no downtime. Your domain stays registered in your name. We also set up business email on your own domain, with the records that help it reach the inbox.

See how Buzzozo web hosting works. Your managed website comes with hosting, security and UK support by phone, WhatsApp and email.

Website plans start at £149 a month, at the founding price for the first 100 businesses. Compare the plans and prices, or start your free 14-day trial. No card needed, no contract, and you can cancel any time.

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