What other fees are involved with purchasing a domain name?

Apart from the purchase price of the domain itself there may also be an initial transfer fee (for domains under £300) and subsequently a yearly renewal fee.

Transfer Fee £10.00 one-off – when a domain is transferred from one owner to another the UK Registry (Nominet) will charge a £10 + VAT transfer fee. This is paid directly to Nominet at the point of transfer but is waived for domains costing £300 or above.

Renewal Fee £11.50 per year – What you are buying is the right to use the domain for as long as you want so long as you renew it every year. The next renewal date is shown as the “Expiry Date” on the Nominet Whois and if you were renewing today it would be £11.50 + VAT to renew for a further year.


What does “Domain Name Suspended” and “Domain Name Expired” mean?

When you purchase a domain you are actually buying the right to use the domain for a set period of time and you need to keep renewing the domain if you wish to keep using it. Domain names are subject to renewal to ensure that those that are no longer wanted are removed from the register database and become available for others to use.

If you do not renew a domain by 30 days after the expiry date then the domain is suspended. When a domain name is suspended all services that use the domain name will stop working. This means that your web site at that domain name will not work and any email using the domain name will not be delivered.

If a domain has still not been renewed after a further 60 days (so approximately 90 days after the expiry date) then the name will be cancelled and you will no longer have any rights to use that domain name. As a domain expiry date approaches we use the following approximate timeline to ensure you do not accidentally allow a domain to be suspended or lost.

6 months before Expiry First email sent advising renewal now possible
3 months before Expiry Reminder email sent regarding renewal
30 days before Expiry Reminder email sent regarding Expiry
Expiry date Reminder email sent regarding Expiry & Suspension in 30 days
30 days later Advise domain has now been Suspended
83 days later Advise domain will be cancelled in approximately one week
90 days later Advise domain can no longer be renewed


How can I renew my domain name?

To renew a domain name simply log in to your Zycon Account and choose the domain renewal option. You can renew at any time before the expiry date and usually until 90 days after expiry, and it currently costs £11.50 + VAT to renew for a further year.

When you renew you must confirm that you are aware of, and accept in full, the current Nominet terms and conditions.


How can I transfer my domain name to another Registrar?

To transfer a domain name to another Registrar such as your web host simply log in to your Zycon Account and choose the Registrar Transfer option. We do not charge you to transfer to another Registrar.


How quickly do you respond to enquiries and requests?

Our primary method of communication is email and you can typically expect a written reply within 24 hours Monday to Friday.


How long does it take to buy a domain from you?

This primarily depends on the payment method used. Most banks these days use the new Faster Payments Service which means that your payment should be with us within two hours, less modern banks may take up to three days. Escrow payments can take several weeks.

Essentially once we have received payment then we will normally initiate the domain transfer within a couple of hours during office hours and always within 24 hours. At this point the domain ownership rests with you and is complete as soon as you confirm your details online with Nominet.

N.B. To purchase a domain you must confirm that you are aware of, and accept in full, our terms and conditions and the current Nominet terms and conditions.


How long does it take to receive payment if I sell you my domain?

We will start the payment process as soon as the domain is under our control which typically means amounts up to £30,000 can be in your bank account literally within a couple of hours.

If you wish to use an escrow service rather than deal direct we are happy to split the additional fees 50/50 although you need to be aware that escrow transactions can take between one and two weeks to complete due to the extra security checks that the escrow company performs.


Abuse Complaints

If you have concerns about the website content or WHOIS details of a domain we manage please contact our Abuse Dept with full details making sure you list the correctly spelt domain name.


Complaints about Us

If are you not satisfied with how we have dealt with your request then in the first instance please escalate your complaint to our Complaints Dept. We will always respond to your complaint within 72 hours.

If are you still not satisfied with how we have dealt with your complaint then you may contact Nominet directly to discuss your issue.