From 1 January 2021, if you are UK registrant of an .eu top-level domain name, your domain may be revoked if you no longer satisfy the eligibility criteria due to the UK leaving the EU.
Article 4(2)(b) of Regulation (EC) No. 733/2002 (as amended by Regulation (EU) 2019/517) on the implementation and functioning of the .eu top-level domain name states that only the following persons, undertakings and organisations are eligible to register .eu domain names:
- An EU citizen, irrespective of their place of residence
- A non-EU/EEA citizen who is resident in an EU Member state
- An Organisation, business or undertaking that is established in the EU/EEA
At the end of the Transition Period, i.e. 31 December 2020, you will not be able to register or renew your .eu domain name if you are:
- an organisation, business or undertaking that is established in the UK and not in the EU/EEA; or
- not an EU/EEA citizen and also live outside the EU/EEA
EURid, the .eu Registry, recently issued its guidance (Brexit Notice) for UK registrants who will no longer be eligible to hold .eu domains from 1 January 2021.
What you need to know if you are an UK registrant
You should have received an email notification from EURid sent out to UK registrants on 1 October 2020 informing you that you will lose your eligibility to retain your .eu domain name as of 1 January 2021 unless you can demonstrate compliance with the eligibility requirement under the Regulation.
Accordingly, if you are unable to demonstrate your eligibility to hold a .eu domain prior to the end of the Transition Period, your .eu domain will be withdrawn on 1 January 2021 and it will no longer function or support active services e.g. websites or emails.
As a result of non-compliance with the eligibility criteria, your domain will be suspended for 12 months from the end of the Transition Period i.e. until 1 January 2022 when the domain name will eventually be revoked and become available to the general public.
What should you do if you no longer meet the eligibility criteria?
Consider whether you can transfer your business websites and emails etc. to another top-level domain name e.g. .com, co.uk, org.
Consider developing a migration plan for services and functions that your .eu domain name, website or email address is linked to or supports.
For example:
- .eu email addresses that access critical business processes, including online banking services, online payment providers, government services like HMRC online, or payment verification systems
- .eu email addresses that access services that use an email and password for registration, including membership organisations and clubs, and social media (Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook etc),
- .eu email addresses used for client-facing communications
- .eu websites or email accounts that hold data that you need to transfer before any loss of access
- Virtual Private Network (VPN) or other services that use your .eu domain name
- Trademark or intellectual property rights impacted by the loss of your .eu domain name.
If you would like to discuss any of the issues raised above, please get in touch with Elys IP.