Use of .eu domain names after Brexit
Summary:
1. Brexit and the end of the transition period
2. .eu domain name: who is entitled to register?
3. New and existing registrations of .eu domain names
4. What’s next?
1. Brexit and the end of the transition period
We all know that after the transition period ended on 31st December, many changes have been implemented as far as the intellectual property rights are concerned.
Domain names are no exception, and in this article, I am addressing the impact of Brexit on .eu domain names. The first question coming to mind is – will UK be allowed to use .eu domain names after the transition period and under which conditions?
2. .eu domain name: who is entitled to register?
We all know that registration of .eu domain names can be carried out by the following persons:
- European Union citizens, no matter what their place of residence is
- Natural persons who are not EU citizens but reside in a Member State
- Enterprises having their place of business in the EU
- Organisations established in the EU
The abovementioned persons are defined as “eligible” for .eu domain names registration.
3. New and existing registrations of .eu domain names
As far as new registrations of .eu domain names are concerned, starting from 1st January 2021 EURid does not allow the registration of .eu domain names by UK registrants. EURid is an international association based in Belgium which manages .eu domain names.
With respect to existing registrations, as of 1st January 2021 a communication was sent by EURid to all UK registrants and relevant domestic registrars, informing that their domain names were no longer compliant with EURid’s regulations and therefore the domain names would be moved to a “suspended status” until 31st December 2021 (which has recently been extended to 30th June 2021).
It must be noted that a domain name in a suspended status cannot be provided with any services, such as for instance emails or websites.
On the forthcoming 1st July, EURid will send another notification to the UK registrants and the registrars in UK, informing that since their domain names are no longer compliant with EURid’s framework regulation, they will be moved to the “withdrawn status”, which cannot support any service.
Difference between the withdrawn status and the suspended status consists in that the latter allows the domain name to be reinstated, subject to meeting the compliance requirements concerning registration data.
4. What’s next?
On 1st January 2022 all the domain names in the withdrawn status will be revoked and consequently they will become available for registration from the general public.
EU citizens residing in UK will still be eligible to register a .eu domain name after the end of the transition period, subject to the update of their registration data showing that they are EU citizens.
On the contrary, EU citizens residing outside the EU will no longer be entitled to either hold or to register a .eu domain name as of the end of the transition period on 31st December 2020.
