Registering and renewing .eu domain names in the UK

This page tells you what you need to do if your UK-registered organisation needs to register or renew .eu domain names.

What you need to do

1. Check your eligibility

As of January 2021, you are not able to register or renew .eu domain names if:

• your organisation, business or undertaking is established in the UK but not in the EU/European Economic Area (EEA) or
• you live outside of the EU/EEA and are not an EU/EEA citizen

Similar eligibility restrictions may apply to EU Member State Country Code Top Level Domains such as .fr or .it.

You can only register or hold .eu domain names if you are:

• an EU/EEA citizen, independently of where you live
• not an EU/EEA citizen but resident in an EU/EEA 
• an organisation, business or undertaking that is established in the EU/EEA

If you already have a .eu domain or are considering obtaining one, you should check the eligibility criteria set out in Article 4(2)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 733/2002, as amended by Regulation (EU) 2019/517, and seek legal advice if necessary.

You may still satisfy the eligibility criteria if you have your registered office, central administration, or principal place of business within the EU/EEA, are established within the EU/EEA, or are a natural person resident in the EU/EEA.

EU citizens who are resident in the UK are able to register and renew .eu addresses. 

Removal of UK-registered .eu domain names 

From 1 January 2021, any UK registrant who did not meet the eligibility criteria has had their .eu domain names suspended. On 1 July 2021, any suspended domains that could not demonstrate compliance with the .eu domain name criteria were withdrawn. On 3 January 2022, all the domain names in the withdrawn status, formerly assigned to UK registrants, were revoked and subsequently made available for general registration.

2. If you no longer meet the eligibility criteria for .eu registration

Discuss your options with your local domain name registrar. You could transfer your internet presence to another top level domain. Examples include .com, .co.uk, .net or .org. Your registrar will be able to offer advice on how to let your customers know that you’re moving or have moved to another domain, such as a holding page to redirect web traffic towards a new domain, or advice on how to update your search engine optimisation.

You may wish to seek advice from your local domain name registrar on whether the terms of your contractual agreement provide for any recourse in the event of withdrawal or revocation of a .eu registration.

Consider developing a migration plan for services and functions that your .eu domain, website or associated email address is linked to or supports, such as:

• .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, social media, and two-factor authentication services
• .eu email addresses used to communicate with customers, clients, internal communications or to distribute mailing lists
• .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

This list is not exhaustive, and you may also wish to consider and address any other areas that depend on your .eu domain name.

Registering a new .eu domain name

If you are a UK resident, company or organisation planning to acquire a .eu domain name, check the guidance above to see if you are eligible.

Further information

The guidance takes into account the latest information published by EURid on 10 January 2022.

First published 30 September 2019