Domain name status
The status of a domain name is the condition in which a domain is in at a given moment. We distinguish the following statuses for domain names:
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Available
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Not valid
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Not available
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Registered
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On hold
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Out of service
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Quarantine
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Reserved (for .brussels and .vlaanderen)
Available
When a domain name is available, it has not been registered and you can register it. Read here how you can register a domain name quickly and easily.
Not valid
When a domain name does not comply with the registration rules, it is given the status “not valid.” Take a look at the conditions that a valid domain name has to meet.
Not available
A domain name that is not available cannot be registered anymore. You can request more information about the domain name in order to see its exact status and check who the registrant is.
A domain name that is no longer available can have one of four statuses:
Registered
The domain name is in use. You can view the registrant’s details, unless it is a private person. In the latter case, only the registrar who manages the domain name will be visible. You can contact the holder using our contact form.
On hold
When a domain name is put 'on hold', it is frozen, as it were, until a final decision is taken on the dispute involving the domain name. You cannot cancel the registration nor transfer the domain name to another registrar or registrant. The website and e-mail address linked to the domain name remain active.
DNS Belgium will put a domain name ‘on hold’ if:
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CEPANI initiates the alternative resolution procedure;
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We are informed that a domain name dispute is pending before a court of justice.
If the domain name dispute is referred to the competent court, you, as the registrant, must inform DNS Belgium immediately, so that we can put the domain name ‘on hold.’
Out of service
The domain name does not work anymore:
- because the registrar who managed this domain name no longer has a contract with DNS Belgium
- because the domain name has expired => this domain name can only be extended by choosing a new registrar within 2 months after the expiration date. Otherwise the name will be released.
Quarantine
Domain names that are deactivated by the registrant (via its registrar) or by the registrar itself (e.g. if you did not pay the invoice for the renewal on time) are not released immediately. They are first put in quarantine for 40 days.
Such domain names are out of operation, but they cannot be registered immediately by someone else.
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There are 3 possible solutions:
- You remain with the same registrar and request a reactivation of your domain name. This is the cheapest solution.
- You request a transfer from quarantine and move to a new registrar. This is more expensive than the first solution. This solution is only possible if the e-mail address you are using is not linked to the domain name.
- You wait 40 days until the quarantine period has ended and then register your domain name again through your current or new registrar. We don't recommend this option because it puts you at risk of someone else having already taken the domain name.
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Indeed, an e-mail address linked to a domain name in quarantine no longer works. If you want to request a transfer with such an e-mail address, you can do two things:
- Ask your current registrar to reactivate the domain name and then request a transfer from your new registrar.
- Ask your current registrar to replace the e-mail address with another e-mail address that is not linked to the domain name in quarantine and then request the transfer.
Reserved (.brussels and .vlaanderen)
More information about reserved .brussels and .vlaanderen domain names