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Registering a domain

Year terms, WHOIS privacy, what gets activated.

Once you've found a domain you want, here's what registration looks like.

Choosing a term

Most TLDs allow 1–10 years. Annual is the default and usually the best value — multi-year doesn't unlock a discount on most TLDs, but it does mean less to worry about.

WHOIS privacy

Included free for all eligible TLDs (most of them). When enabled, your name/address/phone don't appear in public WHOIS lookups — a generic privacy contact shows instead. Email forwarding still works so registrar-required notifications reach you.

Some TLDs (notably .us, .uk, and a few country-codes) don't allow privacy by registry rule. We'll grey it out at checkout if that's the case.

ICANN contact verification

After registration, ICANN requires us to verify the registrant's email. We send a verification link the same day. You have 15 days to click it. If you don't, the domain gets suspended by the registry — DNS stops resolving until you verify.

The link is unmissable (subject line: "ICANN: Verify your contact information") and the email is from a Suzko address. Don't ignore it.

What activates immediately

  • The domain is yours in the registry within seconds.
  • Default nameservers are ours (ns1.suzko.net, ns2.suzko.net) unless you specified otherwise.
  • WHOIS reflects the new registration within 1–24 hours.
  • DNS resolves once nameservers + records are set (see DNS records).

What happens behind the scenes

We register the domain with the registry on your behalf. Charges settle immediately — domain fees can't be refunded since the registry already took the money.

If anything errors during registration (rare), the order shows Failed and we don't charge you. We get an alert and resolve it manually — usually within an hour.

Linking to a service

If you bought hosting in the same order, the domain attaches to it automatically. Otherwise, attach it later from the service's Domains tab.