Frequently Asked Questions

Find answers to our most frequently asked questions, as well as tips on getting the most from your .tel domain.

General FAQs Buying Renewing Premiums Manage your .tel .tel IDNs

GENERAL FAQs | About .tel

What is .tel?

The .tel is the only top level domain (TLD) that offers a free and optional hosting service that allows individuals and businesses alike to store and manage all their contact information and media directly in the DNS without the need to build, host or manage a website. A typical top-level domain stores IP addresses in the DNS and returns them when queried. If you do not wish to use the free Telhosting service, that is fine as you can use your .tel for any purpose of your choosing e.g. hosting your own website.

How do I claim my free Telhosting account?

Once you have registered your .tel domain with one of our accredited registrars, go to our “manage your .tel page” and follow the instructions.

What can I store in my .tel?

Your .tel is your very own digital profile page. You can store the following information in your .tel and you can see an example at http://telpage.tel.

• Publish contact and content records
• Add PDF documents
• Add Promotional product/service offers
• Add Images and Video
• Sell Products and services via a PayPal interface
• Add custom design
• Add an image advert.

What is the role of the .tel Sponsoring Organization?

ICANN has delegated to Telnames Limited, the .tel Sponsoring Organization, the responsibility for developing, implementing and policing certain policies related to the .tel Top Level Domain and its community.

How can I get involved and submit my views and opinions?

You can submit your views on and objections to the established or revision of standards, policies, procedures, and practices or the manner in which standards, policies, procedures and practices are enforced by contacting Telnames through a number of different channels:
Email us at [email protected]
Register on our forum and provide your views on there.

BUYING a .tel

How can I buy a .tel domain?

You can only purchase your .tel domain online through an ICANN accredited registrar or their reseller. You can search for the availability of your .tel and find a list of our accredited registrars here.

How much does a .tel domain name cost?

Prices for a .tel domain name vary from registrar to registrar, but are comparable with the prices for other popular domain names.

For what term can I buy a .tel domain?

Typically, registrars will allow you to register domain names for up to 10 years.

What are the .tel domain registration policies?

In order to register a .tel domain name, the name must follow the .tel Acceptable Use Policy for naming. The main policies include:
• Minimum characters of 1 and maximum characters of 63, not including the “.tel” extension
• Every domain must contain at least 1 letters or number form a-z or “A-Z” and 0-9 in standard ASCII script or one IDN character in non-ASCII script
• .tel domain name cannot begin or end with a hyphen

How do I get information on who registered a particular .tel domain?

The WHOIS service enables you retrieve information on.tel domain name holders, although individuals may opt out of WHOIS and hide some of their contact details.

What are the restrictions for using my .tel?

Please consult the Acceptable Use Policy for details on how .tel domains should be used.

Can I transfer or sell a .tel domain name?

You can sell or transfer a .tel domain just as you would with other domain names. Please be notified that according to ICANN regulations, domains can only be transferred to a different registrar after 60 days from the date of registration. After 60 days since the registration date you may contact your registrar to transfer your .tel domain as required. You can only transfer a domain name before it expires.

How do I transfer a .tel domain to a different registrar?

You can transfer an active .tel domain to a .tel accredited registrar of your choice. Because services may differ, check that your prospective registrar provides the services you may require.
To get started, obtain a unique authinfo code from your current registrar and initiate the transfer through the new registrar of your choice. Please be informed that it is the obligation of your current registrar to provide you the authinfo code; Telnames is not in a position to issue this code for you.

What is the refund policy for .tel domains?

Telnames does not provide refunds for .tel domains to domain holders. Please check whether your registrar has a refund policy.

How do I resolve an intellectual property dispute regarding a .tel domain name?

The .tel domain names are subject to the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP), which establishes a procedure for resolving certain trademark disputes relating to domain names. You can also seek redress in the court. Please get a qualified legal advice to determine the appropriate venue for resolution of your dispute.

RENEWING your .tel

How do I renew my .tel domain?

You can renew your domain through your current provider. They may also have an option that you can set the domain to “auto renew” every year.

Can I renew with a different provider?

You can transfer to a different provider before the expiry date of your domain. Performing a transfer will automatically add a year to your registration term.

I forgot to renew, but my domain is still resolving and in an ||OK|| status. Do I need to do anything?

Your domain may have been auto-renewed by your provider. Check the “Expiry Date” in the WHOIS. If this is in the future, then your domain has been renewed and it is likely that your provider has already taken payment for this. If the expiry date is in the past, please contact your provider as soon as possible to renew before the name is deleted.

I forgot to renew and now my domain doesn't resolve - what can I do?

Your domain may still be in the redemption period, during which you as the domain owner may be able to redeem it depending on your provider’s policies and procedures. Domains in redemption will have a “Pending Delete” status in the WHOIS. If this is the case, you should contact your provider to discuss the possibility of redemption. This is likely to incur a premium fee, but your provider will be able to advise fully on this.

If the domain is no longer listed in the WHOIS it is available for general registration and you can purchase it as a new registration.

The domain I want to buy expired, but I still cannot buy it

Even though a domain has passed its expiry date it may still be renewed by the domain owner at any time during the 45-day auto-renewal period, or during the 30-day redemption period following a deletion. Unless a domain is expressly deleted by a registrar, it renews automatically for another year at the end of the 45-day period following its expiration.

If the current owner does not wish to renew the domain, the registrar issues a deletion and changes the WHOIS status to “Pending Delete”. If the owner doesn’t request restoration of the domain within 30 days of this redemption period, the domain is kept in a 5-day deletion period, and then released for re-registration. In summation, a domain name may be released for anyone to register in a period between 35 and 80 days after its expiration.

PREMIUMS

What is a .tel premium domain name?

A .tel premium domain name is a high value web address that has a higher than standard price to reflect its relative value in the marketplace, including one and two character domains, popular keyword domains and generic term domains that are in high demand. Premium domain names are generally those that can be used by many different people for many different reasons.

How much do .tel premium domain names cost?

As with many new top level domains,.tel domain names are priced in different value tiers, reflecting the relative value of different types of domain names. Please check with your preferred .tel Retailer for further details regarding the price of specific .tel domain names. It’s important to note that prices will vary according to each retailer’s individual pricing policies and practices.

Why are .tel domain names priced in different value tiers?

The domain name market has evolved substantially since the early days of the internet and .tel is evolving with it. As the market for domains has grown, it has become clear that not all domain names are created equal. Just as with real estate or stocks, when value and demand for domain names is high, the market must adjust. To ensure for the fair and efficient allocation of .tel domain names, a tiered pricing model ensures that .tel domain names are priced in a manner that best reflects their true value. Value tiers are based on a variety of attributes, including thousands of historic and comparable sales, current market trends and keyword values, among other things.

How much does it cost to renew a .tel premium domain name?

Even if you paid a premium value price to register your .tel domain name, your renewal rate will be the standard.tel renewal fee charged for all .tel domain names. Please check with your preferred retailer for details, as fees may differ.

How and where can I register a .tel premium domain name?

Registering a premium .tel domain name is exactly like registering any standard domain name from your preferred domain retailer. Simply visit one of a growing list of retailers, type in the name you’re interested in, put it in your cart and pay for it. It’s as easy as that.

MANAGING your .tel

How do I claim my free Telhosting account?

To set up your new Telhosting account or add a name to an existing account go to our “manage your .tel page” and follow the instructions.

How do I edit my .tel?

To edit your .tel go to www.managemy.tel and log in. Alternatively you can use our iOS or Android apps which are available to download here.

I've forgotten my password, how can I reset it?

To reset your Telhosting account password, go to www.managemy.tel and click on the “Forgotten your password” link then enter the email address associated with the account and you will receive a temporary password that can be used just once. When you log in using the temporary password, please ensure that you reset your password to something memorable. Your password can be reset from the settings section of the control panel.

I can’t see my .tel in the control panel

Often accounts contain more than one .tel domain. If you do not see a domain you own in the dropdown list in your control panel, please contact us at [email protected]

How do I preview a contact?

Once you save your contact, it gets published to the DNS and is instantly available in your .tel. Type in your .tel name in a new browser window to see how others see your page.

My location does not show as my address.

The Location record is a combination of longitude and latitude displayed as a map entry. If you want to publish a postal address, use the address fields in the control panel

Why are some contacts grey?

If you have opted to disable a contact, it will be displayed in grey.

Can I put an MX record for an email address ([email protected]) in a .tel domain?

Yes, .tel domains support mailboxes. An email package may be offered by your .tel service provider or configured via the Settings tab in your .tel control panel. You cannot host email services on a .tel domain, but you can use a mail hosting provider and add relevant domain settings to the provider’s servers.

How do I access the .tel zone file?

To request access to the .tel zone file, please visit https://czds.icann.org

Can I use your logo on a website if I am intending to re-sell .tel domains that I have purchased?

It depends. Please email [email protected] to find out what resources are available for resellers.

.tel IDNs

What are IDNs?

IDN stands for Internationalized Domain Name. An internationalized domain name (IDN) is an internet domain name that contains at least one character that is displayed in software applications such as web browsers, in whole or in part, in a language-specific script or alphabet, such as Chinese, Russian or the Latin-based languages with diacritics, such as German.

An example would be Jörn.tel or 李.tel. These names will be seen in software applications such as web browsers. IDN-aware applications translate these names into traditional ASCII-only strings such as, for example, xn--1lq90i.tel. As a result, IDNs are displayed in their internationalized form in the user interface, while internally applications and servers communicate using ASCII-only forms of the same domains.

Every registered IDN must be associated with a specific language. For more information on IDNs, please seehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internationalized_domain_name

What languages are supported for IDN.tel domains?

Seventeen languages are currently supported. Those languages are Chinese, Danish, Finnish, French, German, Hungarian, Icelandic, Japanese, Korean, Latvian, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish and Swedish.

Why is my language not supported in IDNs?

IDN policies are a product of a collaborative work of technical, legal and linguistic experts. Telnames believes that the best avenue for developing IDN policies for a given language is through the countries and communities that use that language. The reasoning for Telnames choice of languages is therefore based on how close a given country or community is to a consensus in regards to what rules must govern their local language IDNs.

Will further languages be supported in IDNs?

IDN policy development is an ongoing process. Telnames will be considering the introduction of new IDN languages based on the results of the discussions within the respective communities.

What characters are allowed in IDN.tel domains?

Generally, all characters that are used in the language an IDN is associated with are allowed. For more details, please refer to the policy document for the corresponding IDN language. IDN policies are published on Telnames web site at https://www.do.tel/policies/. Each of the policies contains a character table that lists all the characters allowed for an IDN in a given language.

What characters are not allowed in IDN.tel domains?

Any characters that are not included in the character table for a given language, are not allowed. For example, one cannot register münchén.tel as a German language IDN, because letter “é” is not part of the German language character table.

How can I register an IDN.tel domain?

IDN.tel domain names can be registered through a sub-set of our ICANN-accredited Registrar partners. A list of those selling .tel domains and IDNs will be found at https://www.do.tel/get-your-tel/. Those that support IDN.tel domain name registrations will be marked with an asterisk.

What restrictions are there on purchasing IDN.tel domains?

Apart from the restrictions on the types of characters that can be registered and the languages supported, there are no further restrictions on the registration of IDN.tel domain names and 1 and 2 character IDNs are available.

Can I purchase a one or two character IDN.tel domain?

Yes, if it is available and conforms to the character sets and language tables available.

Do IDN.tel domains cost more than standard .tel domain names?

Exact retail pricing is decided by our participating registrars, and so varies from company to company. Generally, however, Internationalised .tel domains do not cost any more than regular .tel domain names.

Do you take measures against homographic attacks?

Yes, for IDNs associated with Chinese, Japanese and Russian languages .tel employs a variant blocking mechanism so domain names in different scripts that look confusingly similar cannot be registered. For example, if the domain name pear.tel is registered, реаг.tel (all these characters are Cyrillic) will not be available for registration. Please see the IDN Policies for more details.

What is a ||decorated|| character domain?

A “decorated” character domain is one which has one or more characters that has linguistic “ornaments”. An example of a “decorated” domain is björn.tel, as opposed to bjorn.tel, which has no “decorated” characters.

If I own domains without ||decorated|| characters that match those with decorated characters, am I eligible to get these domains?

All IDN.tel domains will be first-come, first served. There is no automatic right to gain a “decorated” character domain.

What are the rules for registering an IDN.tel?

With one specific exception, every .tel domain name (in its ASCII-Compatible Encoded form) is treated independently. Each domain name is handled on a “first-come, first-served” basis. This is a continuation of the current .tel policy. That exception deals with Chinese Internationalised Domain Names, where Traditional and Simplified Chinese characters are considered to be “the same”. In that specific case, Telnames ensures that when a Chinese IDN is registered, the domain name that consists entirely of Simplified Chinese characters and the domain name that consists entirely of Traditional Chinese characters is managed together with the requested domain; these are treated as one unit. The ownership of a domain name does not give any automatic rights to register any other domain name. Thus ownership of shop.tel does not give any rights to ashop.tel or theshop.tel. This is also true for names that have different spellings, so that Smith is different from Smithe. In order not to act arbitrarily, Telnames processes names on a purely deterministic basis. This is done with commonly defined rules, not ones that have been invented in an “ad hoc” manner. Telnames will not make arbitrary and subjective decisions on what names people can use, so it simply treats each name as being different.

How have you decided the rules for registering an IDN.tel?

Possible Rules for Assignment of International Domain Names (IDNs) is not a simple subject.

Since general availability of .tel domains, Telnames has not made decisions on the comparability or otherwise of domain names. With the introduction of Internationalised Domain Names (IDNs), the situation becomes more complex. Within a language, some words have forms with and without “ornamented” characters, and there are a number of different rules to map from one name form to another. Unfortunately, these rules conflict. That means that there is no single deterministic scheme that will work for any word.

Many words have crept into usage in other languages, and those words differ in the way they apply diacriticals, or even whether there are diacriticals in the different language versions. Some languages drop the “ornamentation” for some capital letters. Other languages do use these ornamented capital letters. Thus is may not be clear whether or not two domain requests that have been converted to lower case are the same. Thus transliteration between the “ornamented” and plain versions of a character might need to be considered.

Here are just a few of the rules that might apply:
• should ä be associated with a or ae?
• should ö be associated with o or oe?
• should ü be associated with u or ue?
But then…
• should ae or A or a be associated with ä?
• should oe or O or o be associated with ö?
• should ue or U or u be associated with ü?

As an example, should Noel (a first name, a town in Missouri, a hurricane, a company in Columbia, and a poetical English word for Christmas) be associated with the string Nöl (using German rules), or with Nöel (Christmas in French and other languages)? Conversely, is Nöl associated with Noel, or with Nol? Also, should Nöel be associated with Noeel (again applying German language rules)?

Thus, if noel.tel is registered, should Telnames block an attempt to register nöl.tel? Conversely, if someone registers nöl.tel, will Telnames then have to block a subsequent attempt to register the domain noel.tel? Also, what of the domain name nol.tel – should this also be blocked? Finally, if nol.tel has already been registered, does this mean that nöl and nöel are not available?

Trying to apply these conflicting rules to block registration attempts for “associated” words would raise many questions and the confusion that would bring would not help anyone. Without checking every name in advance against dictionaries for each language, it is not possible to come to single, unambiguous, clear and fair answer. As the result would still be subjective, Telnames continues to treat each domain name as a separate item, and allocates names on a first-come, first-served basis. After much research, Telnames has concluded that this is the most equitable solution for all community members.

Telnames does not make any judgemental on whether or not there is any prior right to a name. That remains a task for WIPO or other approved arbitrators. If an organisation believes that it has right to a domain for which it has not applied or secured, it can use the UDRP, the decisions of which Telnames of course respects.

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Telnames serves as the Registry Operator and Sponsoring Organization for .tel, a sponsored Top Level Domain awarded on May 30th 2006 by ICANN, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers.