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DCHost / Practical guide

Domain transfer checklist

A domain transfer moves registration and renewal management to another registrar. Website files, databases and mailboxes do not move automatically. Your site may stay on its existing hosting; check separately whether its DNS service will continue.

Use this guide to prepare a transfer to DCHost, follow the request and verify the outcome.

Visual guideWhat changes in a domain transfer?

Registration, DNS and hosting are separate services.

  • The registrar changes

    Registration and renewal management move to the new company.

  • Site files do not move

    Hosting, databases and mailboxes need their own migration plan.

  • Check DNS separately

    Nameservers may stay assigned while the old DNS service ends.

If the old registrar also provides DNS, confirm that DNS continues after the transfer.

Before you start​

  1. Sign in to the current domain account. Confirm access to the email address that receives registration notices too.
  2. Note the extension, expiry date, status codes and nameserver addresses. Status codes indicate conditions such as a lock or pending request.
  3. Save website and email DNS records. If the current registrar provides DNS, ask whether it will continue after transfer.
  4. Check current transfer and renewal prices on the domain transfer page.

1. Check transfer eligibility​

Where? In your current registrar account or with its support team.

  1. Check whether a lock or restriction prevents transfer. An initial registration, recent transfer or registrant change can create restrictions for some extensions.
  2. Check the extension's rules. ICANN policy does not apply identically to every country-code extension; follow the relevant registry's requirements.
  3. If expiry is close, agree the order of renewal and transfer with both providers. Do not assume the transfer will finish before expiry.

Already expired? Expiry alone does not prevent every transfer. For domains covered by ICANN policy, expiry or nonrenewal alone is not a reason to deny transfer. An unpaid previous registration period or a deletion/redemption status may require separate action. Confirm the domain's current status and extension rules.

2. Prepare the lock and authorization code​

  1. If the extension requires one, obtain the EPP/Auth Code from the current registrar. This is the authorization code used for transfer.
  2. Remove the lock that prevents transfer. If unlocking is unavailable, ask the registrar why; different locks have different meanings.
  3. Keep the code secure. Use it in the relevant transfer field, not in a public post or screenshot.

Check: The code can authorize a domain transfer. Hide the code itself when sharing an error for troubleshooting.

3. Plan website and email continuity​

Check these three services separately:

  • Registration: The registrar changes when the transfer completes.
  • DNS: Nameservers may remain assigned, but the old provider is not guaranteed to keep DNS hosting active.
  • Hosting and email: Files and mailboxes do not move by themselves. Plan continuation of those services separately.

If the DNS provider will also change, first prepare A/AAAA, CNAME, MX and TXT records at the new provider. Follow DNSSEC and verification steps in the nameserver change guide. DNSSEC verifies signatures on DNS answers; a mismatched transition can affect both website and email access.

4. Submit and monitor the request​

Visual guideFollow the transfer in stages

Submitting a request and completing a transfer are different stages.

  1. Check eligibility

    Check extension rules, current status and locks with the old registrar.

  2. Prepare the code

    Obtain an EPP/Auth Code if required; it authorizes the transfer.

  3. Submit the request

    Complete the details and approvals requested in the DCHost transfer process.

  4. Verify completion

    Confirm completion in the customer portal, then test the services.

After payment, verify completion, expiry, the website and email.

  1. Enter the domain on DCHost's transfer page.
  2. Complete the extension's requirements. Use verified account and notification channels for any code or approval request.
  3. Monitor the request after payment. A successful payment does not prove that the domain transfer is complete.
  4. If the request remains pending, check notices from the current registrar and any displayed error.

For a rejected code, lock or registration-detail mismatch, send the error to support. Do not place repeated transfer orders for the same domain.

Verify the result​

  1. Confirm transfer completion in the DCHost customer portal.
  2. Check the registrar, new expiry date and nameservers. The effect on the registration term depends on the extension and transaction conditions.
  3. Open the website using https://.
  4. Send email to an external account and receive its reply.

If something is wrong: Cancelling a pending transfer and reversing a completed one are different processes. If DNS is incorrect, correct the relevant DNS record first; another registrar transfer is not an instant rollback method.