For hosts and resellers: will .UK transfer codes make life easier?

[NiceNIC]

The current .UK registrar-change process is different from the workflow customers usually expect: instead of asking for an auth code, it relies on a registrar TAG change.

Nominet plans to replace that with Transfer Authorisation Codes on February 9, 2027.

If you support domain customers, do you expect the new model to simplify onboarding and transfers, or is the current TAG system already easy enough to support?

 

[SenseiSteve]

I think the Transfer Authorisation Code model will make things easier, especially from the customer’s point of view.

The TAG system works, and anyone who has handled .UK domains for a while is probably comfortable with it. The problem is that it is different from the transfer process customers have learned from most other domain extensions. That often means explaining what a TAG is and why there isn’t an auth code.

Moving .UK transfers to a TAC makes the process more familiar: request the code from the losing registrar, provide it to the gaining registrar, and complete the transfer. That should reduce some support questions and make automated onboarding easier for providers handling multiple TLDs.

The real test will be how smoothly registrars implement it. A standard process only helps if getting the TAC is quick and customers aren’t forced through unnecessary hoops to obtain it.

I’ll be interested to see whether support tickets involving .UK transfers actually decline once everyone has had a few months to adjust.

 

[NiceNIC]

I think the Transfer Authorisation Code model will make things easier, especially from the customer’s point of view.

The TAG system works, and anyone who has handled .UK domains for a while is probably comfortable with it. The problem is that it is different from the transfer process customers have learned from most other domain extensions. That often means explaining what a TAG is and why there isn’t an auth code.

Moving .UK transfers to a TAC makes the process more familiar: request the code from the losing registrar, provide it to the gaining registrar, and complete the transfer. That should reduce some support questions and make automated onboarding easier for providers handling multiple TLDs.

The real test will be how smoothly registrars implement it. A standard process only helps if getting the TAC is quick and customers aren’t forced through unnecessary hoops to obtain it.

I’ll be interested to see whether support tickets involving .UK transfers actually decline once everyone has had a few months to adjust.

Thanks Steve. If customers can just grab the code themselves without opening a ticket, that’ll probably be the biggest improvement.