"Registrar Primary Contact Updates: ICANN-accredited registrars are required to provide ICANN with accurate and current primary contact information. Registrars on the 2013 RAA must notify ICANN of changes to primary contact details and other information contained in the Registrar Information Specification within 5 days of the change. Registrars on the 2009 RAA must notify ICANN within 30 days of any changes to their primary contact information."--ICANNHave you registered, or are you thinking about registering, one or more domain names? Then you need to have on file (digital and hard copy) the information on file with ICANN as to the legal name, telephone number and email address of your domain name registrar. It may also be a good idea to know the physical or "operational" address of your registrar.
Where to find the legal name, email address and telephone number that your domain name registrar has on file with ICANN--ICANN | Descriptions and Contact Information for ICANN-Accredited Registrars: Descriptions and Contact Information for ICANN-Accredited Registrars (updated Wednesday, 23-September-2015)
If you discover your domain name registrar is not listed at the ICANN link above, Domain Mondo recommends you do not do business with that "Registrar" and quickly make arrangements to transfer all of your domain names to the ICANN-Accredited Registrar of your choice (e.g., Namecheap, Hover (Tucows), GoDaddy, etc.), there are many "reputable" and "accredited" domain name registrars--preference is a matter of personal needs and choice, with some of the factors being price, reliability, support, ease of use, etc., as well as other factors, some of which are discussed below.
If you want or need the street address (operational) of your registrar, and you cannot find it on the registrar's website, look at the WHOIS contact info for the registrar's domain name, or contact ICANN. You might also want to review your Registrar's agreement with ICANN. Domain Mondo recommends that registrants do business with the ICANN-accredited domain name registrars legally resident in your nation, or which are legally-qualified to do business in your nation. For example, if you live in Australia, Domain Mondo recommends you do business with an ICANN-accredited Domain Name Registrar legally resident in Australia or which is "legally qualified to do business" in Australia (normally requires filing(s) with appropriate governmental authorities in the subject jurisdiction). [UPDATE: if you cannot find an acceptable, ICANN-accredited registrar where you reside, choose an ICANN-accredited registrar in another jurisdiction where there are strong consumer protection laws.] This is very important for several reasons, here are a few:
a) ICANN: Domain Name Registrants' Rights:: "... You [domain name registrant] shall not be subject to false advertising or deceptive practices by your Registrar or though any proxy or privacy services made available by your Registrar. This includes deceptive notices, hidden fees, and any practices that are illegal under the consumer protection law of your residence ..." If your registrar is not subject to the jurisdiction in which you live, it could be a problem.
b) Rules for Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP - the "Rules"): "... Mutual Jurisdiction means a court jurisdiction at the location of either (a) the principal office of the Registrar (provided the domain-name holder has submitted in its Registration Agreement to that jurisdiction for court adjudication of disputes concerning or arising from the use of the domain name) or (b) the domain-name holder's address as shown for the registration of the domain name in Registrar's Whois database at the time the complaint is submitted to the Provider..."
c) Uniform Rapid Suspension System or URS - (applicable only to new gTLDs and those legacy gTLDs that have subsequently adopted* it--but does not include .COM domain names): "... Mutual Jurisdiction: means a court jurisdiction at the location of either (a) the principal office of the Registrar or (b) the domain-name holder's address as shown for the registration of the domain name in Registrar's Whois database at the time the complaint is submitted to the Provider..."
Final note: some ICANN-accredited Registrars are also Resellers for other Domain Name Registrars--for example, Namecheap, an ICANN-accredited Registrar, is also a Reseller for Enom, also an ICANN-accredited Registrar. If you have registered a .COM domain name through Namecheap, your registrar agreement may be with Enom, therefore keep on file the information for both Namecheap and Enom.
Caveat Emptor!
See also on Domain Mondo:
