When buying a domain for a client, agree who will hold the registration and who will manage it before paying. The handover should include confirmed domain details, account responsibilities, DNS information and a renewal plan, without exposing passwords in ordinary messages.
Before you begin
- Get the client’s registrant decision first.
- Record confirmed registration and expiry.
- Verify access at handover.
Agree ownership before the order
Ask the client to confirm the intended registrant and review the full domain spelling. A designer’s billing involvement does not mean the domain should automatically be registered to the designer. Write down the arrangement in the project handover plan.
Use a contact route the client can maintain after the project ends. If you create a temporary setup around your own mailbox, plan how the client will gain verified access through the provider’s supported process. Avoid leaving a critical name dependent on a single contractor’s personal account.
Keep a record of the completed registration
A payment receipt is not the whole handover. Include the exact domain, registrar, successful registration status and expiry date. State whether the domain currently uses provider DNS or an external DNS host.
Also identify the website and email providers. The client needs to know which service to contact when a website is down or mail stops arriving. A domain registrar is not automatically the host of either service.
Prepare a useful handover pack
Give the client enough information to operate the domain without putting secrets into a routine document.
- Full domain name, intended registrant and expiry date.
- Known account sign-in location and who is authorised to use it.
- DNS host and a record of the current configuration.
- Website and email provider details.
- Current renewal budget and the person responsible.
- A secure process for credential and recovery-code handover where required.
Test the handover with the client
Ask the client to confirm they can sign in, find the domain and identify its expiry date. Check that important contact emails arrive where expected. If the provider requires identity checks or a transfer process, complete that process rather than simply sending a password.
Explain that contact corrections, registrar moves and changes of registrant are different operations. NameUK’s low ongoing UK renewal price can make the budget straightforward, but the client should also understand exactly what they control and what remains with a hosting supplier.
Prepared with AI-assisted drafting and illustration, then checked against the linked sources and NameUK’s current service. The artwork is conceptual; setup values must come from your own provider.
Further readingNameUK registration terms ↗NCSC: turn on two-step verification ↗NameUK registration and renewal prices ↗Extension rules and provider processes can change. Check the current registrar instructions before a registration, transfer or renewal.
Low-cost registration. Affordable UK renewals.
Register .co.uk for £9.99 for one year, with annual renewal currently £9.99. Or choose a new three-year .co.uk registration for £25.99. Check the selected name and term before payment. Future renewal prices can change.