Web designer won't give you your domain? How to get it back in the UK

You paid for the website, so it feels obvious the domain is yours. Often it is, on paper, and the designer simply holds the login. Sometimes it isn't, because it was registered in their name. The fix depends entirely on which, so start there.

Work out which of three things your designer controls

The most common case is that your business is the registrant but the designer holds the registrar account. That's much easier to fix than it looks.

How to check who owns a .co.uk or .uk domain

• Use Nominet Online Services. Go to Nominet's site and ask for a password reset using your email address. Nominet sends it to the address on the domain record. If the reset reaches you, the domain is registered to you.
• Look it up. Nominet's public lookup at rdap.nominet.uk shows the registration date, status, registrar and name servers. It hides an individual's name unless they've opted in to show it. The old .uk WHOIS is being phased out.
• Check your invoices. Who paid for the domain each year, and in whose name?

For .com and other endings, ICANN's lookup at lookup.icann.org shows the registrar. Owner details are usually hidden, so ask the registrar directly.

If the domain is in your name

1. Log in to Nominet Online Services with the email on the record. If you no longer have that email, Nominet lets you re-confirm your identity with them directly.
2. Copy your DNS records first. Note where your website and email point, especially the MX records, so they can be recreated if the old provider switches anything off.
3. Move the domain to a registrar you control. Choose Change Registrar and enter the new registrar's name or tag. Nominet charges £10 plus VAT per transaction, which covers every domain in it. If the new registrar has to accept and doesn't within five days, you're refunded and can start again.
4. Update the contact details so renewal reminders come to you, not your old designer.

Nominet's support team can help on 0330 236 9470 or domainsupport@nominet.uk, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm.

If the domain is in your designer's name

1. Ask in writing, using the letter below. For a .uk domain it takes them a few minutes: they start a registrant transfer in Nominet Online Services, enter your email address and tick a declaration. You get an email and have five days to accept. It costs £10 plus VAT, and either side can pay.
2. Settle anything genuinely owed. An unpaid invoice is the most common reason a designer holds on. Paying it is usually cheaper than any dispute.
3. Use Nominet's free mediation. It's part of the Dispute Resolution Service. Since 7 July 2026, complaints are filed through WIPO, but Nominet's own mediators still handle mediation, and it's free. It takes about 10 working days.
4. Ask for an expert decision if mediation fails. It costs £750, with no VAT on cases raised from 7 July 2026, or £200 for a summary decision if the other side doesn't respond. A full case takes roughly 8 to 12 weeks.

Know what the dispute service is for. You have to show you have rights in the name, such as your trading name, and that the registration or how it's being used is unfair to you. Nominet's guidance says a registration that was fair to begin with can become unfair later, for example after a falling-out. If the real disagreement is about money or a contract, get legal advice first.

If it's a .com or another non-UK ending

These follow ICANN's rules. Ask the registrar for the transfer code (also called an auth or EPP code), which goes to the registrant or account holder. Transfers are usually blocked for 60 days after a domain is registered or transferred. The dispute route is the UDRP, which WIPO also runs. It costs from US$1,500 for one to five domains with a single panellist, and you must prove bad faith, which is harder in a disagreement with a former designer.

Don't let it expire while you argue

Check the expiry date in the lookup. If it's close, renew it first, even through the old account. A lapsed domain can eventually be released and registered by someone else.

Letter template

Subject: Transfer of [yourdomain.co.uk]

Hi [name],

We're moving our website and email to a new provider. Please transfer [yourdomain.co.uk] into the name of [your business name / your full name].

For a .uk domain, the current registrant can do this in Nominet Online Services: choose Transfer Domain(s), enter [your email address] and tick the declaration. Nominet charges £10 plus VAT, which we're happy to pay.

If anything is outstanding on our account, please send the invoice and we'll settle it.

Please complete this by [date, 14 days from now]. If we can't sort it out between us, we'll ask Nominet's mediation service to help.

Thanks, [Your name]

How to make sure it never happens again

• The domain is registered in your name or your company's, with your email on the record
• The registrar account is yours, with your designer added as a user if they need access
• You hold the logins for the domain, hosting, Google Business Profile, Search Console and Analytics
• Auto-renew is switched on, using your card
• Your agreement says in writing that you own the domain and the website

At Elevation Media, every site is handed over fully yours at launch, and so is every login. Here's how our process works.

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to transfer a .co.uk domain?

Nominet charges £10 plus VAT to change the registrant or the registrar. Your new registrar then charges its normal renewal price.

Can my web designer keep my domain?

If they're the registrant, the registry treats them as the holder, even if you paid. Whether they have to hand it over depends on what you agreed, and in some cases on Nominet's dispute service.

Will my website and email go down during a transfer?

They shouldn't, as long as the DNS records stay the same. Copy them before you start.

How long does it take?

A registrar change is often done within minutes. A registrant transfer waits up to five days for the new owner to accept. A full dispute takes 8 to 12 weeks.

What if I can't access the email on the domain record?

Try your registrar first. If that fails, Nominet lets you re-confirm your identity directly.

We scope every project around your requirements. Explore domain & email setup.

Sources

• Nominet: Transferring your domain name
• Nominet: Manage your domain (Online Services)
• theukdomain.uk: Can I switch registrar?
• Nominet: Domain disputes
• WIPO: Changes to dispute resolution for .UK
• WIPO: .UK DRS fees
• WIPO: UDRP fees
• Nominet: WHOIS and RDAP for .uk