.info Domains: Built for Sharing Information
.info was accredited in ICANN's first expansion round, announced on 15 May 2001 alongside .biz, and entered the IANA root zone database on 26 June 2001. The name states its purpose outright: presenting information. Its current registry operator is Identity Digital Limited, listed as the sponsoring organisation in the IANA record.
ICANN's 2001 announcement describes .info as an unrestricted TLD open to any business or person. That is exactly where it parts company with .biz from the same round — .biz sits in the restricted class in the root zone record, .info does not. Today the extension suits directory sites, product documentation, glossaries and open data projects. See which matching names are free with a bulk domain name search.
.INFO Domain at a Glance
- Registry operator Identity Digital Limited
- Entered the root zone 26 June 2001
- Accreditation ICANN, 15 May 2001 (together with .biz)
- Restrictions None; ICANN describes it as unrestricted
- Document Requirement No documents are required to register a .info domain
- Character Length 3 - 63 characters
- Registration Period 1 - 10 years
- Name Server Count 1 - 13 servers
.info Domain Prices — No Surprise Fees
Registration, transfer and renewal fees are listed separately. The renewal price can differ from the first-year price, so you see both up front.
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New Registration
$4.99 /year -
Transfer
$29.99 /year -
Renewal
$29.99 /year -
Restore
$114.90 -
Late Renewal
$4.80
Included With Every .info Domain
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Free DNS management
Change A, MX, TXT and CNAME records yourself from the panel — no waiting on anyone when you move a site or mailbox.
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Domain lock
While the lock is on, nobody can move your domain to another registrar without your approval.
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Domain forwarding
Point the domain at your existing site, a campaign page or a social profile — at no extra cost.
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Free WHOIS privacy
Your name, address and phone stay out of public WHOIS records, which cuts down spam and scam calls.
.info Domain Lifecycle
What happens day by day after it expires
Day 0 is the domain's expiry dateIn short: your .info domain is put on Client Hold on its expiry date, so the site and e-mail stop that same day. You can still renew during the first 20 days, but from this point a late renewal fee is added on top of the renewal price. On day 20 the registration is deleted and until day 50 only a paid restore brings it back. Nothing at all can be done in the 5 days that follow, and on day 55 the name is open to anyone. There is exactly one way never to enter this chain: keep auto-renewal on.
Domain Is Available (Available)
A .info address at this stage has not been taken yet, and it goes to whoever registers first. Check the name you have in mind — if it is free, it can be yours within minutes.
Domain Is Active (Active Period)
Once registration is complete, the domain is registered to you for the term you selected. You can renew at any point before it expires to keep it active, or switch on auto-renewal so you never have to watch the date.
Renewal Window (Client Hold)
On its expiry date your .info domain is put on Client Hold: the site and e-mail go down that day, but the registration is still yours. A single renewal within these first 20 days brings everything back exactly as it was — nothing is lost. The only difference is that a $4.80 late renewal fee is now added to the renewal price; renewing before the expiry date avoids that fee entirely.
Redemption Period (Redemption / RGP)
On day 20 the registration is deleted and the 30-day redemption period that ICANN requires of every gTLD registry begins. The name is not released to anyone during this time; only you can take it back, by paying the restore fee, until day 50. That fee is far higher than a renewal — renewing on time is always the cheaper route.
Pending Delete (Pending Delete)
Once the redemption window closes too, the domain enters its final 5 days and there is no way back. Neither renewal nor restore works here; nobody — your registrar included — can return the name to you. The registry uses this window as the last hold before the name goes back into the pool.
Open to Anyone Again (Released)
On day 55 the name .info returns to the pool and anyone can register it. Sought-after names are often gone within seconds, and there is no guaranteed way to get one back. Yet staying out of this timeline is entirely in your hands: leave auto-renewal on and the expiry date will never catch you off guard.
The timeline above is the schedule Atak Domain applies and publishes. The ICANN chart you will find elsewhere shows a renewal window of up to 45 days after expiry; ICANN's policy on expired registrations (section 2.2.1) lets registrars delete an expired domain at any time, provided they disclose their policy in advance. We apply that window as 20 days and publish it here in plain sight. Full text of the policy: ICANN Expired Registration Recovery Policy
.info Domain Specifications and Registration Rules
Registration conditions, supported features and the registry's own timelines in a single table.
.info Domain Registration
- Document Requirement No documents are required to register a .info domain
- Character Length 3 - 63 characters
- Registration Period 1 - 10 years
- Name Server Count 1 - 13 servers
.info Domain Support
- IDN Support No
- Transfer Support Yes
- Late Renewal Support Yes
Frequently Asked Questions About .info Domains
The questions people actually ask before registering — answered plainly.
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No, .info registration is unrestricted. ICANN's announcement of 15 May 2001 describes the extension as open to any business or person, and the IANA root zone record carries no restricted marker. No documents, company registration or declaration of activity are requested; valid contact details are enough.
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Because the name itself makes a promise, it pairs well with content-led work. Directory and glossary sites, product and software documentation, open data sets, FAQ pages and support centres all sit naturally on it. A visitor who sees .info expects explanation rather than a sales pitch. On a shop selling directly that same expectation works against you, and .com offers a more familiar frame.
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The registry operator is Identity Digital Limited. That company is listed as the sponsoring organisation for .info in the IANA root zone database. The operator's name has changed since the extension launched in 2001 as a result of corporate transfers, and none of that affects how your domain works. Registration records, DNS settings and renewals continue exactly as before.
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Ask your current registrar to release the transfer lock and give you the EPP code. With both in hand, start from the domain transfer page. The fact that the operator has changed over the years makes no difference to the transfer steps. Check who currently holds the domain and what state it is in beforehand using whois search.
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Yes, WHOIS privacy can be switched on for .info. With the service active, a lookup returns the privacy provider's details instead of your name, address and telephone number, while you remain the owner and administrator. If you run an information site, weigh one thing: readers often trust content more when they can see who stands behind it. Review the current state with whois search.
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