In another Knowledgebase article, the highlights of the Domain Transfer system are mentioned. Basically this shows the requirements that the Registry itself needs to have satisfied in order for you to be able to transfer a domain (in to or out from) any Registrar. So, when transferring a domain out to a different registrar, you'll need to first check the same list of pre-requisites that you do when transferring a domain into our registry database. You will also want to read the article on Transfer Restrictions. These restrictions (and possibly others) are in place by the regulatory bodies (for example ICANN or CIRA) and these are not policies that we have any control over. This absolutely can and will impact your ability to transfer any domain in or out of anyone's registry database.
So, if you are wanting to transfer a Domain Name IN (transfer TO us) or if you are wanting to transfer a Domain Name OUT (transfer away to another company) the steps and the restrictions and the requirements are basically the same either way. So, before you start, it's a good idea to familiarize yourself with the following Knowledgebase articles:
1) The Domain Transfer Overview
2) The Domain Transfer Restrictions
3) The Domain Transfer Information
It is also very important to understand, THE DOMAIN TRANSFER PROCESS IS A USER DRIVEN PROCESS. This means that you (the Client) need to understand and administer the transfer process. Registration companies (such as us) are not to be involved in the steps of domain transfers. There a a number of restrictions in place as checks & balances, and we're not allowed to circumvent those checks & balances. So, we get lots of people askign ''can you please transfer xwz.com from Network Solutions into my account with you?" and the short answer is no, we can't. In that situation we (as the potential 'gaining' registration company can help explain the steps to you, but we can't actually initiate anything... YOU have to do that.
Likewise, we have people as us "can you push my domain xwz.com from my account with you over to Network Solution's registry please?". Again, no we can't. As the ''gaining'' registray, Network Solutions is required to help you through the process, and as the potential losing party, we are required to be hands off in the process. That's part of the ICANN Registry rules, and part of the checks & balances in place so that YOU (the client) are required to understand and administer the process, wether you are transfering IN or OUT.
ALSO NOTE: ONCE YOUR TRANSFER OUT IS COMPLETE, YOU MUST LOG INTO YOU CLIENT ACCOUNT AND CANCEL THE DOMAIN IN ORDER TO STOP THE INVOICING. IF YOU DO NOT, OUR BILLING SOFTWARE WILL LIKELY STILL BILL YOU FOR A RENEWAL ON THE NEXT BILLING CYCLE. The reason for this is that registry itself (eg ICANN or CIRA) does not send any 'feedback' to let us know that a transfer OUT is in progress or that it was successful. The domain record simply changes at the ICANN or CIRA (or whatever) registry, but nothing in our database changes unless you tell it to change. So, if you do not log back in and cancel any items that have been moved to other providers, our billing software has no way of knowing that, AND YOU WILL LIKELY BE BILLED FOR A RENEWAL ON YOUR NEXT BILLING CYCLE.
To avoid this, simply log into your client profile, go to whatever domain or product or service that you are cancelling or transferring to another provider, and mark it as cancelled, or use the "Disable AutoRenew" feature in the Domain Details.
