Domain registrars push back on Australian domain name changes

The auDA board approved a recommendation to remove the 'close and substantial connection' test for third-level .au domains. Under the new rule, a .com.au or .net.au name would have to match a registrant's registered business name, trademark, or personal name. That is a much narrower standard than the one currently in force.

The registrars who signed the letter estimate that 50% to 80% of existing .au registrations would no longer qualify. If that estimate is correct, hundreds of thousands of domain holders could face losing names they have used for years. The letter points out that businesses register domains for campaigns, product pages, email, and misspellings or synonyms of their brands — none of which depend on a literal match to a legal name.

The mechanism at work is eligibility policy, not pricing or renewal fees. A domain holder can keep paying and still lose the name if the registry decides the registration no longer meets the test. That makes the auDA decision a direct threat to existing assets, not just a rule for future registrations.

The registrars also argue that added complexity pushes registrants toward gTLDs. That is a known pattern: when a ccTLD becomes harder to use, some businesses simply move to a .com or another extension. For Australian domain holders, that means the policy change could reduce the value of the entire .au namespace, not just the names that become ineligible.

What is still unknown is whether auDA will reverse course, whether existing registrations will be grandfathered, and how any transition would be enforced. Registrars have asked for a reversal, but the board has not responded publicly. Domain holders with .au names that do not match a legal name or trademark should watch for renewal guidance and be prepared to justify their registration under the new standard.