Domain Registration and Renewal Policies

USP Networks Registration Policy

Much of the (non-trechnical) "rule-base" of the internet was made up as it went along, and frankly still is. Thankfully, common sense and the wisdom of crowds generally applies.

All registrants are required to supply us with a relevant and up-to-date Contact information upon Domain registration. All email addresses linked with your account and domain need to be active, and not using the domain in question. For example the domain usp.net cannot use  [address]@usp.net as a primary contact address, since this address becomes inactive after expiry of the domain. USP's general Ts&Cs are listed at http://www.usp.net/about-usp-networks/terms-and-conditions/

Registration terms and conditions:

.UK domains are required to abide by Nominet's rules: See Nominet .UK Ts&Cs International (country code) domains are subject to the rules of http://www.icann.org, but each country registry may offer different terms and conditions. The situation remains variable, especially with the launch of a further 500+ global TLDs. To find out information about a TLD, you should always start by looking at http://nic.[tld] - eg nic.bank - as a starting point. NIC is the acrnym for Network Information Centre.

Registrant rights and responsibilities under the 2009 Registrar Accreditation Agreement

http://www.icann.org/en/resources/registrars/registrant-rights-responsibilities

The Accredited Registrar Directory: http://www.internic.net/regist.html

Hacking and abuse

If USP Networks discovers your site or domain to be in violation of our privacy policy, https://new.usp.net/about-usp-networks/usp-privacy-policy/  you will be advised as soon as possible, and your domain and services will be suspended, while the situation is reviewed- and further action may required.

If your site (or email) is a victim of hacking or spamming by a third party, the site and/or affected services will be suspended until offending content is removed, and access has been restricted to prevent future abuse.

We know you will hard this before - and many will chose to manage their risks "pragmatically", but always keep regular local and dated backups of websites and email - and be aware that as the sophistication of hacking and abuse escalates all the time, the only really safe internet device is one with the power switched off; and any network cables unplugged.
 

USP Networks Renewal Policy

Office hours for domain renewals:

Mon-Fri 10am to 7pm

(renewals submitted outside these hours will be processed the next working day.)

Domain Renewal Fees are stated on all registration documents and Renewal reminders. Please note that VAT is payable on all domain names and services.

Standard Renewal Procedures:

  • Automated email reminders are sent to your USP account primary email address. You should receive a minimum of 2 email reminders within 1 month of your domain renewal. (Please keep your contact details with USP up to date!)
  • Domain Renewals can take up to 48 hours to process. So please don't leave your renewal to the last minute.
  • A VAT invoice will be issued upon confirmation of payment of the domain renewal, and sent in PDF form to the Primary Email address of the account holder. 

  • As advised, we do not renew domain names until we receive confirmation, in the form of payment for the renewal. We list the expiration process for the major registries below – but the rules may change and so these notes are guidance only. The only way to ensure your domain remains under your control is to renew BEFORE the expiry date. 

USP Networks Domain Whois Data Policy For All Domains TLD's

All domain registrants need to inform us of Contact Details updates on your domain/ company for both your account with USP Networks, and your domain ownership Data. 

Please enter your domain here to see the current domain whois here:http://www.usp.net/index.php/domains

But note that since the GDPR data protection rules have been implemented most registries seem to have opted to redact anything useful! But this whole area is work in progress, and we anticipate changes will be made sooner or later.

USP Networks Grace Period and Expirey Policy For All Domains TLD's

There is ~27 day renewal "grace period" during which period the domain and services may be renewed at no extra charge. The exact terms may vary between different domain registries, although this policy represents the present "worst case":

EXPIRATION OF A DOMAIN NAME REGISTRATION:

Immediately after the expiration of the term of domain name registration services and before deletion of the domain name in the applicable registry's database, we may direct the domain name to name-servers and IP address(es) designated by us, including, without limitation, to no IP address or to IP address(es) which host a parking page or a commercial search engine that may display advertisements, and we may either leave your WHOIS information intact or we may change the contact information in the WHOIS output for the expired domain name so that you are no longer the listed registrant of the expired domain name.

  1. Reactivation Period Process. For a period of approximately 30 days after expiration of the term of domain name registration services, we may provide a procedure by which expired domain name registration services may be renewed. We may, but are not obligated to, offer this process, called the "reactivation period." You assume all risks and all consequences if you wait until close to or after the expiration of the original term of domain name registration services to attempt to renew the domain name registration services. 
  2. We may, in our sole discretion, choose not to offer a reactivation period and we shall not be liable therefore. The reactivation period renewal process, if any, may involve additional fees which we and your Primary Service Provider may determine. We may make expired domain name services(s) available to third parties, we may auction off the rights to expired domain name services (the auction beginning close to the end or after the end of the reactivation period), and/or expired domain name registration services may be re-registered to any party at any time.
  3. After the reactivation period, we may:
    Discontinue the domain name registration services at any time thereafter without notice. In which case, certain registry administrators may provide procedures by which discontinued domain name registration services may nonetheless be renewed. We may, but are not obligated to, participate in this process, typically called the "Redemption Grace Period" ("RGP"). We may, in our sole discretion, choose not to participate in the RGP process with respect to any or all of your domain name registration services and we shall not be liable therefore. If available, RGP typically ends between 30 and 42 days after the end of the reactivation period of the domain name services. The current RGP fee is set forth on the Pricing Page and does not include any registration fees that may also be due. We are not obliged to contact you to alert you that the domain name registration services are being discontinued; or 
    Pay the registry's registration fee or otherwise provide for the registration services to be continued. In which case, we may then set the name-servers and the DNS settings for the domain name services, we may set the DNS to point to no IP address or to IP address(es) which host parking page(s) or a commercial search engine that may display paid advertisements, and we may change the contact information in the WHOIS output for the expired domain name so that you are no longer the listed registrant of the expired domain name. We do not have to pay you any of the proceeds we may earn as a result.
  4. We are not obliged to contact you to alert you that the domain name registration services are being continued. The domain name will be designated as being in the extended redemption grace period ("ERGP"), and you will be allowed to assume, during the first 120 days of the then extant registration term, complete management of the domain name services, including the right to control the DNS settings, provided that you pay the fee plus any registration fees. After the end of the 120-day period, if you do not exercise your rights under this provision, you have abandoned the domain name services, and relinquish all interests and use of the domain name services; or
  5. If we auctioned the domain name services to a third party, we may transfer the domain name registration services to such third party. In which case, the third party who won the auction for the domain name services will control the domain name services, including control over the WHOIS information and the DNS settings. You may recover the domain name registration services prior to the end of the reactivation period, as such reactivation period applied to you. We are not obliged to contact you to alert you that the domain name registration services are or were auctioned. We do not have to pay you any of the proceeds we may earn as a result of such an auction