au direct domain names - pricing and availability

Update 7 February 2022: .au direct domain names - launch date 24 March 2022

You may have already heard, but the big news in the Australian internet landscape is the creation of a new .au direct domain space. In simple terms this means you will be able to register a domain such as yourdomain.au (no .com needed). We have a special offer for you on all new .au domain names, more about that after some explanation:

.au direct domain names – like yourdomain.au - are shorter, simpler domain names that will be available as a new option for Australian Internet users from 24 March 2022

According to auDA (the organisation that manages the .au domain space):

.au direct names are general purpose – they’re open to anyone with a verified connection to Australia who wants to create or manage an online presence for themselves or their organisation.

Is registering a direct .au domain a good idea for my business?

We can see that new domain names using .au are going to be very popular. However, the issue most of us are faced with is whether to register the .au domain name equivalent of the .com.au (or other .au domain name) we currently hold, or just accept that someone else may register it after the 6 month introductory period. We predict a large majority of businesses will choose to register the .au equivalent. ie commbank.com.au will also register commbank.au Whether you choose to make this new domain operational or not is up to you.

If I register a .au direct domain name equivalent to my existing domain, what can I actually do with it?

We offer free domain redirection to all our customers, so we can redirect any domains like this to a website you are already using. It's possible for us to even assist you to do the same for email addresses at a new domain, ie redirect them to an existing email account. That being said, .au direct domains can be used standalone just like any other domain name. You do not need another domain name (ie the .com.au) in order to use a .au direct domain name.

When can I do this?

1. From 24 March 2022 you’ll be able to register new .au direct names with us. New names are those that aren’t registered in any other .au namespace e.g. com.au, org.au.
2. If you already hold an .au name in another namespace e.g. com.au, org.au. etc. you will have six months from launch to apply for its exact .au direct match, which will be reserved from public availability for that six-month period. There is a priority allocation process to resolve situations where you may not be the only applicant to a new .au direct domain name, see: https://www.auda.org.au/au-domain-names/au-direct/priority-allocation-process 
   We will provide you with more details on this process closer to the time.
3. Applying to register your matching .au direct name is optional and has no effect on your existing .au domain names, ie your .com.au, .org.au etc
4. We are offering an introductory special price on all .au direct domains of $12 for the first year. After that the pricing will revert to the regular price. 
5. We will let you know closer to the time how exactly to go about pre-registering (before 24 March 2022) your .au direct domain name (if you already hold a .au name in another namespace e.g. com.au, org.au)

This is probably one of the biggest changes we have had with .au domain names. It's exciting, requires some work and planning but don’t worry because as always, we’re here to help. You can expect there will be the usual rise in scams related to this new offering (.au direct domains), so if you are ever in doubt about an email or letter you receive about this please ask us, we want to do our best to help you stay safe.