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Agreement reached between EU institutions for the .eu TLD new Regulation

7 Dec. 2018

On 5 December, the European Parliament, the Council, and the European Commission reached an agreement on the new rules guiding the .eu top-level domain (TLD).

Negotiators agreed on the reform of the .eu TLD to adapt its current rules to the fast-changing domain name market in order to strengthen its link with the growing Digital Single Market, which focalizes on European values like multilingualism, privacy protection, and security.

EU citizens will be able to register a .eu domain name no matter where they reside

The new rules will expand the eligibility criteria surrounding the .eu TLD, as EU citizens will be able to register a .eu domain name regardless of where they reside. Currently, any person resident or business established in the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway can register a .eu domain name.

.eu for one, .eu for all

The new rules also aim to improve the governance of the .eu TLD by establishing a Multistakeholder Advisory Group to assist and advise the European Commission. The goal behind this modernized and strengthened governance structure is to give the Internet community the opportunity to contribute to the management and services of the .eu TLD.

Next steps

The Regulation shall apply as of 13 October 2022, except for the provisions on who may register a .eu TLD. These provisions shall apply as of six months after the entry into force of this Regulation.

As the current .eu Registry, we welcome the improvements in the Regulation that meet the objectives of the REFIT of the current regulatory framework.

Learn more

View the European Parliament press release.

View the European Commission press release.