Lost access to your domain? How to get it back

Work out who actually holds your domain

Before you try anything, find out where the domain lives. Many small businesses never touch the account themselves. A web developer, a cousin or an agency bought the name, and their email sits on the account.

Look the name up in a public WHOIS tool, such as ICANN's lookup, and note the registrar, the listed registrant and the expiry date. Some details may be hidden, but the registrar is usually visible.

Then ask three questions. Who paid for it? Which email received the receipt? Is the registrant name your business or someone else? The answers decide your route. If you are the registrant but someone else holds the login, you have a good case. If your name is nowhere on the record, the case is harder.

Recover the registrar account first

Most lockouts are ordinary: a forgotten password, an old email address or a lost phone for two-step login. Fix these before assuming the worst.

• Use the registrar's password reset on every email address you might have used.
• Check old inboxes and spam folders for the original receipt or welcome email.
• If the login email is dead, contact support and ask how they verify a change of email.
• If someone changed the details without your say-so, tell the registrar at once. The account may have been accessed by someone else.
• Do not pay anyone who contacts you offering to recover the domain. Deal only with the registrar you can confirm.

Prove you own the domain

ICANN advises contacting the registrar straight away, and says records and documentation are what help you show a link to the name. Each registrar decides what it accepts, so expect to be asked for evidence.

Gather what you can before you write. Useful items are payment receipts, bank or JazzCash transfer records, renewal reminders, old invoices, your business registration or CNIC copy, and emails sent from the account. Screenshots showing the registrant name help too.

Keep your message short and factual. State the domain, what happened, when you last had access and what you attach. Ask what steps they need. A clear file usually moves faster than an angry message.

If the name is now registered to someone else, ICANN suggests seeking legal advice. Options include talking to the new holder or waiting to see if it expires.

Recovering a .pk or .com.pk domain

PKNIC runs .pk. It charges Rs 2,100 per year for Pakistan-based registrants (from 1 August 2026) and USD 15.99 per year for overseas ones. It bills in two-year periods, and the registered name cannot be changed afterwards.

That fixed name helps in a dispute. If your business is the registrant, the record already supports you. PKNIC's public page does not describe a lost-access process, so contact PKNIC directly and ask what documents it needs for your case. Have your ID or business papers and proof of payment ready. Our /pk-domain-transfer/ guide explains how changes work, and /pk-domain/ covers the basics.

When your reseller has disappeared

Resellers sit between you and the registry. If yours stops answering, you cannot reset anything through them. Check first whether the domain is still active and when it expires, because an unpaid renewal can put the name at risk.

Then go one level up. For a .com, identify the registrar in WHOIS and write to it with your evidence. For .pk, write to PKNIC. Explain that the reseller is unreachable and attach your proof of payment.

If the name is expiring soon, say so in the first line. Once you are back in, move the domain to an account in your own name. Our /guides/ section has setup advice, and /domain-name-rules/ explains naming rules.

Stop it happening again

Recovery is slow and sometimes fails, so prevention is cheaper. Keep the account in your own name, with an email you control and a phone number you will keep. PKNIC also says holders must keep their contact details up to date.

Save your receipts in one folder. Put the expiry date in your calendar. Share login details with your developer only when needed, and never let them register the domain under their own name.

If you need a new name, we register domains in the customer's own name through PKNIC or a registrar. You can check availability at /domains/ and see costs at /pricing/. We are not a registrar and have no tie to PKNIC or ICANN. If you are buying an existing name, our marketplace at /#browse holds payment in escrow.

Common questions