How to transfer a domain from GoDaddy to another registrar
To transfer a domain from GoDaddy, unlock it and copy the authorization code from the domain settings in your GoDaddy account, then enter the code at the new registrar and approve the request. The domain must be more than 60 days past registration or its last transfer. Expect about a week, and the transfer adds a year to your registration.
Before you start: check three things
Moving a domain away from GoDaddy is a routine job, but it fails when people skip the checks. Do these first, and the rest is mostly waiting.
First, make sure the domain is old enough. According to GoDaddy's help centre, a transfer away is not possible within 60 days of registration, of a previous transfer, or of a change to registrant contact details. Our page on our guide “Why you cannot transfer a new domain for 60 days” explains the rule in detail.
Second, make sure you can open the email address on the domain contact record. Confirmation emails and the authorization code go there. Third, decide where the domain is going and have your new account ready. If your site or email runs on the old DNS, write down every record before you begin.
- Domain at least 60 days past registration or last transfer
- Access to the admin contact email
- New registrar account ready
- A copy of your current DNS and email records
Step 1 and 2: unlock the domain and get the auth code
Sign in to your GoDaddy account, open the domain list and select the domain. On its settings page, under Additional Settings, GoDaddy offers a Transfer domain away from GoDaddy option. It walks you through a short checklist (GoDaddy help: https://www.godaddy.com/help/transfer-my-domain-away-from-godaddy-3560).
The checklist handles the lock and the privacy setting for you. GoDaddy says Domain Privacy is switched off during the process so your contact details can pass to the new registrar. If you prefer to do it by hand, unlock the domain, turn off privacy and remove any Domain Protection plan.
Then reveal the authorization code and copy it. GoDaddy also emails the code to the admin contact, and it may ask for a verification code first if protection is on (GoDaddy help: https://www.godaddy.com/help/get-the-auth-code-for-my-domain-1685). The code is also called an EPP code. Read our guide “What is a domain auth code (EPP code)?” for what it is and how to keep it safe.
Step 3: start the transfer at the new registrar
Now go to the registrar that will hold the domain. Enter the domain name, paste the authorization code and pay for the transfer. Use the exact code, with no spaces at either end.
With us, you start from the transfer page. We register and transfer .com and other domains in your own name, and you pay in rupees by bank transfer, Raast, JazzCash or Easypaisa, so you do not need a dollar card. For a .com the transfer adds one year to your registration. Our price for a .com renewal is Rs 4,199 a year. For the transfer charge itself, see our guide “Domain transfer fee and time: what to expect” or message us on WhatsApp at +92 339 5166645 before you pay.
Check the contact details you enter. They should be your real name and email, because the registrant is the legal owner. See our guide “How to transfer a .com domain to another registrar” for a .com-specific walk-through.
Step 4: approve it and wait
After you submit, the registry sends a transfer notice to the current registrar, GoDaddy, and your admin contact usually gets an email asking you to approve. Approving it speeds things up.
ICANN's transfer policy gives the current registrar five calendar days to respond to the registry's notice, and the transfer is approved by default if it does not respond (ICANN: https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/transfer-policy-2016-06-01-en). GoDaddy's own help pages say transfers typically take 5 to 7 days. So plan for about a week, and do not make big changes on the last day before a campaign or launch.
If the status seems stuck, check the email inbox and spam folder for an approval request, then confirm that the domain is still unlocked and that the code was entered correctly. If the code is wrong, the transfer is rejected, so copy it carefully.
What changes, and what does not
Your website and email keep working during a normal transfer, as long as your DNS records stay the same. The transfer moves registration, not hosting. If your nameservers point at GoDaddy and you use its DNS, copy the records to the new provider, or keep the nameservers pointing where they are until you have moved them on purpose.
Time is not lost. Under ICANN's policy, a transfer authorised by the holder adds one year to the registration, and the total unexpired term cannot go above ten years (ICANN: https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/transfer-policy-2016-06-01-en). You do not pay twice for the same period.
What does change is the account you log in to, the renewal bill, the support team and the lock. Under ICANN rules a registrar may refuse another transfer within 60 days of the last one, so plan any further move after that. Business email on the domain stays as is. See our guide “How to set up business email on your own domain”.
Why a transfer is refused, and the .pk exception
The usual reasons are simple. The domain is still locked, the code is wrong, the domain is inside a 60-day window, the registration has expired, or the admin email did not approve. ICANN's policy lets a registrar deny a transfer inside 60 days of registration or of an earlier transfer (ICANN: https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/transfer-policy-2016-06-01-en). It also requires a 60-day lock after a change of registrant unless the holder opted out beforehand.
One exception matters in Pakistan. A .pk or .com.pk name is registered through PKNIC, not held at GoDaddy, so the steps above do not apply to it. If your name ends in .pk, see the .pk page and the .com.pk page instead. Registrant details on a .pk name are fixed at registration, so check who is listed before you pay for anything.
If you are unsure which kind of name you have, look it up on the WHOIS lookup first.
Common questions
How do I transfer a domain from GoDaddy?
Unlock the domain and get the authorization code from its settings page in your GoDaddy account, then enter that code at the new registrar and approve the request. It usually takes about a week.
Where is the GoDaddy auth code?
Open the domain in your GoDaddy account, go to Additional Settings and choose Transfer domain away from GoDaddy. You can reveal and copy the code there, and GoDaddy also emails it to the admin contact.
Can I transfer a domain I bought last month?
Usually not yet. ICANN's policy lets a registrar deny a transfer within 60 days of registration, and GoDaddy says the same. Wait until the 60 days are over, then try again.
Will my website and email stop during the transfer?
Not if your DNS records stay the same, because a transfer moves registration and not hosting. Copy your records first if you use GoDaddy's DNS.
Do I lose the time left on my domain?
No. A completed holder-authorized transfer adds one year to the registration, up to ten years in total, under ICANN's policy.
Can I transfer a .pk domain from GoDaddy?
A .pk name is registered through PKNIC, so it does not follow the gTLD auth code process. Check who holds it with a WHOIS lookup, then ask us for help.