How to Transfer a .UK Domain to Porkbun
We know how difficult it can be to transfer a .uk, .co.uk, .me.uk, or .org.uk domain from one registrar to another. Unlike other types of domains, the .uk family of domains is pushed by the old registrar to the new one. By contrast, .com is pulled from the old registrar by the new one.
Despite that, we've created a smooth transfer process in .uk domains. It's a bit of a bodge that involves adding your domain first as an External Domain (even if you're not hosting with us).
In doing so, we can verify you're the domain's owner before the domain arrives. This eliminates the annoying, not-very-secure manual verification process seen at other registrars. Here's how to get started:
1
Log in to your Porkbun account. You should arrive at the Domain Management screen.
2
Click on "ACCOUNT" in the top-right corner, and select the "Add External Domain" option.
3
In the menu that appears, scroll down past the message at the top, and enter the name of the domain you're transferring to Porkbun. After typing in your domain name, click "Submit and Verify".
You'll see a browser pop-up appear, letting you know that you'll need to add a verification DNS record to the domain at your current registrar/DNS host. Click "OK" to continue.
4
On the same menu from before, you'll see a new section labeled "DNS Ownership Verification". This will contain a DNS record that you will need to add to your domain over at your current registrar/DNS host to verify your ownership of the domain.
5
Add the TXT record generated by our system to your domain at your current DNS host (probably your current registrar, or your third-party web host). The "host name" (sometimes called a subdomain) will be bun-verify and for the "answer" (also called value, destination, or target depending on your provider) copy over the unique value from the "Answer" field in the record we generated.
If you run into any issues getting that DNS record created, you can contact the technical support team at your current registrar/web host and let them know you need assistance adding the TXT record to your domain.
Note
Be sure to leave the window with the verification record from Porkbun open during this process. If you close that menu or window and then return later, a brand new TXT verification record will be generated, rendering the previous one useless.
6
Once you have added the DNS record to the domain with your current DNS host, come back to Porkbun and click on the "Submit and Verify" button once more.
If everything was done correctly, your domain will be added as an "External Domain" to your Porkbun account. You can confirm this by going to your Domain Management page and locating the domain.
7
Now that your domain has been added as an external domain, there are only two remaining steps to be completed at your old registrar. First, you'll need to unlock the domain, which your registrar should allow you to do directly from your account. Once you've done that, the last step is to assign the IPS tag PORKBUN to your domain, which will finish the process.
8
Wait for an automated email from Porkbun. A few minutes after unlocking your domain and applying the PORKBUN IPS tag at your old registrar, your external domain will be converted to a normal Porkbun domain, which means the transfer has completed. We will send you an email to let you know that the transfer was successful.
Congrats, your .uk domain is now registered at Porkbun! Good show!
If you run into any issues while transferring your .UK domain to Porkbun, feel free to contact our support team for assistance. Cheers!
