What Is FOA (Form of Authorization)? Domain Glossary

Why it matters

The FOA was a safety step against unauthorized transfers. The new registrar asked the registered contact to approve the move. When privacy rules hid contact data, ICANN's Board in January 2020 deferred compliance enforcement of this requirement. Today, the auth code and the losing registrar's checks do most of the work. Some registrars still send approval emails of their own. A buyer should therefore watch the inbox tied to the registrant account. A common mistake is thinking a transfer is stuck when an approval email sits in spam. Check both sides before escalating.

Source: icann.org

Related terms

Auth code (TAC): A secret code from the current registrar that proves you may move a domain to another registrar. ICANN's updated policy calls it a Transfer Authorization Code (TAC). Other names are EPP code and transfer key.
Registrant: A registrant is the person or organization listed as the holder of a domain name registration. The registrant holds the right to use the name and is responsible for renewals and accurate contact details.
Inter-registrar transfer: An inter-registrar transfer moves a domain from one ICANN-accredited registrar to another. The new registrar asks for an authorization code, and the registry completes the move once both sides approve.
Extensible Provisioning Protocol (EPP): EPP is the standard protocol registrars use to talk to registries. It handles actions such as creating, renewing, updating and transferring domain names, and it carries status codes.
Change of registrant: A change to the registered owner's name, organization or email on a domain. Under ICANN's current policy, it needs approval from both old and new owners and usually triggers a 60-day lock on moving to another registrar.

All 205 terms

Form of Authorization (FOA)

Why it matters

Buying or selling a domain?