clientHold: registrar has suspended DNS for the domain

When a registrar applies clientHold the domain effectively goes dark. The registrar instructs the registry to remove DNS records — websites stop loading, email bounces — but the registration itself remains intact. The registrant can usually resolve it by addressing whatever triggered the hold.

The most common trigger is ICANN's registrant contact verification policy. New registrations and major contact changes require the registrant to confirm an email within 15 days. If they do not, the registrar must apply clientHold until verification completes.

Other causes include unpaid invoices on registrar-side services, abuse complaints (phishing, malware) where the registrar has not yet decided to delete, and trademark UDRP / URS proceedings.

For domain buyers, clientHold is rarely a path to availability. The domain is more likely to come back online than to be deleted. If you are watching one, the more interesting transition is clientHold → ok (resolved) or clientHold → pending suspension (deletion path begins).

1. 01

   Hold applied

   Registrar instructs registry to set clientHold. DNS records are removed within minutes to hours.

2. 02

   Issue period

   Registrant has whatever window the registrar specifies (often 30-60 days) to resolve the underlying issue.

3. 03

   Resolution

   Either: (a) issue resolved → status returns to "ok", (b) registrar escalates to deletion → autoRenewPeriod or direct deletion.

• Add to watchlist but do not invest emotionally. Most holds resolve back to active registration.
• If the underlying domain has gone dark and stayed dark for 60+ days, the registrar may eventually delete. That triggers redemptionPeriod which is the real watch event.
• Do not assume an abandoned site indicates an imminent drop. Many domains sit on clientHold for years.

• A new registrant fails to verify their email within 15 days. The registrar applies clientHold. The registrant clicks the verification link a week later, the hold is removed.
• A domain hosting a phishing site is reported to the registrar. The registrar applies clientHold while investigating. The domain goes dark; the original registration record persists.
• A large-portfolio customer enters payment dispute with their registrar. Several hundred domains land on clientHold simultaneously. They are usually all released once the dispute resolves.

• serverHoldserverHold is the registry-applied equivalent of clientHold. The domain is removed from DN…
• okThe "ok" EPP status indicates a domain in normal operating state — registered, present in …
• redemptionPeriodredemptionPeriod is the 30-day phase that follows the auto-renew grace period for most gTL…

• ICANN Registrant Verification Policy