.CO.ZA

Name: .CO.ZA — TLD Knowledge Base
Creator: ZADNA / ZARC

South Africa

ZADNA / ZARC · SubTLD · Updated 2026-09-10

Open

Specifications

Zone: .co.za
Registration: Real-time
Registration period: 1-10 years
Character length: 1-63
DNSSEC: Yes
IPv6: Yes
Nameservers: 2-7 nameservers
Transfer time: Standard
Auth code format: N/A (email voting)
Redemption period: 20 d
Handle updates: Yes
WHOIS update: Standard
WHOIS server: whois.registry.net.za
Connection: Direct
Data set: ccTLD

Eligibility & Restrictions

Open to anyone worldwide. No local presence required. Email verification required for new .co.za registrations; failure leads to suspension/deletion. Domain names 1-30 characters (short limit).

30-character domain name limit (shorter than standard 63). IDN NOT supported.

Registration

1-10 years. Email verification mandatory at registration.

Transfer Procedure

Unique transfer process: no auth code required for most transfers. Transfer triggers email voting: ZADNA emails all WHOIS contacts. At least ONE party must APPROVE. Transfer FAILS if any party DENIES, or if NO votes received within 5 days.

Transfer fails with ZERO votes. Ensure all WHOIS contact emails are valid and active before initiating.

📘 ICANN Transfer Policy (IRTP) — See ICANN Transfer Policy for the full IRTP framework, auth code rules, 60-day lock periods, and TEAC.

Registrant Change

Standard change via registrar. Domain locked during update processing (up to 7 days).

📘 ICANN OwnerChange (COR) — See ICANN OwnerChange for COR triggers, FOA/DA modes, 60-day lock, and opt-out.

Renewal & Deletion

Standard.

📘 ICANN ERRP — See ICANN ERRP for the standard gTLD expiry lifecycle (Auto-Renew Grace → RGP → Pending Delete → Released).

Restore / Redemption Grace Period

Standard process.

📘 ICANN ERRP — See ICANN ERRP for RGP details and standard restore fees.

WHOIS / Privacy

WHOIS privacy NOT available. GDPR protection not available for .za. Standard public WHOIS.

📘 ICANN Registration Data Policy — See Registration Data Policy for RDP 2025, RDAP, redaction defaults, and privacy/proxy rules.

NIS2 Compliance

N/A. South Africa not subject to EU NIS2.

📘 NIS2 Compliance — See NIS2 Compliance for Article 28 requirements, registry implementation status, and operational impact.

Known Error Codes & Notes

Zero votes = fail: Transfer fails if no WHOIS contacts vote within 5 days. All emails must be valid.
30-char limit: Domain names 1-30 characters. Frequently not highlighted by registrars.
No IDN: IDN not supported.
Auth code exception: Hexonet/1API backend requires auth code. Other registrars do not.

Data controllers

ZA Domain Name Authority (org) 44 Grand Central Blvd, Sanofi House, Halfway house, Midrand Gauteng 1685, South Africa
ZA Domain Name Authority — Chairperson (admin) 44 Grand Central Blvd, Sanofi House, Halfway house, Midrand Gauteng 1685, South Africa

Error codes

EF01017
EF03008
EF00512
EF01008
EF01009
EF03005
EF01002
EF03007
EF03006
EF01075
EF03011
EF01055
EF03010
EF01095
EF01074
EF0103118

Required fields

techc/email
ownerc/email
adminc/email

Restrictions

Domains can be registered without restrictions.
Nameserver must be set up in advance and provide an authoritative response.

Root nameservers

ZA1.DNSNODE.NET
NSZA.IS.CO.ZA
ZA-NS.ANYCAST.PCH.NET

Tasks (API)

create · available · chargeable · automatic
delete · available · automatic
restoreNE · available · automatic
update · available · automatic
transfer · available · chargeable · automatic
restore · available · chargeable · manual
restoreARGP · available · automatic
preack · available · automatic
renew · available · chargeable · automatic

API

Domain Create

POST https://api.autodns.com/v1/domain

{
  "name": "example.co.za",
  "ownerc": {
    "id": 23142212
  },
  "adminc": {
    "id": 23142212
  },
  "techc": {
    "id": 23142212
  },
  "nameServers": [
    {
      "name": "ns1.example.com"
    },
    {
      "name": "ns2.example.com"
    }
  ],
  "confirmOrder": false
}

Domain Transfer

POST https://api.autodns.com/v1/domain/_transfer

{
  "name": "example.co.za",
  "auth": "(AUTH_CODE)"
}

Create AuthInfo1

POST https://api.autodns.com/v1/domain/example.co.za/_authinfo1

Standard EPP auth code.

Domain Restore

POST https://api.autodns.com/v1/domain/example.co.za/_restore