{"id":117,"slug":"icann-registrant-is-legal-owner","title":"ICANN: listed Registrant is the legal owner of a domain — admin/technical contact is NOT ownership","kind":"reference","scope":"business","status":"current","audiences":["kevin","claude-code","smb-owner","candid-team"],"topics":["platform-lock-in","domain-registration"],"reference_body":"**Claim:** ICANN policies treat the listed **Registrant** as the legal owner of a domain. Agencies commonly list themselves as Registrant (rather than Administrative or Technical Contact only), and small business owners often don't know the distinction. The Registrant has transfer authority; Admin/Technical contacts do not.\n\n**Source:** ICANN Transfer Policy (icann.org); Industry-consistent guidance from Domain Name Wire 2008-2024.\n\n**Confidence:** Verified (ICANN policy is primary).\n\n**The single most common ownership failure for Candid SMB prospects.** Step 1 of any client engagement: WHOIS lookup. If the Registrant is the agency, the client doesn't own their domain — they're leasing it from someone they're paying. See [[rule-list-business-as-domain-registrant]] and [[agency-domain-hostage-pattern-recurring]].","rationale_body":null,"metadata":null,"links":{"outgoing":[],"incoming":[{"slug":"agency-domain-hostage-pattern-recurring","title":"Agency-as-Registrant \"domain hostage\" pattern — practitioner-documented but rarely litigated","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"},{"slug":"squarespace-acquired-google-domains-2023","title":"Squarespace acquired Google Domains for $180M (Sept 7, 2023) — ~10M SMB domains migrated automatically","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"},{"slug":"rule-list-business-as-domain-registrant","title":"RULE: Always list the business (not the agency) as the domain Registrant. Step 1 of every engagement.","kind":"rule","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"},{"slug":"ownership-checklist-at-agency-separation","title":"Ownership Checklist: what an SMB must be able to walk away with at agency separation","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"},{"slug":"research-brief-owning-your-stack","title":"Research brief: Owning your stack — why agency-managed platforms cost more than they save (piece 4 of 15)","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"}]},"created_at":"2026-05-22T19:17:26.810Z","updated_at":"2026-05-22T19:17:26.810Z"}