Guiding principles
Registering a domain name with the national extension is subject to rules set by the .lu registry run by the Restena Foundation.
These rules, written into a domain name charter, apply to all domain name registrations and all accredited registrars without exception.
Compliance with the .lu domain name charter
The guiding principles followed when registering .lu domain names are detailed in a domain name charter set up by the .lu registry. This domain name charter is the product of direct collaboration between the Restena Foundation and public and private players representing the national Internet community, who meet in a workgroup first formed by the Government on 16 March 2001. Since then, the domain name charter has changed as dictated by the developments implemented by the registry.
Format of a .lu domain name
There is a plethora of possible combinations of .lu domain names, whose properties are defined in the .lu domain name charter. The composition of a domain name satisfies three main restrictions:
- It includes between 1 and 63 alphanumeric characters.
- It may correspond to an Internationalized Domain Name (IDN) that, in addition to ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange) alphanumeric characters, also incorporates accented characters used in the Luxembourgish, French, and German languages:
a, à, â, ä, æ, b, c, ç, d, e, è, é, ê, ë, f, g, h, i, î, ï, j, k, l, m, n, o, ô, ö, œ, p, q, r, s, t, u, ù, û, ü, v, w, x, y, z, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. - It may include one or more hyphens (‘-') as a single character, except as the first or last character.
An internationalized domain name, or IDN, uses characters beyond the standard ASCII character set (a-Z, 0-9), offering a wider range of registration and communication options.
Assignment on a "first come, first served" basis
Domain names are assigned by registrars accredited by the .lu registry on a "first come, first served" basis, in return for an annual fee.
The first person to register an available domain name therefore blocks other potential name-seekers from registering it.
Use of the name under the responsibility of the applicant
The registration of a domain name does not give the holder any right to use the name. The person registering a domain name assumes full responsibility as to his or her rights in that name. He/she must first carry out all the necessary checks concerning possible conflicts with, in particular, brand names, company names and the names of natural persons.
The registrant certifies that neither the registration nor the use of the domain name will directly or indirectly affect the rights of a third party.
Limited, renewable subscription
Registering a domain name is considered a time-limited subscription lasting for a period set individually by the accredited registrars. However, registration is not just renewable; it can also be transferred to another owner at any point.
Option to activate or reserve your domain name
A domain name can be registered and remain inactive, meaning that it won't appear in the .lu zone and will stay that way for as long as it lasts. If so, that domain may not be used for a website or email addresses, etc.
Reserving a domain name also allows a .lu to be registered without an entry in the DNS servers that hold authority over its zone. This opportunity is particularly useful to people who want to register a domain name but are preparing for the hosting site to go online at some point in the future.
Registration by accredited registrars
A .lu domain name is registered through registrars accredited by the .lu registry. Once accreditation has been obtained, the registrars are self-sufficient and can set additional general conditions that their clients must follow. Some information provided by the .lu registry may therefore vary from one registrar to another when registering a .lu domain name.
A DNS server or names server is a computer connected to the Internet. It contains information about the services related to a domain name and answers any queries about this information. For example, it translates a domain name into an IP address to enable access to a website/s and/or email inboxes linked to a domain name.