The Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) is the Government Registrar for .govt.nz and .parliament.nz domain names.

The .govt.nz and .parliament.nz domains are moderated second level domains in the .nz hierarchy.

Moderated Second Level Domain DNC

The .govt.nz domain is moderated by DIA for central agencies, and by the Association of Local Government Information Management (ALGIM) for local authorities, on behalf of the Crown.

The .parliament.nz domain is moderated by the Parliamentary Service.

Parliament.nz DNC

The .govt.nz space is governed under the Policy for Moderation and Registration of .govt.nz Internet domain names. By applying for a name in this space, you agree to abide by the terms and conditions associated with this namespace, and the standard terms and conditions required by the DNC. Where a conflict appears between these documents, the standard terms and conditions give way to these terms and conditions.

Special conditions for the .govt.nz namespace

• The registrant for all names is deemed to be the Crown, acting through agencies, departments and local authorities.
• Agencies eligible to register a .govt.nz name include ministries, departments, most crown entities and local authorities.
• State owned enterprises and council controlled trading organisations are not eligible.
• Domain names, once registered, may not be transferred to another commercial registrar, as permitted in other namespaces.
• Agencies may not trade, sell or transfer domain names to other agencies without approval from the moderator.
• Names may be withdrawn at the moderator’s discretion when no longer required or when an agency is no longer eligible to be in the space.

DIA will:

• pay for all names centrally, on a monthly basis
• assess applications for registration on a case-by-case basis, having regard to the overall namespace, the usefulness of the name in maintaining the integrity of the namespace and the possible effect of the name on trust in government
• approve names on a timely basis, when all criteria have been met — this will normally be up to 15 business days but may be longer if the case warrants
• communicate with the applicant to keep them advised as to the status of their applications
• give reasons in writing for declining applications
• maintain current information on advice from agencies.

ALGIM will:

• assess applications for registration on a case-by-case basis, having regard to the overall namespace, the usefulness of the name in maintaining the integrity of the namespace and the possible effect of the name on trust in Government
• approve names on a timely basis, when all criteria have been met (this will normally be up to 15 business days but may be longer if the case warrants)
• communicate with the applicant to keep them advised as to the status of their applications
• give reasons in writing for declining applications.

Participating agencies will:

• prepare applications by filling in online forms in the Domain Name Management Portal ensuring that all fields are filled in the correct format
• provide a business case on request to justify the application
• consider using the 4th level for names that may not meet domain name eligibility criteria. For example, use 'transactions.ird.govt.nz' rather than apply for 'ird-transactions.govt.nz'.
• apply for names well in advance of requiring them, to allow for unforeseen delays
• not access the Domain Name Management Portal using any version of Microsoft Internet Explorer as that web browser does not fully support Content Security Policy (CSP)
• access the Domain Name Management Portal using a web browser that fully supports Content Security Policy (CSP), such as any current version of Apple Safari, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, or Microsoft Edge.

Read more about getting a domain name

DIA will not:

• approve applications on the basis that advertising material has already been printed
• approve applications that have incomplete information
• approve applications that are made in the name of non-governmental agencies (such as web design firms) acting on behalf of agencies
• compete with other registrars in non-government namespaces.

Agencies will not:

• make applications for frivolous names
• use “cluster registrations” around misspellings and variations of names
• access the Domain Name Management Portal using any version of Microsoft Internet Explorer as that web browser does not fully support Content Security Policy (CSP).

Dispute resolution

If an application is declined, an agency may appeal in writing for a review to:

General Manager
Government Information Services
Information & Knowledge Services Branch
Department of Internal Affairs
PO Box 10-526
Wellington

The Business Manager will review the application and the reasons for non-approval, and assess whether to change the decision or confirm it. The Business Manager’s ruling is final.