.com.im Domain
An International Domain With Manx Roots
Register your .com.im domain from just £17.99/yr. Free DNS management, email forwarding, and 10GB mailbox included, plus free Nominet WHOIS privacy for UK individuals.
This domain has registration restrictions
Nobody checks who you are, but every .com.im name is screened before it is approved and the Isle of Man Government can withdraw one afterwards. Read the full eligibility rules.
What is a .com.im domain?
The .com.im extension blends the familiarity of .com with Isle of Man identity. It's used by businesses that want international recognition while maintaining a connection to the Island. Particularly popular with e-gaming operators and offshore financial services, .com.im offers an alternative when the shorter .im is already taken.
Who should register .com.im?
International businesses with Isle of Man operations, e-gaming companies, and offshore financial service providers.
Why choose .com.im?
- Combines .com familiarity with Manx identity
- Popular in e-gaming and finance
- Alternative when .im is taken
- International feel with Island roots
Who runs .com.im, and since when
Registry data from the .com.im delegation record held by IANA, which maintains the internet's root zone. Eligibility comes from the registry's own policy, and the prices are ours.
- Extension type
- Country-code (ccTLD)
- Registered under the .im zone
- Registry operator
- Isle of Man Government
- The organisation that runs the extension
- .im delegated
- 1996
- The date belongs to the .im zone, not to .com.im itself
- Who can register
- Open to anyone worldwide, but the name itself is vetted by the Isle of Man Government
- Checked against the registry's own policy
- Our price
- £17.99 a year
- Ex VAT. Renews at the same price
- Transfer in
- £17.99
- Adds a year to whatever is left on the domain
Why the Isle of Man vets every .com.im application
Registering a .com.im domain involves two decisions and only one of them is yours. Domicilium (IOM) Limited runs the .im namespace as designated manager under the authority of the Isle of Man Government, and its published rules handle applications first come, first served, with no vetting of who applies or how many names they hold. You do not need to live on the Island or trade there.
The name is another matter. Every application is checked against a black list, a reserved list, and a referral list the registry describes as including words connected to regulated activities on the Isle of Man. The Island regulates online gambling through its Gambling Supervision Commission and financial services separately, so a name touching either goes to a government official rather than straight through. Referral is not refusal, and the registry undertakes to consider referred names within two working days, but it puts a person between you and your domain.
For most businesses selling into Britain a .co.uk still does more. Take the .com.im when the Manx connection is the point and the shorter .im has already gone.
Who is allowed to register .com.im?
Nobody checks who you are, but every .com.im name is screened before it is approved and the Isle of Man Government can withdraw one afterwards.
- Who may apply
- Anyone, anywhere. The rules state that the registry will not restrict who may apply for a domain, which names you may hold, or how many. There is no residency test, no company number and no documents to supply.
- How the name is checked
- Each application runs against a black list of prohibited words, a list of reserved names, and a referral list. The registry says the referral list includes words connected to regulated activities on the Isle of Man, and that none of these lists is published or changed with notice.
- What a referral means
- A referred application goes to the Isle of Man Government Designated Official, who considers it within two working days. Expect to be asked for supporting information. Referral is not rejection, but you cannot plan a launch date around it.
- Format limits
- Letters a to z, digits and hyphens only, and never a hyphen first or last. Internationalised names beginning xn-- are not offered, and the whole domain must be between 3 and 64 characters including the .im ending.
- If it is refused or withdrawn
- A rejection can be appealed to the Designated Official within 10 days, and that decision is final. The Government also keeps the right to withdraw a name within two working days of application, and to suspend or withdraw one later where it is used improperly or thought detrimental to the good name of the Island. Fees taken on a name that is then rejected are refunded within 30 days.
Rules taken from the .im Rules of Registration and Use of Domain Names. Registry policy can change, so check before you buy if the answer matters to you.
Not sure whether you qualify? Ask us before you order and we will check the registry rules with you. We would rather answer the question than take an order the registry will refuse.
Is .com.im the right choice for you?
We would rather sell you the right extension once than the wrong one twice.
.com.im works well if
- You already hold the .im or .co.im and want the matching .com.im parked beside it, so nobody else can trade on the name.
- You are licensed or physically based on the Isle of Man and want the address to say so, but the plain .im version of your name has gone.
- You want a Manx address that reads as a company rather than a personal site, and the .co.im has been taken.
Look elsewhere if
- Your customers are on the British mainland. The Isle of Man is a separate jurisdiction, and a .co.uk sends the UK signal to Google that this one does not.
- Price is the deciding factor. On our own list the shorter, better .im costs less than the longer .com.im, and both cost well over a .co.uk every year.
- Your name touches gambling, banking, insurance or another regulated activity. That is exactly the sort of name the registry hands to a government official, so the order is an application.
Trading mainly into the UK mainland? Register the .co.uk first and add the Manx address second. See .co.uk pricing.
.com.im vs .im: which should you register?
The plain .im is shorter, it sits one level higher, and on our price list it costs less. If the .im form of your name is free, take that one and stop. Almost nobody picks .com.im while the .im is sitting there unregistered.
So the choice only arises once the .im has gone, and then the real question is whether a longer Manx address beats a .co.uk. That depends on how much of your business is actually on the Island. Worth knowing before you look: the .im namespace opened at the second level in 2006 with existing third-level holders given first refusal on the matching short name, so most of the obvious words went years ago.
.com.im domain questions, answered
What people ask us before registering a .com.im domain.
Can't find what you're looking for?
Ask us directlyNo. The registry accepts applications first come, first served and says in its own rules that it does not restrict who may apply. There is no residency test, no company requirement and no paperwork. What gets checked is the name rather than the registrant: every application is screened against a black list, a reserved list and a referral list before it is approved, and the Isle of Man Government has the final say on anything referred.
A referred application has gone to the Isle of Man Government Designated Official for a decision, which the registry says is made within two working days. The usual trigger is a word connected to a regulated activity on the Island, gambling and financial services being the obvious ones. You will normally be asked for supporting information. Payment is taken when you order, and if the application is turned down the fee comes back within 30 days.
Not for most of them. Google reads a .co.uk as a British site, and the Isle of Man is a separate jurisdiction with its own government, courts and regulators, so .com.im points at the Island rather than at Britain. A .co.uk also costs a fraction of the price every year and transfers between registrars almost instantly. The .com.im earns its place when the Manx connection is real, and usually as a second address rather than the only one.
Included with Your .com.im Domain
DNS Management
Full DNS zone editor to manage A, CNAME, MX, TXT, and all record types.
Email Forwarding
Set up professional email addresses and forward to any inbox.
Auto-Renewal
Never lose your domain with automatic renewal protection.
Free 10GB Mailbox
One 10GB mailbox (POP3/IMAP) included with every domain, on any TLD.
Other UK Domains Extensions
Register your .com.im domain today
Secure your .com.im domain from just £17.99/yr. Free DNS management, email forwarding, and 10GB mailbox included.
