.ong Domain
The NGO Domain for a Global Audience
Register your .ong domain from just £20.00/yr. Free DNS management, email forwarding, and 10GB mailbox included with every domain.
This domain has registration restrictions
The .ong domain is restricted to non-governmental and non-profit organisations. The registry (Public Interest Registry) validates eligibility, and registrations that fail validation are refused. Read the full eligibility rules.
What is a .ong domain?
The .ong domain is the multilingual counterpart to .ngo. While .ngo speaks to English-speaking audiences, .ong works for French, Spanish, and Portuguese NGOs (where "ONG" is the standard abbreviation). International development organisations, humanitarian agencies and global advocacy groups use it to reach non-English donors and supporters. It is a restricted extension: you certify against the registry's seven NGO characteristics when you order, and the name itself has to be your organisation's name, an acronym of it, or a description of what it does, so a slogan will not pass.
Who should register .ong?
International NGOs, French/Spanish/Portuguese charities, humanitarian agencies, and global development organisations.
Why choose .ong?
- Standard abbreviation in Romance languages
- Reaches non-English donors
- Self-certified NGO status, checked only on complaint
- Complements .ngo for multilingual reach
Who runs .ong, and since when
Registry data from the .ong 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
- Generic (gTLD)
- Registry operator
- Public Interest Registry
- The organisation that runs the extension
- In the root zone since
- 2014
- Delegated 10 July 2014
- Who can register
- Non-governmental organisations only, certified at registration and audited on complaint
- Checked against the registry's own policy
- Our price
- £20.00 a year
- Ex VAT. Renews at the same price
The seven tests behind every .ong registration
Public Interest Registry calls .ong the Romance-language version of .ngo, and the two share a registry, a policy and an eligibility test. ONG is the everyday abbreviation for a non-governmental organisation in French, Spanish, Portuguese and Italian, which is the entire reason it exists: one organisation can address a French donor on .ong and an English one on .ngo without translating either address.
What separates it from the community-sounding extensions that only sound restricted is that here the restriction is contractual. .ong holds a Community agreement under ICANN Specification 12, and PIR defines an NGO against seven characteristics. Registrants certify that all seven apply at the point of order. No documents are checked upfront, which surprises people, but there is an audit process with real teeth behind it.
The rule most likely to catch a UK charity out is not eligibility at all. PIR restricts what the name itself can be: the organisation name or part of it, an acronym for it, a name that recognises or describes it, or a name tied to its specific mission or activities. A campaign slogan or a generic keyword you liked the sound of falls outside the policy even when the organisation qualifies.
Who is allowed to register .ong?
Only non-governmental organisations may hold a .ong, and the name itself has to relate to the organisation or its mission.
- Seven characteristics
- PIR defines an NGO by seven tests: acting in the public interest, non-profit-making, limited government influence, independence from political parties and government, active operation, a structured governance arrangement, and lawful conduct. You certify that all seven apply when you register.
- The name is restricted too
- A .ong label must be the organisation name or part of it, an acronym for it, a name that recognises or generally describes it, or a name related to its specific mission or activities. An unrelated generic word sits outside the policy even where the organisation itself qualifies.
- Active use is required
- One of the seven characteristics requires members to actively use the .ong in the DNS, meaning a developed website or email services. A name parked indefinitely does not meet the eligibility you are asked to certify.
- Countries PIR excludes
- Organisations formed under the laws of the People's Republic of China or any of its territories are stated not to meet the government-influence and independence tests, and PIR will delete the domain. Registrants located in or organised under countries subject to United States sanctions administered by OFAC are refused as well, because PIR is a US company.
- If you cannot evidence it
- PIR audits on receipt of a claim that the policy has been broken. Your registrar is asked to collect the formal entity name, the country of registration and evidence of NGO status, and has 30 days to respond. No response puts the domain on ServerHold; a failed audit deletes it and releases it back into the available pool, and PIR states such deletions carry no refund.
Rules taken from the PIR Registration Policy for .NGO and .ONG. 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 .ong the right choice for you?
We would rather sell you the right extension once than the wrong one twice.
.ong works well if
- You are a non-profit whose supporters read French, Spanish, Portuguese or Italian, where ONG is the word they would use themselves.
- You already hold the .ngo and want the matching address for Romance-language sites rather than a translated subdomain.
- You want an extension that actually excludes commercial registrants, and you can evidence your status if PIR comes asking.
Look elsewhere if
- Your supporters are all British. ONG means nothing to an English speaker, and a .org or .co.uk gets read correctly the first time.
- The name you want is a slogan or a generic word. The naming policy limits you to the organisation, an acronym, a description or its mission.
- You cannot produce constitution documents, government listings or tax records on request. A failed audit deletes the domain with no refund.
Reaching English-speaking supporters? The matching .ngo carries an identical policy and reads correctly to them. See .ngo pricing.
.ong vs .ngo: which should you register?
These are the same product in two languages. Same registry, same Community agreement, same seven eligibility characteristics, same naming policy, same audit process, and prices within pennies of each other. PIR describes .ong as the Romance-language version of .ngo and treats them as a pair.
Pick by who reads your address. .ngo works for English speakers, .ong for French, Spanish, Portuguese and Italian ones. Organisations working across both usually register the pair and redirect one, which costs about the same as a single premium extension elsewhere and removes any chance of somebody else taking the twin.
.ong domain questions, answered
What people ask us before registering a .ong domain.
Can't find what you're looking for?
Ask us directlyLanguage, and nothing else. PIR operates both under identical policies and describes .ong as the Romance-language version of .ngo, because ONG is the standard abbreviation for a non-governmental organisation in French, Spanish, Portuguese and Italian. The eligibility test, the naming rules, the audit process and the pricing all match. Choose by the language your supporters read, or register both and point one at the other.
Yes, if it meets PIR's definition of an NGO. There is no residency or nationality requirement for most of the world, because the tests are about the organisation rather than the country. You certify at registration that you act in the public interest, do not distribute profits, operate independently of government and political parties, are actively running, have a governance structure and act lawfully. PIR does exclude organisations formed under the laws of the People's Republic of China, and registrants in countries under United States sanctions.
Your registrar is contacted and asked to collect evidence from you: the formal name of the entity, any trading names, the country where it is registered, and documents showing NGO status such as articles of incorporation, government lists or tax records. There are 30 days to respond. If nothing comes back, the domain goes on ServerHold and stops working. If the evidence does not support the certification you gave, the domain is deleted and released, and PIR states that names deleted this way are not entitled to refunds.
Included with Your .ong 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 Community Domains Extensions
Register your .ong domain today
Secure your .ong domain from just £20.00/yr. Free DNS management, email forwarding, and 10GB mailbox included.
