ccTLD: definition

A ccTLD is a top-level domain tied to a country or territory, such as .es for Spain or .uk for the United Kingdom. Each one is run by an organization in or linked to that place, which sets its own rules on who may register and how. Those rules differ a lot between countries, so a name that is easy to get under one ccTLD can be closed to you under another.

What a ccTLD is and how country codes are chosen

Most ccTLDs are two-letter codes taken from ISO 3166-1 The standard list of country codes that decides which ccTLDs can exist. Full definition of ISO 3166-1, a list of country and territory codes kept by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). IANA Internet Assigned Numbers Authority The functions that coordinate the root zone, IP addresses and protocol numbers. Full definition of IANA, which coordinates the top level of the domain name A readable internet name made of labels separated by dots. Full definition of domain name system, does not decide what counts as a country, as RFC 1591 The 1994 document that still underpins how country code domains are assigned. Full definition of RFC 1591 already said in 1994. It follows the list, which the ISO 3166 Maintenance Agency normally changes only on information from United Nations Headquarters.

There are exceptions. The ISO code for the United Kingdom is GB, yet the country uses .uk, which IANA keeps under its original eligibility, as it does .ac. The .eu domain is eligible because its code is exceptionally reserved in the ISO list.

As of October 2026, the IANA Root Zone Database lists 316 country code entries: 255 two-letter codes and 61 IDN ccTLDs, written in non-Latin scripts. Seven of the two-letter codes are marked as not assigned.

Who runs a ccTLD and under whose rules

The organization that runs a ccTLD is its manager. RFC 1591 calls the manager a trustee for the nation and the global Internet community, not an owner, and requires it to treat every applicant An organization that has applied to ICANN to run a new gTLD. Full definition of applicant equally.

As of October 2026, IANA lists Colombia’s Ministry of Information and Communications Technologies (MinTIC) for .co, a ministry of Tuvalu for .tv, Red.es The Spanish public body that manages the .es domain through its unit Dominios.es. Full definition of Red.es, a Spanish public business entity, for .es, Nominet The organization that runs the .uk domain registry. Full definition of Nominet for .uk and a company, Internet Computer Bureau Limited, for .io.

IANA, operated by PTI Public Technical Identifiers The ICANN affiliate that performs the IANA functions, including root zone changes. Full definition of PTI, decides on and publishes requests to assign a ccTLD to a manager (delegation) or move it to a new one (transfer, once called redelegation). Verisign The company that operates the .com and .net registries. Full definition of Verisign, as Root Zone Maintainer The organization that produces and distributes the root zone file, currently Verisign. Full definition of Root Zone Maintainer, then makes the change in the root zone The top of the DNS, listing every TLD and its name servers. Full definition of root zone.

Among other things, IANA checks that the code is eligible, that the proposed manager is resident or incorporated in the territory (unless the government formally decides otherwise), that the local Internet community supports it, and that the government supports it or does not object. A transfer also needs the current manager’s consent and a plan that keeps the domain stable and explains how existing registrant The person or organization that holds a domain name registration. Full definition of registrant are affected.

ICANN’s gTLD contracts do not set the registration Obtaining the right to use a domain name for a set period. Full definition of registration rules of a ccTLD. Those come from national law in some countries, from European Union (EU) law for .eu, or from the registry The central database and system of a top-level domain, or loosely the organization that runs it. Full definition of registry’s own terms.

Local presence and eligibility rules

Three European examples show how much the requirements vary:

.es allows people and organizations with interests in or ties to Spain, read broadly: residents, those who target the Spanish market and those with cultural, historical or social ties to Spain.
.eu is open to EU citizens wherever they live, other residents of a Member State, and undertakings or organizations established in the Union.
.de has no residence condition at registration. As of October 2026, if DENIC Deutsches Network Information Center The Frankfurt-based cooperative that runs Germany's .de domain. Full definition of DENIC asks, after a third party’s request in a dispute, a holder outside Germany must name a representative in Germany within two weeks to receive official or court documents.

These rules change, so check the registry’s own rules before you register.

Open ccTLDs used as generic names (.co, .io, .tv)

Many ccTLDs let anyone register, and some, such as .co, .io and .tv, are used for meanings unrelated to their country because the letters read like a word or an abbreviation. Under IANA rules they remain the ccTLDs of Colombia, the British Indian Ocean Territory and Tuvalu, open to retirement like any other.

Second-level structures such as .com.es or .co.uk

Some countries put generic categories at the second level, as RFC 1591 already noted; others list names directly under the country code. A fixed label One dot-separated part of a domain name, up to 63 characters long. Full definition of label such as .co.uk or .com.es is called a ccSLD country code second-level domain A fixed label under a ccTLD, like .co.uk, where the public registers names one level down. Full definition of ccSLD.

Spain offers both: a name directly under .es, or a third-level name. The categories .com.es, .nom.es and .org.es are open, with no prior check; .gob.es (Spanish public administrations) and .edu.es (officially recognized teaching and research bodies) are restricted and checked before a name is assigned. As of October 2026, a second-level .es name must have at least three characters, a third-level one at least two, and both at most 63.

What happens when a country code disappears

When a country or territory is removed from ISO 3166-1, its ccTLD loses its eligibility and must be retired. The ICANN Board ICANN's board of directors, which adopts policies and approves key decisions. Full definition of ICANN Board adopted a Policy for the Retirement of a ccTLD on 22 September 2022; before that, IANA and each manager discussed retirements case by case. As of October 2026, the procedure works like this:

IANA issues a Notice of Removal.
By default, the ccTLD is removed five years later.
The manager can ask for an extension within 12 months of the notice. Extensions add at most five years, so the longest possible period is ten years.
A wish to keep the domain is not a reason for an extension. The manager may retire the domain earlier.

Managers typically stop new registrations Domains newly created in a period, also called adds or creates. Full definition of new registrations as soon as possible and limit renewal Paying to extend a domain registration for more time. Full definition of renewal that would run past the domain’s remaining life. Two retired examples are .an (Netherlands Antilles) and .tp (Portuguese Timor).

Example: .es compared with other European ccTLDs

Red.es acts as the allocation authority for .es under Orden ITC/1542/2005, opens another website in a new tab, a ministerial order in force since 1 June 2005. A resolution published in Spain’s Official State Gazette (BOE) on 5 October 2026 confirms that this order, Law 34/2002 and the procedure rules of Red.es still make up the .es registry policy.

Names are assigned first come, first served The rule that the first valid request for an available domain gets it. Full definition of first come, first served, and holders accept an out-of-court dispute resolution system. A .eu name instead follows an EU regulation, and a .de name the terms of DENIC, a cooperative: three ccTLDs, three different sets of rules.

ccTLD