EPP FAQ and Terms & Conditions

Two Part FAQ
The general FAQ should be checked as well. This one is more specific to EPP system.
Getting EPP Access.
.ai will be managed by Identity Digital after January 15th, and they have asked us to not take any new clients.
Please contact techsupport@identity.digital to initiate the onboarding process.

The following information below is no longer relevant to new users.
To gain EPP access, please follow these steps:
1. Initial Balance Requirement: If you already have ICANN accreditation, your initial balance requirement is $3,000. Without ICANN accreditation, the initial balance requirement rises to $10,000. Note, this is not a fee, you will be able to use all this money to buy domains.
2. Discounts:
  - Discounts are available based on the number of ".ai" domains you currently hold. For each domain, you receive a reduction of $140 in your initial balance requirement.
  - If you pay in Bitcoin you only need half the initial balance requirement.
3. Payment Methods: We accept Bitcoin, credit cards, or wire transfers.
  - Bitcoin payments should be done at auction.whois.ai. Then email Vince to have him move the money over to epp.whois.ai.
  - For credit cards see "How do I make a payment using Credit Card?" below.
  - For wire transfers, please use the wire instructions here .
4. Deposit Confirmation: After making the deposit let us know and if it was by wire transfer send a copy of the wire confirmation.
5. Information Please provide the following information/details after your deposit has been made:
  1. Company Name
  2. Main email
  3. Phone number
  4. Physical address
  5. IANA Number
  6. Abuse email
  7. List of .ai domains to move to your account (we will confirm by email with old registrar and expect they will confirm with you, then we will transfer for free)
6. Do I need to sign a contract?
  Our bank won't process wires over $10,000 without a contract. You can download our agreement and fill it out and sign it and email to Vince. We will sign and return. By becoming a registrar or continuing to be a registrar with us you are bound by these terms and conditions in this document.
7. Account Setup: Once your deposit is confirmed, and we have the above information, we will set up your account on epp.whois.ai.
Where is web access for EPP users?
You can login at https://epp.whois.ai.
Recommended security proceedures
For web portal logins we would like you to use Google Auth for 2FA. Note if this failes it is usually because the clock is wrong on your device. For EPP logins we recommend IP whitelist.
How do I set the IP Whitelist for epp login?
Click "Account", then "IP Restrictions".
How do I see credit balance and get Reminders for when credit gets low?
In the web interface click "Account" then on the right "Credit Reminders". This will show your balance and credit limit and let you set a reminder threshold. It will then send an email if your credit gets below that threshold.
The accounting information seems wrong.
Note that if you do a search for some range that is more than 50 entries the web display does not show all the results and the totals are only for the results shown not for the full range. This is strange and seems wrong. To get the full picture you must do "Export Transactions" and look at the CSV file that is downloaded.
How do I transfer domains?
The Current registrant should get the AUTHCODE and give that to the new registrant so they can then pull the domain into their account. For a transfer to work all of these conditions must be met:
1. The domain must be "unlocked"
2. The domains must be paid up (can not be past expiration date)
3. It is free to transfer away from auction.whois.ai but for any other transfer the account getting the domain must have the $140 transfer fee in it
4. The contacts, phone, email have to be good
5. The auth code must be correct. Some places have had some trouble with some characters so setting a new auth code might help. The characters to avoid when setting an auth code are " <>&'" "
6. The registrar has to support .ai transfers, not all registrars do. Here is a list of registrars that support .ai transfers.
Can I do renew in EPP transfer domains?
We recommend not doing a renew on transfer but if you do set it to 2 years renewal.
How do I get the AUTHCODE for a domain in web interface?
CoCCA now stores only a cryptographic hash of an auth code. This is enough to test if someone has the correct auth code but it can not give you the auth code. This is more secure. So the way things work now is you make up a new auth code and set that. To set it click on the domain then click where it says, "Authorization Key Encrypted", and enter the new auth code in the box and click "update" to set or "test" to test. Then you know the auth code.
How to I use an AUTHCODE to transfer a domain to my account in web interface?
Click on "transfer", then in the box put the name then a comma then the code. Then click "request".
How do I get my company listed on your list of registrars?
If you would like your company on the list of registrars or to change how it is listed just send email to vincecate@gmail.com.
How can I test my epp software without paying for test domains?
On the production machine epp.whois.ai you can register domains under *.ote.ai for free. If you register a domain like foobar.ote.ai we won't charge you anything. Since it is on the production machine it is a realistic test of your software. This is just for testing purposes, so the DNS for *.ote.ai domains will not work.
What is the API/spec for EPP?
Here is a page with links to EPP API standard documents.
How can I export my current list of domains?
Login on https://epp.whois.ai and select portfolio then search with no filters. Then on the right Export to CSV.
Can you do 1 year pricing?
The minimum is 2 years.
What is whois.ai for?
The old main site was whois.ai but this is now an epp client of epp.whois.ai which is the real main site now. Small legacy users are still there. We are not letting new end-users on there and there is a general move off that site.
Having trouble logging in
Try clearing cookies. To start the EPP password and web login password will be the same but you can change one without changing the other. On the web interface you can click "Account" then on bottom right "EPP settings" will let you change the EPP password. To change the web password click "Account", then "Manage Logins", then select login and click "Change Password". they can set the EPP password ( by default is the same credentials as the web login, but the login and clientID are two separate credentials )
How long can stuff stay in shopping cart?
If you logout or are logged out due to inactivity your shopping cart will be emptied.
How do we transfer the domains to a new registrar?
When you are ready I move them over for free. This is a one time deal at the creation of your account. After this, transfers cost money.
What about renewals?
The default on new accounts is not AUTORENEW but you can change that at the web interface. We recommend that you do a search for domains with expiration dates older than some date to get your list of domains to renew so that you don't accidentally renew a domain that does not need to be renewed, as there is no un-do on renewals (on registrations if you delete soon the cost can be reversed).
Are there reminder emails to pay for domains?
No, no emails are sent out as each domain comes close to expiration. This epp.whois.ai is really set up for retailers and they each email end users about payments coming up. You can set up AUTORENEW and also set the system to email you a reminder when your balance gets below some level. So this sort of handles the problem.
How fast are domains deleted?
See regular regular FAQ for delete.
How can I lock domains so there is no chance of transfer?
Click "portfolio", do a search (blank to see all), then click "bulk lock", then "all" to lock all, then at the bottom next to "transfer" click under "lock", then put in a note and click "update locks". Note that if you do this you must unlock a domain before an AUTHCODE can be used to do a transfer.
Do transfers cost?
Transfers cost $140. We do not recommend renewing during transfer but if you do that is an additional cost and is priced as a normal renewal. If no renewal is done then the expiration date does not change with a transfer. If two registrars combine into one, a registrar splits into two, or we get a new registrar, then we can do an admin-transfer (i.e. Vince does it) and there is no charge for moving the domains. Also, if you buy a domain at auction on auction.whois.ai then you can transfer it off there to your regular account with no charge. We don't want domains to stay on auction.whois.ai.
Buyers Remorce Grace period is 5 days
If you register a domain and then delete it within 5 days the system will refund your money automatically. Note there is no grace period for renewals. Be careful not to renew a domain more times than you really want to as you can not undo a renewal. Do this in the web portal by clicking on the domain after a search, and then over on the right click "immediate delete". After you do this you should see a refund credit in your log. You can also do the delete over EPP and get the refund.
The Dec 16, 2017 registration date seems wrong
When domains were loaded onto epp.whois.ai on Dec 16, 2017 the new system took that as the birthday for all the domains. Really many domains were around many years before that. The expiration dates were correctly handled during the migration, but the registration date is not correct.
Our customer did not pay can we get a refund?
If you delete the name within the Grace period (see in this FAQ) you can get a refund. If it is longer than that then no.
The report totals seem off by a bit?
There are monthly reports and search result reports. One of these uses the timezone of the server and one of these uses the timezone set by the client. When these timezones are different if there were sales in the time difference the amounts can be different. If you set your account timezone to "Atlantic Standard Time" like Anguilla and our server is using, then the problem will go away.
How do I restore a domain?
From the web interface you search your portfolio for the domain, click on it, then in the bottom on the right you click "restore". Note if you do from EPP you also need a "restore report" and a "renew" and this all should be done done on the same day. Best to do "renew" right after.
Automatic Renewal
To get domains to renew automatcally go to the web portal and click on "Account", then "Automation" and specify for each ".ai", ".net.ai", ".com.ai" etc how much they should renew for. Set each to 2 years. This must be done using a login with the power to do so like "Registrar Master Account".
Quick Handling of UDRP Emails
As explained in the main FAQ Anguilla uses UDRP. All registrars are responsible for processing UDRP emails for the domains under their control. If they fail to process these emails within 1 week and Vince has to they will be charged $500 US.
Quick Handling of Abusive Websites
We ask that organizations that patrol the Internet for fraud send reports to the abuse contact for the registrar and CC vincecate+abusecc@gmail.com. If after one week the organization is not not satisfied that the registrar has properly handled the problem they can come back to us at vincecate+abuse@gmail.com and we will investigate. If we determine that the site is or was violating our terms and conditions we will suspend the domain and charge the registrar $500. In our experience Netcraft.com takedown requests have always been valid and we strongly recommend registrars comply with Netcraft requests. If a registrar decides not to suspend a domain they should send an explanation as to why to improve their chances of avoiding the fee. If the explanation is not accepted the fee will be charged at that time even if the 1 week has not expired.
If after this the registrars abusing customer harasses us (defined as more than 1 email or phone call) there will be an additional fee of $500. This is to give registrars an incentive to not pass our contact info to their abuse customers, which some have been doing.
How to I search transaction history?
Click the "home" icon, then click "transaction ledger". Then you can tick boxes for the types of transactions, set the date range, and click search.
How do I print a receipt for a payment we made?
1. Click the "home" icon.
2. Then you can tick boxes for the types of transactions "Adjustment", "Bank Payment", or "Credit card".
3. Then set the date range, and click search.
4. Then click on the result you want to get the record of the payment.
How do I get an invoice showing we paid for a domain?
1. Click the "Account" icon.
2. Then you can tick boxes for the types of transactions "renewal", "registration".
3. Then set the date range, and click search.
4. Search for the domain you are interested in.
5. When you see the domain you want click on registration or renewal next to it and you will get the invoice.
How do I make a payment using Credit Card?
On http://epp.whois.ai you go to "TOP UP"", put in the amount you want and a payment description, then click Next. then click "next", then click "PAY BY 4CS". Then a window from our payment processor pops up and you put in credit card info. This is done so that we never even see your credit card number.
Please wait at least 15 minutes after an attempt looks like it failed before trying again. Check your balance before trying again as often charges that seemed to have failed are posted a few minutes later.
Please note that for credit cards we add a fee of 3.627% to the amount we charge to cover the credit card fees.
Overdraft or Credit Limit
As of Oct 25th this ends.
We set the overdraft/credit limit to 1/4 of the amount of your last payment or $500, whichever is higher. If you send a wire and need an increased overdraft while waiting for the wire to get through we can increase your overdraft temporarily to 1/2 the amount of the wire if you mention this when you email us a copy of the wire transfer confirmation from your bank. If you have multiple wires in transit the credit limit will be 1/2 the total value of all the wires.
Do you support DNSSEC?
We support DNSSEC using Knot DNS as of Nov 14, 2023.
Don't give your customers my contact info
Registrars should not be giving out my contact info to your own customers. Please do not do this. If this problem increases we may implement a fee for when your customers contact us.
How to get records of payments
Go to the home tab in the web interface. Click "none" on Transaction Types, then click "Adjustment". Then set the "Date Range" to cover the time of the payment. Then click "Search". Then click on the the word "Adjustment" next to the date of the payment. You will see a .pdf with a title "Payment Transaction Receipt". You can click the "download" icon in the top right to download it.
How do I see my balance on a particuar date?
Click "Account" on the top row and then click "Statements" over on the right. Sellect dat and then click "generate".
Can I get a copy of the zone?
If you are a registrar and send me the IP you would like to access the zone file from I can give you access. After I add your IP to the whitelist you can download the zone files from http://datahaven.net/zone/zone.tgz. This file updates before 5 am Anguilla time every day. This is the zone file and there are a few domains that have not set nameservers and so will not appear in the zone file. Under these Terms and Conditions registrars do not have permission to redistribute this information.
When is contact info redacted in whois info?
If the listed contact is an individual in the EU then their contact info is redacted in the whois information. If it is a company or someone not in the EU it will be given out.
Selling of expired domains by registry only, not registrars
Registrars (and their resellers) are not allowed to sell expired .AI domain names. If the registrant chooses not to renew the registration for an .AI domain name, no one else can renew the registration. The name will become available in the registry's monthly auctions.
How often do nameservers update?
Every 2 hours. It could take another hour to propagate. Sometimes longer.
How do we set DS records for DNSSec?
In the web portal you can search for a domain, click on it, then over on the right click "DS Records" and you will be at the screen to update the DS records.
We are doing a lot of volume. Can we have a special price?
Everyone is paying the same price. See next item.
Terms and Conditions can Change
These terms and conditions can change from time to time if something needs clarification or new situations come up. However, we intend to be reasonable as we want .ai to be popular and successful. The same terms and conditions will always apply to all registrars. If there is a change we feel is significant we will email all the registrars.
I sent an email and did not get an answer within 1 business day
We expect to answer all emails within 1 business day. If we have not it can be our system does not recognize your email as a client email and we did not see it. To help you can put AI3DOM as part of the subject and try again.
Whois and Rdap
The RDAP server is at http://rdap.nic.ai and is rate limited. The legacy whois port now has an IP whitelist. Each registrar can have up to 5 IPs on this whitelist. Just send me the IPs you will access the whois port from and I will add them.
Registry Changing Jan 15, 2025
On Jan 15, 2025 The Government of Anguilla has arranged for Identity Digital to take over running the .ai registry. They are not letting us transfer balances. Please try to get your account balance low by this time. We will also not have any credit or overdraft after Oct 25, 2024. We will refund any final balance. The options are:
1. If payments are made by credit card within 3 months of Jan 15, 2025 we can refund to your credit card. No fee for this. There may be credit card charges that would be too old by Jan 15 but we could do a refund (full or partial) now. If you would like some or all of a credit card charge refunded before this date, even today, contact us and we can do that also.
2. If you send a Bitcoin address we can refund to that. No fee for this.
3. If you get a balance under $10,000 we can refund using Paypal but there is a 3% fee. Send the paypal account email.
4. We can do refund by wire transfer but will deduct $150 as the bank fees and hassle are substantial. Send wire instructions if you want to do this. Please include both your address and your bank's address as our bank requires this. Also my bank wants to refund to an account that has sent to us. If you have sent from multiple accounts please say the date of the most recent wire from the one we will refund to or include a copy of that wire confirmation.
How will prices change?
We are indexing with the US CPI for All Urban Consumers. We will divide the CPI by 2.18 to get our target price. If we think the target price will be around $20 or 20% higher than our current price in the next 100 days we will announce a price increase so that registrars have at least 60 days warning before it takes effect. On Apr 15, 2023 we changed the price to $140 US. This is for .ai, .com.ai, net.ai, .off.ai, and .org.ai. This is for registrations, renewals, transfers and restores. Note registrations and renewals are for 2 years. Note that people can renew domains for up to a total of 10 years before the price changes if they want to.