Country extension · China
.sd.cn domain name
What you need to know about .sd.cn: who can register it, which details are required and how transferring works.
Specifications
The key details of .sd.cn
- Country
- China
- Registry
- cnnic.cn
- Registration period
- 1 to 10 years
- Renewal period
- 1 to 10 years
- Domain name length
- 1 to 63 characters
- Time to registration
- up to 7 working days
- Renewal on transfer
- yes, transferring renews the domain
- Transfer code length
- 6 to 16 characters
- Transfer lock available
- yes
- Number of nameservers
- 1 to 13
- Quarantine after deletion
- 15 days
Features
- DNSSEC: yesYou can secure your domain name with DNSSEC.
- IPv6: yesThe nameservers for this extension can also be reached over IPv6.
- Special characters: yesDomain names with letters such as é, ü or ø (and sometimes other scripts) are possible.
- Whois privacy: no
- Trustee: no
Requirements
Who can register a .sd.cn?
- Private individuals as well as companies and organisations inside and outside China can register a .sd.cn domain name.
- The registry CNNIC requires real-name verification: a real person must be listed as the registrant with their full name, and they must prove their identity.
- The registrant's name must match the name on the proof of identity or company document exactly. For a company, the legal form must also be included, such as LTD.
- Do you live outside China and does your name contain special characters, such as ä, ü, ö or é? Then CNNIC can't check your passport and the application will fail. This concerns your full name as it appears on your proof of identity.
- Are you registering for a company and does the contact person's name contain special characters? Then you can provide another employee without such characters who is willing to be verified.
- You must comply with CNNIC's rules and Chinese law on domain names, including CNNIC's dispute resolution policy.
- A domain name must not violate the Chinese constitution or harm China's national security, honour or unity, or spread hatred, rumours, pornography, gambling, violence, terrorism or defamation.
- If the web server is located in mainland China, you need a valid ICP number from the Chinese ministry MIIT. This is only possible if the registrant has a branch in China.
- You must confirm that you're providing accurate and complete details, that you've read and understood CNNIC's rules, and that you comply with the rules for your website's content.
- You're fully responsible yourself if the domain is suspended due to a violation. CNNIC and the registrar are not liable if use of the domain name is interrupted.
Additional details for registration
- Indicate whether you're registering as a private individual or as a company or organisation.
- You provide the registrant's full real name. For a company, this is the name of a responsible person within the company.
- You state the type of proof of identity or company document, such as a passport, identity card or business licence, along with its number.
- For a company, the contact person you provide doesn't need to appear on the company document.
Documents
- Private individuals outside China send a scan or photo of their passport or identity card showing the registrant's name. A driving licence is not accepted.
- Companies and organisations outside China send a scan or copy of their business licence, company certificate or extract from the trade register. A copy of the contact person's passport or proof of identity is also required.
- Private individuals in mainland China use their Chinese identity card, not a passport.
- Companies in China also send the first page of their company certificate. A business licence is preferred.
- If you're from Hong Kong, Macau or Taiwan, you can use a mainland travel or residence permit, among other documents. For some documents, both the front and back are required.
- When registering, you provide the documents as a JPEG file of no more than 1 MB, with 'Register [domain name] documents' as the email subject.
- A signed declaration is no longer required.
Good to know when registering
- CNNIC checks every application manually, so registration isn't instant.
- If the documents aren't received within 8 days, the registration will fail.
- Even if you've been approved before, the check remains manual.
Transfer
Transferring a .sd.cn
- A transfer requires proof of identity or a company document for the registrant because of the mandatory real-name verification. If that verification still needs to be done during the transfer, there may be extra costs.
- You need a request signed by the registrant before the transfer can start.
- The domain must not be locked, for example by a registrar lock or a suspension. You can see this in the WHOIS. As the registrant, you can ask for the lock to be removed.
- The domain must be older than 60 days, otherwise the transfer will be refused.
- The expiry date must be more than 15 days away, otherwise the transfer will be refused. So start in good time, not just before the domain expires.
The transfer code
- You need a transfer code to start a transfer.
- As the registrant or administrative contact, you request the code from your current registrar.
- Check that the code is correct before you start the transfer, otherwise it will fail.
Owner
Change of registrant
Change of registrant
- For a new registrant, a copy of their proof of identity, passport or business licence is required.
- You provide the documents as a JPG, PNG, GIF or JPEG file of no more than 1 MB, with 'Trade [domain name] documents' as the email subject.
- A change of registrant isn't processed instantly.
- If the domain is currently in the name of a trustee service, you can move it to your own registrant. The reverse, from your own registrant to a trustee service, isn't possible.
Renewal, cancellation and quarantine
- After a domain has been restored, it's inactive at first. The registrar sets up the nameservers again, after which the domain automatically becomes active again.
More information
Registry rules and links
- Registry website cnnic.cn
- Dispute resolution policy www1.cnnic.cn
- Registry terms and conditions www1.cnnic.cn
Compiled from the registry's rules. Registries sometimes change their rules; if in doubt, the registry's terms take precedence. Updated on 11/11/2026.