InterNIC Billing Policy

The purpose of this document is to clarify InterNIC billing procedures as well as to provide an update regarding the current status of sending out invoices for both new name registrations and renewals of existing names.

First of all, it is important to understand that the procedures followed for new names is somewhat different than that for renewals of existing names. The reason for this is: in the case of names that existed prior to the charging of fees for domain name registrations, the registration template did not contain a Billing Contact. Therefore, before invoices could be sent for name renewals, it was necessary to obtain information regarding Billing Contacts for all existing names. To accomplish this, notices are sent to all contacts 60 days prior to the due date for renewal registrations and a modification template is attached to facilitate the process of obtaining Billing Contact information. The processes followed by InterNIC Registration Services for billing for renewal and new names are outlined below.

Renewal Registration Billing Process Steps:

1. 60-Day Notice with request for Billing Contact information is sent via E-Mail to all registered contacts (Admin, Technical and Zone).

2. Invoice sent to Billing Contact 30 days prior to due date. Note: If postal mail was selected as the desired option for transmittal of the invoice, the invoice will be sent via postal mail to the Billing Contact. This will be the ONLY notice sent to any of the registered contacts via postal mail.

3. 15-Day Final Invoice E-Mailed to all registered contacts if payment is not received by due date. In addition a letter will be sent via postal mail to the registrant holding the domain name advising that the domain name will be deactivated unless payment is received.

4. Name is put on HOLD if payment is not received within 15 days of 15-Day Final Invoice date; name will still display in Whois but will not be accessible. E-Mail notices will be sent to all registered contacts.

5. If payment is not received within 60 days of being put on HOLD, name will be DELETED and will be put into the available pool of names for new registrations; NO NOTICE will be given.

New Name Registration Billing Process Steps:

1. Invoice is sent to the Billing Contact with a due date of 30 days from the invoice date. If postal mail was selected as the desired option for invoice delivery, the invoice will be sent via postal mail. This will be the ONLY notice sent to any of the registered contacts via postal mail.

2. 15-Day Final Invoice E-Mailed to all registered contacts if payment is not received by due date. In addition, a letter will be sent via postal mail to the organization holding the domain name advising that the domain name will be deactivated unless payment is received.

3. Name is put on HOLD if payment is not received within 15 days of 15-Day Final Invoice date; name will still display in Whois but will not be accessible. E-Mail notices will be sent to all registered contacts.

4. If payment is not received within 60 days of being put on HOLD, name will be DELETED and will be put into the available pool of names for new registrations; NO NOTICE will be given.

NOTE: It is very important that point of contact information is accurate in the InterNIC registration database. PLEASE check Whois to verify that the postal address of the organization holding the name is correct and to verify that E-Mail addresses are correct for Admin, Technical and Zone Contacts. Check the template submitted to verify that the name, postal address and E-Mail address are correct for the Billing Contact. If not, send a MODIFY template immediately to correct the records. It is the registrant's responsibility to provide the InterNIC with accurate information.

Current Status of Billing Function: As of May 16, 1996, there is about a 5-week backlog in sending out bills for newly registered domains; it is anticipated that this backlog should be eliminated in about 1-2 weeks, at which time invoices should be sent out within one week of registration. At this time, no invoices for renewal of existing names have been sent out; the process of sending out 60-Day notices started in late April for names with anniversary dates in June. At the same time, the backlog of 60-Day Notices for names with anniversary dates going back to December 15 will be progressively worked.

Please understand that in all cases where there has been an InterNIC caused delay in issuing invoices, due dates will be adjusted to allow the same time frames as if they were processed on schedule. For example, for renewal registrations, invoice due dates will be at least 60 days after the date of 60-Day Notices, regardless of the actual anniversary date. In the case of new registrations, invoice due dates will be at least 30 days after the actual invoice date, regardless of the date of name registration.

InterNIC Registration Services has experienced a surprisingly low level of payments on invoices generated to date. Only about 30% to 40% of invoices are being paid on time. This is significantly increasing processing costs and causing excess demands on our systems, processes and personnel resources. We have added equipment and personnel to deal with this overload, but we do ask your patience. Timely payments will help us to serve all of our customers better.

Thank you for your cooperation. If you have any questions, please call our Help Desk at (703) 742-4777 or send them to billing@internic.net.