About .nu domains

About .nu domains

.NU is a country-code top-level domain (ccTLD) in the DNS root zone. It is designated for Niue. The IANA root zone lists the registry manager as The IUSN Foundation. Registration policies (who may register, local presence, pricing) are set by the registry and its accredited registrars — not by IANA.

.nu is the Internet country code top-level domain (ccTLD) assigned to the island state of Niue. It was one of the first ccTLDs to be marketed to the Internet at large as an alternative to the gTLDs .com, .net, and .org. Playing on the phonetic similarity between nu and new in English, and the fact that nu means "now" in several northern European languages, it was promoted as a new TLD with an abundance of good domain names available. The .nu domain is now controlled by the Internet Foundation in Sweden amid opposition from the government of Niue. Google treats .nu as a generic top-level domain (gTLD) because "users and website owners frequently see [the domain] as being more generic than country-targeted."

Who can register .nu domains?

Eligibility is defined by the registry operator and its registrars. Most gTLDs are open to anyone worldwide. Many ccTLDs are also open globally; some require local presence, citizenship, or trademark rights. Always confirm current policy with the registry or your registrar.

Registration restrictions

Character rules below follow common ICANN LDH conventions. Individual registries and registrars may impose extra eligibility, length, or residency rules.

Length

2 – 63 characters (label before .nu)

Can use

Letters (a–z), numbers (0–9), and hyphens (not first/last or consecutive in restricted cases)

Cannot use

Special characters (e.g. & # @) in standard LDH labels

IDNs

Varies by registry — check IDN support with the registry or your registrar

Features

Operational features (privacy, parking, protection) are registrar-level, not defined by the IANA root zone record.

Registry information

Sponsor / manager

The IUSN Foundation

Registration services

https://www.internetstiftelsen.se

WHOIS server

whois.iis.nu

Root zone registration

1997-06-20

Record last updated

2025-07-03