All EU alphabets allowed as .eu domain

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December 9, 2009

Special characters in .eu domain names

Starting 10 December 2009, it is possible to register .eu domain names containing non-ASCII characters. Domain names using special characters are called IDNs (Internationalised Domain Names). IDN-domain names may thus include special characters like ä, ö, å or German ü.

Some restrictions will still apply. For example, use of German ß is not allowed. The character ß must be replaced by “ss”, therefore, the German word "straße" will read "strasse". Every IDN is automatically converted into a format that the domain name system can use. The aforesaid is called an ACE string.

IDN -domain names are important for Europeans

The possibility of using all official EU language characters is important for the members of the European Union. EU currently consists of 27 members and 23 official languages. Many of these contain non-ASCII characters, including e.g. Bulgarian and Greek alphabets.

All the registrars do not support registering IDN -domain names. Our trademark attorneys will be pleased to answer your questions regarding internet domain registration issues.