The WHOIS is available to everyone and shows the name of the registrant and their address details, as held on our register. However it is possible for some people to opt out from having their address shown in the WHOIS.

Can anyone opt out?

Only domain name holders that are non-trading individuals can opt out of having their address details published on the WHOIS. In other words, if you do not use or plan to use your domain name for business, trade (this includes the registration of domain names for monetisation purposes, e.g. pay per click advertising etc) or professional transactions, you will be entitled to opt out of having your address displayed.

How can I opt out?

There are 2 ways to do this.

1. Contact your registrar (registration agent) and ask them to opt you out of the WHOIS. If you do not know who your registrar is then you can do a WHOIS look up to find out.
   
2. Alternatively, if you are the registrant and a non-trading individual, you can log into your Nominet online account and select the opt-out button on the Account Summary page.
   

Incorrect opt-out

If you believe a domain name is incorrectly opted out of the WHOIS you can make a complaint. We will investigate all complaints to check compliance with our opt-out policy. If we uphold your complaint the domain name will be opted back in to WHOIS.

Click here to make a WHOIS opt-out complaint

Further detail about our WHOIS service and policy is available in our WHOIS FAQ.