Marketplace distribution
After approval, eligible TLDs may be offered through the HeadlessDomains customer-facing marketplace under accepted namespace-specific terms.
A letter to Handshake TLD owners
Bring your TLD to HeadlessDomains
If you want to offer second-level names without building and operating an entire registrar alone, we would be glad to explore a reviewed launch with you.
Hello TLD owner,
HeadlessDomains Partners provides a reviewed path for owners who want distribution through the HeadlessDomains marketplace, a hosted partner-branded white-label registrar, or API access for an owner-operated registrar.
Every TLD begins private. Applying does not transfer ownership, accept commercial terms, change nameservers, or make your namespace publicly sellable.
Commercial acceptance comes before custody. Do not transfer a TLD, change its delegation for HeadlessDomains, or authorize a registry binding until you have reviewed and accepted the namespace-specific versioned offer in this portal.
How onboarding works
1. Apply with one TLDSign in with GFAVIP so the application and its review status stay attached to your account. Tell us who operates the TLD, how you control it, whether it has existing second-level names, and whether you want HeadlessDomains marketplace distribution, a white-label registrar, or API access.
2. Confirm identity and controlWe review the authorized owner and a non-secret proof of Handshake control. Never send a private key, seed phrase, wallet password, API secret, or raw signed-message secret.
3. Protect existing holdersBefore new sales, we reconcile existing registrations, reserved and premium names, claims, and DNS. If there are no prior obligations, we record an explicit zero-inventory attestation.
4. Agree namespace-specific termsWe put registration and renewal prices, both parties' shares, deductions, refunds, premium names, merchant of record, payouts, privacy, parent-TLD renewal funding, support, custody authority, termination, and migration in a versioned offer. The TLD owner must accept it before any custody transfer is requested or approved. Application notes are not a contract.
5. Choose and authorize the operating modelOnly after commercial acceptance do we authorize owner custody with delegated registry operations, HeadlessDomains custody, or another explicitly agreed model. No TLD transfer, delegation, or registry binding should occur before that gate passes.
6. Connect and test privatelyWe verify the registry parent zone, authoritative availability, reserved-name protection, failed-state behavior, idempotency, and one controlled test flow before any public launch.
7. Approve launch in stagesMarketplace listing, registrar permission, credentials, interoperability, payment, and public traffic are separate approval gates. A TLD is never made sellable merely because an application exists.
Hosted white-label
Operate a partner-branded registrar while HeadlessDomains provides approved registry APIs, provisioning coordination, and launch support.
API integration
Connect an owner-operated registrar or approved distribution channel through scoped credentials and a tested registry contract.
What remains yours
TLD ownershipYou retain ownership unless a different custody arrangement is explicitly accepted in writing.
Operating-model approvalYou review the exact custody model and authority granted to HeadlessDomains.
Commercial acceptanceYou review namespace-specific pricing and both parties' terms before accepting an immutable offer.
Custody sequencing protectionHeadlessDomains cannot approve custody transfer or bind the registry until that namespace-specific offer has been accepted.
Continuity and exitThe written plan covers existing holders, data export, migration, termination, and return of delegated authority or custody.
What to prepare
- Your TLD and project/operator identity.
- A safe way to prove current Handshake control.
- Renewal status and a plan for continued TLD renewal funding.
- Existing SLD, reserved-name, premium-name, claim, and DNS inventory—or an explicit statement that none exists.
- Your preferred path: marketplace, hosted white-label, or API integration.
- Proposed registration and renewal pricing.
- Support, reporting, payout, privacy, and migration requirements.
Security and privacy
Never send us a private key, seed phrase, wallet password, registrar password, raw signed-message secret, or production API credential. Control proofs use safe verification methods and non-secret evidence references.
We do not provide unrestricted customer-database access. Reporting and support data are limited to what is necessary for the agreed service, customer support, legal obligations, and payouts.
Existing or failed registries
If your TLD was previously operated through another registry—even one that is offline—we first reconcile all available holder, reservation, claim, payment, and DNS evidence.
Existing names remain protected until their status is understood. An empty new database is not proof that no prior obligations exist.
Ready to begin?
Submit one TLD and tell us how you control it, whether any SLDs already exist, your preferred operating model, and what you would like HeadlessDomains to handle. We will review it with you before any registry, commercial, or public-launch change.
— HeadlessDomains Partners