.me domain names: Montenegro's ccTLD explained

The IANA-delegated manager is the Government of Montenegro, which holds administrative authority over the extension. Running the registry day to day is a different matter, that job falls to doMEn d.o.o., a Montenegro-based registry services provider. doMEn was set up as a joint venture between Afilias, GoDaddy.com and ME-net d.o.o., according to Wikipedia's account of the 2007 bid process. The technical platform sits with Identity Digital, which the registry names as its backend platform provider.

Within .me's structure, the registry (doMEn) sets policy and runs the shared database, but it does not sell domains directly to the public. Registration goes through accredited registrars, a network the registry puts at 350-plus strong, with GoDaddy sitting among the co-founding partners. The registrant is simply whoever buys and holds the name through one of those registrars. Ownership disputes go through the UDRP providers named in .ME's policies: WIPO, ADNDRC and the National Arbitration Forum, all working to ICANN's UDRP framework rather than any Montenegro-specific court process.

At the second level, meaning a straightforward name.me, the registry's own policy is refreshingly simple: anyone, anywhere, individual or company, can register one. No restrictions, no paperwork proving local ties. This comes straight from the registry itself, not from individual registrars, so it holds no matter which accredited registrar you buy through.

Third-level names are a different story entirely. Domains under net.me, org.me, co.me, its.me and priv.me are locked down to individuals and entities based in Montenegro, and you can only register them through two specific registrars named in the policy, not the wider market. Two more zones, edu.me and ac.me, sit under the direct control of the University of Montenegro's Center of Information Systems. Gov.me is handled by the Ministry of Public Administration. Neither is sold through the normal registrar network at all.

Names run from 1 to 63 characters at the second level. Latin letters, digits and hyphens are fair game, though hyphens can't sit at the start or end, and there's a defined list of extra scripts permitted for internationalised names. The registry also keeps a separate list of Reserved Names locked away for government and registry use, plus a set of Premium Names that cost more but are still sold through ordinary registrars.

Moving a .me domain to a new registrar works the same way it does for most TLDs: you get an authorisation code and go through the standard transfer process. The registry does bolt on one .me-specific rule though. You can't transfer a domain within the first five days of its creation, and any transfer that does go through tacks a year onto the registration term, which the gaining registrar is entitled to charge you for (domain.me policies).

Registration terms range from one year up to ten, and renewal happens automatically at expiry unless the registrant or registrar cancels ahead of time (domain.me policies). Past that, the registry's own policy gets vague fast. It just says "certain grace periods exist to allow for the cancellation of transactions by registrars" and punts the actual timings to your registrar.

Here's the gap worth flagging: nowhere in the registry documentation is there a fixed redemption-period length or a standard restore fee for a lapsed .me domain. Some ccTLDs spell out an exact grace and redemption schedule down to the day. .me doesn't. What happens after your domain expires is down to whatever contract you signed with your registrar, so don't assume some uniform ICANN-style timetable is quietly protecting you. Ask the registrar directly.