Contracting Invitation Requests

Contracting Invitation Requests or CIR are invitations sent to new TLD applicants that have passed initial evaluation (IE) and are ready to continue the process of registering a new gTLD. ICANN uses CIR invitations to gain more information about the registry including: points of contact, proof of a continued operations instrument (COI), disclosure of cross-ownership interests, and any modifications to data in previous applications. In order for an application to be considered eligible for a CIR, it must meet specific criteria, such as being active. An applicant will not receive a CIR if the new gTLD is under objection, in contention, or has received a GAC early warning. Additionally, if the gTLD is considered at high risk for name collision or has active changes pending, it will not qualify for a CIR invitation. During the CIR process, registries may apply for a Code of Conduct (COC) exemption. In order to qualify, a registry operator must show:

• “(i) all domain name registrations in the TLD are registered to, and maintained by, Registry Operator for the exclusive use of Registry Operator or its Affiliates,
• (ii) Registry Operator does not sell, distribute or transfer control or use of any registrations in the TLD to any third party that is not an Affiliate of Registry Operator, and
• (iii) application of this Code of Conduct to the TLD is not necessary to protect the public interest."

CIR Review

After the CIR is submitted, it is checked for completeness and subject to a substantive review. Although ICANN processes CIRs by their priority number, any problems or errors found will result in a more lengthy CIR process and follow up procedure.

Sample CIR

The CIR requires the following information:

1. Signatory Information - Name, Contact info
2. Point of Contact Information - Name, Contact info
3. File Attachments - includes Redlines of Registry Agreement, and COI
4. Special Circumstances
   1. Cross Ownership Relations - Disclosure of applicant's involvement with any registrar, reseller
   2. Spec. 9, Code of Conduct - Indicate if a Spec. 9 Code of Conduct Exemption is desired, if so, attach relevant request
   3. Unique Designations - Indicate whether the applicant is a Governmental/IGO applicant and/or a Community Priority Applicant
   4. Changes of Registry Agreement - Indicate whether you are submitting changes to the Registry Agreement, and, if so, whether these changes are based on a prior agreement with ICANN
5. Contracting Point of Contact - Name, Contact info
6. Additional Information
   1. Indicate whether the Contracting POC is the same as Primary contact
   2. Confirm that authorized signatory was named in Question 11 of the original application
   3. Indicate Notices POC, to receive all general notices from ICANN
   4. Indicate whether or not you intend to provide additional Registry Services - Those services are to be identified in Exhibit A of the Registry Agreement, any addition services to be offered must align with responses in your application, such as the response to question 23.
   5. Confirm that your COI is in compliance with Spec. 8 of the Registry Agreement
   6. Indicate if there are changes to applicant data that have no been previously communicated to ICANN. If so, follow the official Change Request Process.

Top-Level Domain