How to Transfer a Domain from Porkbun to Static.app

To transfer a domain from Porkbun to Static.app, unlock the domain in Domain Management and copy the authorization code from the Details menu. Then start the transfer at Static.app with that code. Porkbun completes it about five days after the request arrives, or sooner if you choose to approve the transfer out. The one thing to do first is save a copy of your DNS records.

Before you start

• Check the dates. A domain has to stay at one registrar for 60 days before it can move. A change to the owner details does not add a lock: Porkbun's registration agreement opts you out of that 60-day lock. The exception is a domain bought through Porkbun's marketplace, where the lock still applies.
• Check the expiry. Porkbun does not recommend starting a transfer within 30 days of the expiry date. An expired domain can still move during its grace period, but you need Porkbun support to unlock it.
• No email to wait for. Porkbun shows the code on screen as soon as you ask for it, so you do not depend on the owner's inbox to get it.
• Save your DNS records. If the domain uses Porkbun's own nameservers, its records live in your Porkbun account. Porkbun does not say whether they keep answering once the domain has left, so plan as if they will not. Open Manage DNS Records on the domain and write down every record, especially the MX and TXT records your email depends on.
• Check what else is tied to the domain. If you use Porkbun email or hosting on the domain, it depends on those DNS records too. Set the records up at their new home before the domain moves.

Step 1: Unlock the domain at Porkbun

1. Sign in to Porkbun and open Domain Management.
2. Click the green lock icon to the right of the domain.
3. Wait a moment until it turns grey and shows the domain as unlocked.

Step 2: Copy the authorization code

1. In the same row, open the Details drop-down.
2. Choose Get Authorization Code.
3. Copy the code shown under Auth Code in the window that opens.

Step 3: Start the transfer at Static.app

Sign in to Static.app, open Domains, and choose Transfer Domain. The form has three parts:

1. Which domain are you moving? Type the whole name, such as yourbusiness.com. Static.app checks at once whether it can move, what the transfer costs, and which company holds it now.
2. Authorization code: paste the code from Porkbun. Copy it exactly, with no space before or after.
3. Owner contact: the registry records these details against the domain, so use an email address you read.

Tick the terms box and choose Continue to Payment. A transfer is charged like a registration and adds a year to the domain (two years on a .ai name, which is sold two years at a time). The transfer is sent to the registry once the payment goes through.

Static.app keeps the domain on the nameservers it uses today, so the transfer changes who you pay for the name and nothing else. Your website and email keep working, as long as the DNS behind those nameservers keeps answering.

Not every ending can move here yet. Country endings such as .uk, .de and .eu are not supported, and the form tells you as soon as you type the name.

Step 4: Approve the transfer at Porkbun

You do not have to wait out the five days. Once Static.app has sent the request, go back to the Registrar Transfer area at Porkbun and choose Approve Transfer Out. If you do nothing, Porkbun completes the transfer about five days after the request arrives.

Step 5: Finish setting up the domain at Static.app

When the domain shows as Active in your Domains list, it is registered with Static.app. If the transfer does not go through, the domain stays where it was, the payment is refunded, and the domain page says why and offers Try the Transfer Again. The usual causes are a lock that is still on, a wrong or expired code, or a domain that changed hands in the last 60 days.

What is left depends on where your DNS lives:

• Your DNS is with a company you are keeping, such as Cloudflare or your hosting company: nothing changes. To open a Static.app website on the domain, add its records there, or move DNS here as below.
• Your DNS was at Porkbun: move it to Static.app the moment the domain shows Active, since that DNS may stop answering once the domain has left. The steps are in the next point.
• You want Static.app to run the DNS: open the domain, choose Edit beside Nameservers, then Reset to Default and Update Nameservers. Static.app writes the records for any website connected to the domain. Add everything else, such as your email records, in Manage DNS or Email & Forwarding right away, using the copy you made before the transfer.

To open one of your websites on the domain, choose Assign beside Website on the domain page and pick the website. With the DNS here, the records and the SSL certificate are set up for you. A paid plan is needed to publish a website on your own domain.

Moving a domain from another company? See every transfer guide.

Frequently asked questions

How long does a transfer from Porkbun take?

About five days if you leave it, and less if you choose Approve Transfer Out. Getting the code takes a minute, since Porkbun shows it on screen.

Do I lose the time I already paid Porkbun for?

No. For .com and the other common endings, the time left on the domain comes with it and the transfer adds a year on top. Porkbun's agreement says its fees are not refundable, and it lists no fee for moving a domain away.

Will my website or email stop working?

Not because of the transfer itself: Static.app keeps your nameservers as they are. The risk is DNS that lived at Porkbun. If it stops answering after the move, your website and email stop with it until the records are set up again, which is why the copy you saved matters. Moving DNS to Static.app as soon as the domain arrives takes a few minutes.

Do I need to transfer at all?

Not to use the domain with a Static.app website. Porkbun points out that you can keep the domain at Porkbun and point it with DNS records or nameservers instead. Transfer when you want Static.app to be the place you renew and manage the name.