.au complaints process

auDA has a clear, consistent .au domain name complaints process that provides procedural fairness and supports public confidence in .au.

auDA develops and maintains the .au Licensing Rules in consultation with stakeholders as part of our role as administrator of and self-regulatory policy body for the .au domain.

The .au Licensing Rules set out the requirements for .au domain name licence holders (registrants) to register a .au domain name. The rules also set out a complaints process to address concerns about .au domain name licences.

Members of the public can lodge a complaint about:

  • A .au domain name licence if you think a registrant does not meet the eligibility and/or allocation requirements to hold the specific .au domain name licence under the .au Licensing Rules
  • The actions or conduct of a registrar related to a .au domain name licence if you think the registrar has not met their responsibilities under the .au Licensing Rules.

Intellectual property disputes related to .au domain name licences are not covered by the .au complaints process. If you believe another party’s .au domain name licence infringes your intellectual property rights, the dispute can be managed under the .au Dispute Resolution Policy (auDRP).

The .au complaints process does not handle consumer issues, website content issues or issues relating to web hosting. These matters should be referred to the appropriate service provider or government agency.

To read the complaints process in full, refer to Part 3 of the .au Licensing Rules.

The complaint process

The .au Licensing Rules have a four-tier complaint process.

Licence Review Panel decisions

The following decisions have been under the .au Domain Administration Rules: Licensing (2019-01):

   

Registrant Review Panel decisions

The Registrant Review Panel was the entity responsible for making decisions about complaints under the previous .au Licensing Rules (2012-01). RRP decisions apply only to .au domain names where the current licence period commenced before 12 April 2021.

    

Commencing legal proceedings

You may also pursue any course of action under Australian law in respect of a complaint made to a provider (as a registrant or registrar) or .au Domain Administration. However, once you commence proceedings you will no longer to be able to bring a complaint under the Licencing Rules in relation to the same subject matter.

   

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