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How to Transfer (and Control) Your Domain and Website Hosting

Its important to be in control of your website and that includes your domain and hosting.

If you don’t have control of your domain or hosting, you may be locked out of your own website, struggle to update important details, or even risk losing the site altogether.

This guide explains:

This Guide Explains

Why Having Control of Your Domain Matters

Your domain name is your digital shopfront. It’s likely hosted with a company like GoDaddy, Siteground, Crazy Domains, HostPapa or maybe it’s through your IT company or current web developer.  Your domain is tied not only to your website but often to your business email.

If someone else (a past developer, agency, or employee) controls your domain:

  • You could lose access to your own website.
  • Email accounts could be disrupted if records are changed.
  • Renewals may be missed, and your domain could expire – sometimes even purchased by someone else.
  • You might face unnecessary costs or delays just to make simple changes.

You should always be the official registrant and have full login access to your domain account.

How to Check Who Controls Your Domain

You can look up the contact details for your domain at auDA WHOIS Lookup (auDA is the regulatory authority of the .au domain space in Australia).

The admin contact email listed there is the address that will receive domain transfer authorisations. If this email is outdated or inaccessible, the contact information will need to be updated before a transfer can happen.

If someone has used their email address for your domain, please refer to auDA’s policy on domain contact information for more information.

How to Transfer Your Domain

Transferring your domain means moving the registration from your current registrar to a new registrar (Webtree uses and recommends VentraIP). 

This referral link may earn me a small thank you, but rest assured, I only recommend what I genuinely use and trust.

Steps:

  1. Get your EPP code
    Go to auDA Password Recovery
    and request your domain’s EPP code. This will be emailed to the admin contact address listed in WHOIS.
  2. Start the transfer with your new registrar
    Create an account with the registrar you want to move to and begin the transfer process. You’ll be asked to enter the EPP code to approve the move. If getting hosting also, start with purchasing a hosting package and you will be prompted to transfer your domain during this process.
  3. If you don’t have access
    If you no longer have access to the admin email, the domain contact information will need to be updated before transfer.
    This can be a bit tricky, so ask your developer for help if needed.


Note: It’s not always necessary to transfer your domain. You can leave it with your current provider if you prefer.
Just remember: if your domain is linked to email services, the DNS (records that control where your website and emails are hosted)
must be carefully managed during any website migration.

Transferring Your Website Hosting

Your domain and your website hosting are separate. The domain is your address, and hosting is where your website files live.

If you’re moving away from your current provider, we recommend setting up hosting with VentraIP.

This referral link may earn me a small thank you, but rest assured, I only recommend what I genuinely use and trust.

Steps:

  1. Go to VentraIP Hosting.
  2. Choose WordPress Hosting or Business Hosting (Business Hosting is recommended if you have an ongoing maintenance agreement with a developer).
  3. Once purchased, log into your VentraIP account.
  4. In order to collaborate with your developer, in the top right, go to: Profile → Additional Users.
  5. Add your developer’s email address. You can add an expiry date if you want access to end automatically, or leave it blank if the arrangement is ongoing.
This setup ensures you remain the account owner with full control. Developers (or IT providers) only have the access you grant – and you can revoke it at any time.

Domain vs Hosting – Do You Need to Move Both?

  • Domain: Can stay where it is, as long as you have control. If tied to email, extra care is needed with DNS records during migration.
  • Hosting: Worth moving if your current provider is slow, unreliable, unresponsive, expensive or difficult to deal with.
    Migrating hosting and domain together often makes things simpler, but the most important part is that you are the owner and decision-maker for both.

Think of your domain and hosting as the keys to your online office. You wouldn’t let someone else hold the only set of keys to your building – so don’t hand over your digital keys either.

At Webtree, we make sure you stay in control, while we handle the technical setup and migration for you.