Government domain names

Domain Name Service (DNS) Management Portal

The government DNS Management Portal is where you can apply for and manage your domain names 24/7. It’s managed by Liverton Security.

Eligibility for a government domain name

Government organisations are eligible to apply for a third-level .govt.nz domain name for:

• a new government organisation or business unit
• multi-agency projects or initiatives with a significant public profile.

Learn how to:

• choose a domain name
• apply for a domain name.

For more information on eligibility for applying for a domain name, read the Policy for Moderation and Registration of .govt.nz Internet Domain Names.

About the service

The government domain name service:

• provides a straightforward application process
• makes the management of domain names easy and secure
• provides both domain registration and DNS
• is free for all New Zealand central and local government organisations.

You can also apply for .parliament.nz, .health.nz and .mil.nz domain names using this service, as well as public domains such as .co.nz or .net.nz. For more information, contact the Domain Name Service Team.

Learn how to manage your domains.

Benefits of using the service

The government domain name service includes:

• 24/7 access to the DNS Management Portal
• 2-factor authentication for DNS Management Portal users
• registration of domain names in te reo Māori, including vowels with macrons
• 5 resilient and secure government nameservers offering:
  • Domain Name System Security Extensions (DNSSEC)
  • Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) addressing
  • 99.999% availability.

Benefits of using a .govt.nz domain name

A .govt.nz domain offers a high level of trust and public recognition. This means that the visitors to your website do not have to worry about whether they’ve found a legitimate government service.

They’re also treated with extra authority by search engines and the algorithms that power other results, such as voice assistant responses or snippets and information cards.

Certification and accreditation

The office of the Government Chief Digital Officer (GCDO) has prepared a Service Security Certificate (SSC), which summarises the risk position of the government DNS Management Portal and has been accredited by the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA).

The SSC covers the registrar function, the government DNS Management Portal and the government nameservers operated by Liverton Security. It does not apply to other external nameservers if you choose to use them.

If you’d like to view the SSC or find out more about the security position of the Portal, contact the Domain Name Service Team.

Responsibilities

Your organisation is responsible for:

• reading and understanding the risks identified as part of the DNS service certification process
• assessing the risks associated with the DNS service
• ensuring that your organisation’s internal certification and accreditation processes are complied with.

Within the DNS Management Portal, organisations are responsible for:

• adding and removing their users of the Portal
• any changes their users make through the Portal.

Contact details

Business hours: 8.30am to 5pm, Monday to Friday

Support is available 24/7, however charges apply outside of business hours.