How to register a .com.tr domain: TRABİS rules and where things stand in 2026

What changed for .com.tr under TRABİS?

The biggest change is the end of the document requirement. .com.tr, .net.tr and .org.tr are now document-free extensions handed out on a first-come, first-served basis. Under Turkey’s Internet Domain Names Regulation, the time stamp of when an application reaches TRABİS decides who came first. Where you apply has also changed: not ODTÜ’s nic.tr system any more, but registrars.

Document-based extensions still exist

Extensions such as .av.tr, .dr.tr, .gov.tr, .edu.tr, .k12.tr, .bel.tr, .pol.tr and .tsk.tr still require documents. If you are a lawyer or doctor, the document rule continues for your professional extension. Advertising in these professions also follows its own rules; check your bar association or ministry regulation first.

What do the numbers say about the .tr market?

The numbers clearly show the effect of removing the document gate. Before TRABİS, the count is about 460,000 active .tr domains. By the end of September 2024 it reaches 1.27 million, and by the end of 2025, 1.3 million. Between those two points, .com.tr rises from 981,821 to 988,743, while plain .tr climbs from 164,528 to 180,062.

Plain .tr is the fast-growing side

Over roughly 15 months, plain .tr grows by 15,534 names and .com.tr by 6,922. Newcomers are drifting toward the shorter extension. On the .com.tr side, the number of good names still free shrinks every month.

How is the plain .tr extension being allocated?

Plain .tr, the “name.tr” format, opens in stages on 14 September 2023. Public bodies come first, then professional organisations and foundations holding .org.tr, then holders of names in extensions like .com.tr as of 25 August 2023. Third-category applications begin on 14 February 2024. Once the priority order ends, the remaining names go out first-come, first-served.

How do you register a .com.tr domain in 6 steps?

The purchase takes an afternoon; the thinking takes longer. Follow the six steps below in order; each one says what you need. The first two steps are free, and payment only starts at the registrar step. Registrar prices vary, so look at at least two offers.

1. Make a name list. Write 6 candidates that include your sector and city, and put the short, readable ones first.
2. Check each candidate in TRABİS’s domain lookup to see whether it is free.
3. Choose an accredited registrar from the list TRABİS publishes.
4. Fill in the registrar’s application form fully, in your own name or your company’s name.
5. Choose the allocation term: at least 1, at most 5 years.
6. Put the expiry date in your calendar and do not miss the renewal reminder.

The most common mistake

Letting the designer or a nephew register the domain in their name. When someone else owns it on paper, your shop sign walks out the door the day you part ways.

What do the rules say about transfer, renewal and losing a name?

Registering the name is not the end; three rules decide whether you keep it. Transfers go through the registrar with a form and the documents set out in the regulation. A name that expires without renewal lands on the reallocation list after a two-month waiting period. A name that infringes a trademark can be cancelled or transferred through dispute resolution.

If you miss the renewal

The name can go on the reallocation list and end up with someone else. Years of traffic and link value go with it. You can read where domain value comes from in what makes a domain valuable.

Three conditions in a dispute

Under the regulation, a complaint needs all three conditions: the name resembles a protected trademark or name, the holder has no legitimate right, and the name was registered or is used in bad faith. This is an alternative route; the courts remain open.

Transfer is the door to a sale

The right to transfer is what lets you sell a domain like any other asset. A sale or rental only runs smoothly if the name is registered to you.

What it means for you: whose name should your domain be in?

One answer: yours. In a system without a document gate, speed only turns into real property when the registration is in your name. We explain the difference between renting a marketplace stall and owning your own address in why build my own store. You can find why domain, site and content gain value together in owning a digital asset.

Calendar and price

The START package is TRY 36,000 + VAT, or TRY 43,200 with 20 percent VAT; check the current VAT rate on your invoice. There are 12 project slots and the last day is 1 November 2026. See the Own a Digital Asset campaign page for details.

Quick Summary

• .com.tr has been document-free since 14 September 2022; the first applicant gets it.
• You apply through an accredited registrar in TRABİS.
• The allocation term is at least 1 and at most 5 years.
• There are 1.3 million active .tr names at the end of 2025, 988,743 of them .com.tr.
• A name that is not renewed goes to the reallocation list after two months.
• Always register the domain in your own name.

Short Glossary

TRABİS: TRABİS is the national registry system used to run applications and allocations for .tr domains.

Registrar: A registrar is a company authorised to pass domain applications on to TRABİS.

Document-free allocation: Document-free allocation is the rule used to give a domain to the first applicant without asking for documents.

Next Step

If the domain carrying your sector’s name is free, it is time to turn it into an asset. Apply to the Own a Digital Asset campaign and have the domain, site and 108 pieces of content built in your name.

Frequently Asked Questions

Source: TRABİS — Frequently Asked Questions (in Turkish)