# Registrar and Registry: Who Is Responsible for What

> How a registrar differs from a registry and a reseller, who sets domain statuses, whom to contact when things go wrong and where Riki Domains sits.

- Language: en
- Published: 2026-11-01 · Updated: 2026-11-01
- HTML: https://rikidomains.at/en/glossary/registrar-registry/
- Markdown: https://rikidomains.at/en/glossary/registrar-registry/index.md
- RU version: https://rikidomains.at/ru/glossary/registrar-registry/

Every domain has three levels of responsibility, and confusing them costs time when something goes wrong.

## The registry

The organisation that runs the whole zone: Verisign for .com, nic.at for .at, Tonic for .to. The registry keeps the database of all domains in the zone, sets registration rules and prices for registrars, and can set zone-level statuses such as serverHold.

## The registrar

A company accredited by the registry to sell domains to end clients. The registrar takes payment, stores the owner's contact details, handles complaints under its own rules and sets statuses such as clientHold and clientTransferProhibited.

## Resellers and services on top of a registrar

Services that sell domains through registrars, adding their own interface, payment and support. Riki Domains works this way: a bot and a panel on top of partner registrars, with its own support, crypto payment and DNS management. In Platinum and Titan zones the registration is done by the service staff with Riki Domains details.

## Whom to contact

- The domain does not open, a payment, DNS or renewal question: the support of the service where the domain was bought, [@riki_domains_support](https://t.me/riki_domains_support).
- A registrar status after a complaint: also through support, which handles the correspondence with the registrar for the client.
- A registry decision: only through the registrar; registries usually do not deal with owners directly.

> [Open the bot](https://t.me/riki_domains_bot?start=d14)

## FAQ

**Can I find out the registrar of someone else's domain?**

Yes, it is listed in the domain's public record (RDAP/WHOIS) in the Registrar field.

**What is registrar accreditation?**

A registrar's agreement with the registry or ICANN that grants the right to register domains in the zone. Resellers work under an agreement with an accredited registrar.