On October 3, 2024, the UK announced that it’s giving up sovereignty over the Chagos Islands, transferring them to Mauritius. Why does this matter? Because the “.io” domain is tied to these islands. When control changes hands, so does the fate of the domain.

The “.io” domain became popular among startups and developers due to its association with “input/output” in tech. Sites like Github.io and Google I/O helped boost its popularity. But here’s the catch: “.io” is actually a country-code top-level domain (ccTLD), meaning it’s tied to the now-defunct British Indian Ocean Territory.

When the handover is finalized, the ISO (International Organization for Standardization) will remove the “IO” country code from its database. The question is whether this will cause the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA), which manages domain names, to stop issuing new “.io” domains. It is also uncertain what will happen to existing “.io” domains.

What history teaches us

The risks of the .io domain ceasing to exist are underscored by historical precedents where political changes affected country-specific top-level domains (ccTLDs). When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, the .su domain lingered despite the country’s dissolution. Though ICANN considered phasing it out, .su persisted and eventually became a haven for cybercrime and dubious activities due to its ambiguous legal status. While Russia was given the .ru domain, .su still exists, though its future remains uncertain.

A similar situation occurred with the breakup of Yugoslavia in the early 1990s. The country’s ccTLD, .yu, remained in use even as the nation disintegrated into several independent countries. Transitioning to new ccTLDs like .rs for Serbia and .hr for Croatia was chaotic, creating confusion over domain control. ICANN eventually retired the .yu domain in 2010, forcing a migration that caused operational difficulties for many domain holders.

These cases highlight how geopolitical changes can lead to long-term complications for ccTLDs, including legal limbo, misuse, or the forced migration of domain holders. If the political status of the British Indian Ocean Territory changes, .io could face similar challenges, potentially requiring domain owners to migrate or risk losing access to their domains. However, the risk of the .io domain ceasing to exist is quite low.

Reasons for the .io domain to stay active

Here are the reasons why the .io domain is unlikely to cease to exist:

1. The .io domain is highly popular among tech startups, cryptocurrency platforms, and developers due to its association with “input/output” in computing, creating a strong market for the domain. Google I/O kicked off the popularity of .io domains, and it hasn’t ceased since.

2. The .io domain generates significant income through registrations and renewals. Companies have heavily invested in .io for branding and infrastructure, which creates financial incentives to maintain its availability.

3. Identity Digital (formerly Afilias), which manages the .io domain, profits from its widespread use. Shutting down the domain would result in a direct financial loss to the registry, making discontinuation unlikely.

4. Lastly: This is not the Soviet Union or Yugoslavia where the dissolution of these countries was even more chaotic than what happened to their domains. Even if governance of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) changes, the value of the .io domain in the global digital economy ensures that stakeholders will likely negotiate to keep it running for financial reasons.

We at Tuta are quite certain that IANA (Internet Assigned Numbers Authority), the department within ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) that manages top level domains, will allow .io domains to persist.

Should I switch from .io to a different domain?

Right now, switching to a new domain from .io is not necessary. Even if the .io domain were to cease in existence, IANA would announce that well in advance - most likely more than three years before this actually happening.

However, if you want to be absolutely sure that nothing ever happens to your domain and you want to keep using it in 30 years from now, we would recommend that you choose a popular domain from a stable country such as .com (top level domain of the US) or .de (top level domain of Germany). Given the historical examples in this article, it’s noteworthy to mention that the German TLD .de was introduced in 1986 - and despite political changes towards the end of the decade which resulted in the reunion of Germany, nothing happened to the German .de domain; it’s still in use today.

So if you’re using a tuta.io email address, there’s nothing to worry about, and you can keep using this email address well into the next years - most likely for as long as you want to. However, if you want to be 100% certain that your email address stays available forever, you can easily upgrade your account to Revolutionary or Legend and add a tuta.com email address to your account.