.al
| Introduced | 1992 |
|---|---|
| TLD type | Country code top-level domain |
| Status | Active |
| Registry | Electronic and Postal Communications Authority (AKEP) |
| Sponsor | Electronic and Postal Communications Authority (AKEP) |
| Intended use | Entities connected with  Albania
|
| Actual use | Very popular in Albania |
| Registration restrictions | Free for anyone, some restrictions apply only on second level domains (ex: .com.al) which are allowed only for Albanian Citizens and Businesses registered in Albania |
| Dispute policies | Disputes must be with registrant alone; NIC disclaims all legal responsibilities |
| Website | .al AKEP |
.al is the Internet country code top-level domain (ccTLD) for Albania. It is administered by the Electronic and Postal Communications Authority of Albania (AKEP). As of May 1, 2013, anyone can register an .al domain.
Albanian domains can be registered through AKEP, AKEP accredited registrars and many international domain registrars. Domain names should be between 2 and 63 characters. Although the Albanian language has a number of special characters, the registry has not enabled the use of IDN characters.
In the past, registrations were not permitted directly at the second level, but a few existing names were "grandfathered"; they were uniti.al, tirana.al, soros.al, upt.al and inima.al.
In 2012 registrars started to resell .al domain names widely making them popular outside Albania as domain hacks.
In November 2014 the registry released two character domain names allowing for free landrush.
Registrations used to be only beneath the second-levels, i.e., .com.al, .net.al, .org.al, and .edu.al labeled appropriately for the type of organisation, but many now exist directly below .al.
The .al zone has no official whois server.
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