This is a public service announcement, recently I re-activated my ABN (Australian Business Number) – this service is free for both a new ABN and to re-activate. Do not pay for it, there are businesses out there who charge for this. If you can type and you know your name or your company name you can do it.
I am a sole-trader, I can run my business under my own name, but I wanted to trade as Qski,I needed to register a business name, this cost $37AUD per year, do not pay more than this, it is a simple straight forward process (as long as that business name is available and can legally be a business name).
The Australian government provides a great work-flow style website that walks you through the whole process.
Do I need an ABN to register a domain in Australia
If you want to register a commercial domain name the answer is yes (.com.au or .net.au). There are non-commercial domain names available (I had a .id.au domain for years), but you can not make money under that domain.
Once you register your business name, domain name registrars (companies who sell domain names) have access to your information and several will send you letters – I have received 3, the letters look like a bill and offer to register your domain name – your company.com or your company.com.au – Frankly at ridiculous prices.
I tore up two previous letters, disgusted by this because I had already bought my domain for $21.89 (including GST for 2 years). You can see my PayPal transaction listing below.
You can find a list of accredited registrars here, and find the one with the best price. All you ever really have to do with a registrar is to log in to your account and update your DNS name servers to the hosting company (5 minutes) you select and to log in again when you need to renew your registration. I think paying more than $20 per year for that is a bit steep, don’t you?
I was being offered this service for $160 for 2 years (the $80 price shown above is for 1 year only), I bet their customers would not rate them 4.7 stars (see the last line in the image above) if they realised that they are being charged 731% more than a competitor for the exact same service.