Why .ma rules differ from generic extensions
The .ma is a national extension managed by a State registry, registre.ma, under ANRT authority. Unlike generic extensions such as .com or .net, whose policy is defined by ICANN and leaves broad latitude to registrars, .ma has its own naming policy — decision ANRT/DG/N°02/2024, published in Official Bulletin no. 7280 of 7 March 2024 — enforceable against any registration request.
This policy sets three constraints not found with international extensions: a validity period capped at five (5) years (against ten years for a .com), a set of official second-level subdomains each with specific eligibility conditions, and a list of reserved terms tied to Moroccan State institutions and protected trademarks. An accredited registrar applies these rules at the point of order — saving you from discovering a rejection after waiting for validation.
What the policy protects
- Consistency of the national namespace — the rules prevent homoglyphs, misplaced hyphens and labels that are too short, which create confusion in the .ma space.
- Protection of trademarks and institutions — reserved terms prevent speculative registration of names linked to the State, local authorities or trademarks registered with OMPIC.
- Technical readability — the minimum length of 2 characters and the exclusion of hyphens in positions 3-4 (except IDN) guarantee DNS-compatible labels.
- Registrant traceability — the Registry keeps each holder's identifier (national ID number for individuals, Trade Register or ICE number for legal entities), and the restrictive
.gov.ma,.ac.maand.press.maextensions additionally go through prior ANRT review. - Registry stability — validity capped at five years forces a regular pass through renewal, which refreshes the holder data recorded in the Registry.
- Organised access for press and education — .press.ma and .ac.ma are reserved for recognised actors, not the general public.
Allowed characters and label length
The registre.ma naming policy authorises a precise set of characters for your domain label. Any request containing a character outside this list is rejected with no possibility of correction afterwards.
Allowed characters are: the letters a to z, including the accented letters à â ç è é ê ë î ï ô ù û ü ÿ, digits 0 to 9 and the hyphen - (article 6.1 of decision ANRT/DG/N°02/2024). An accented name requires no separate procedure: the Registry converts it into its ASCII equivalent prefixed with xn--. The hyphen is subject to three restrictions: never in the first position of the label, never in the last, and never in the 3rd or 4th position — those two slots are reserved for the xn-- prefix of internationalised names. Spaces, underscores and other special characters remain excluded.
On length, the label must contain between 2 and 63 characters: a single-character label is refused, as is a label exceeding 63 characters (article 6.3). These limits apply to the part before the extension (for example mycompany in mycompany.ma).
Official second-level subdomains
The .ma is not the only available form. Registre.ma offers several second-level subdomains, each intended for a specific category of registrant. Choosing the right subdomain reinforces the credibility of your online presence and helps recognition by your contacts.
Second-level .ma subdomains and access conditions
| Extension | Intended for | Prior ANRT review |
|---|---|---|
| .co.ma | Commercial activities | No — direct registration |
| .net.ma | Internet service providers | No — direct registration |
| .org.ma | Associations, foundations and similar organisations | No — direct registration |
| .press.ma | Press organisations declared with the competent authorities | Yes — prior review form |
| .ac.ma | Academies and authorised educational institutions | Yes — prior review form |
| .gov.ma | Ministries, wilayas, prefectures, provinces, diplomatic missions | Yes — reserved for public entities |
Which extension for a business?
For a company registered in Morocco, .ma remains the most common choice: no category condition, a direct process. .co.ma suits you if you want to show your commercial status explicitly — it too is registered directly, with no prior review, as are .net.ma and .org.ma. The .gov.ma, .ac.ma and .press.ma extensions, by contrast, are restrictive (article 5.4): they require a "registration request form requiring prior ANRT review", and .gov.ma remains reserved for public institutions.
Registration period: up to 5 years
Article 30 of decision ANRT/DG/N°02/2024 sets the rule: a .ma domain name may be registered for a period of up to five (5) years, and its holder may renew it at any time during that period, under the same conditions. Article 33.1 adds the complementary bound: a renewal also covers an annual period of up to five years from the request date, and the validity of a .ma can never exceed five years. The ceiling is therefore lower than the ten years allowed by generic extensions such as .com, but it comfortably covers a project's horizon.
Two practical consequences. First, a long period reduces renewal frequency and shields the name from accidental expiry, without changing your title over it — that title is identical whatever duration you pick. Second, nothing requires waiting for the due date: early renewal is allowed at any time, within the five-year validity limit.
At expiry, the .ma registry does not behave like a .com. Your provider must notify you of the expiry date at least thirty (30) days in advance (article 33.2). The expired name then enters a thirty (30) day expiry grace period during which it is frozen (articles 3.19 and 33.3). And once that grace period passes, the name is not released: it is systematically renewed for one (1) year, and billed (article 33.4). A .ma only becomes available to a third party after a termination requested by the holder — itself followed by a thirty-day grace period before final deletion (article 34).
Reserved terms and common rejection reasons
The ANRT naming policy prohibits registration of certain names, either because they are reserved by the registry or because they infringe third-party rights.
Categories of reserved or prohibited terms
- Names linked to State institutions — terms associated with ministries, security forces, the royal family, constitutional institutions: reserved by the national registry and inaccessible for private registration.
- Registered trademarks — a name identical or very similar to a trademark protected with OMPIC (Office Marocain de la Propriété Industrielle et Commerciale) risks refusal or a subsequent dispute procedure.
- Protected geographical names — names of Moroccan cities, regions and geographical places may be refused if used in a way that misleads on origin or appropriates a territory.
- Proper names of notable individuals — registering the name of a public figure without a direct link to the applicant is likely to be rejected or contested.
- Terms contrary to public order and good morals — offensive, discriminatory or unlawful labels are refused by the registry.
- Name identical to an already-registered domain — the registry operates on a first-come, first-served basis: a name already taken, even if inactive, cannot be assigned to another applicant.
Most common rejection reasons at order time
Label too short
A single-character label is systematically refused. The minimum is 2 characters. Check the length before submitting, especially for short acronyms.
Hyphen at the start or end of the label
The hyphen is allowed in a medial position, but forbidden in the first and last positions. my-domain.ma is valid; -mydomain.ma and mydomain-.ma are rejected.
Hyphen in the 3rd or 4th position
Article 6.1 forbids the hyphen in the 3rd and 4th positions: those two slots are reserved for the xn-- prefix of internationalised names. A label such as mo--domain.ma, which occupies them without being a valid IDN, is rejected.
Unauthorised character
Underscores, spaces and special characters are not permitted. Accented letters (é, à, ç…), however, are allowed by article 6.1: the Registry converts the name into its ASCII xn-- equivalent, with no separate procedure. Names in Arabic script belong to the .المغرب extension and its own character set (article 6.2).
Name already registered
If the label is identical to an existing .ma domain, the request is immediately refused. A real-time availability check, such as the one offered on /domaine-ma, prevents this situation before you place your order.
Reserved term or registered trademark
If the registry identifies a match with its reserved terms list, or if a third party invokes an OMPIC trademark, the request is suspended then rejected. In this case, modifying the label (adding a distinctive word, changing the structure) is the only option.
Missing prior review for a restrictive extension
Applying for a .ac.ma without academic authorisation, or a .press.ma without a declaration to the competent authorities, blocks the request: those extensions go through the "registration request form requiring prior ANRT review" (article 5.4). .co.ma, .net.ma and .org.ma are registered directly.
Documents by registrant type
Registre.ma requires supporting documents to identify the registrant and prevent fraudulent registrations. The nature of the document depends on your status.
Documents accepted by the registry
- Individual — copy of the National Identity Card (CIN) or a valid passport.
- Moroccan company — Trade Register (RC) and, where applicable, company statutes or incorporation minutes.
- Association — filed statutes or a declaration receipt issued by the competent authorities.
- Registered trademark — trademark registration certificate issued by OMPIC, to justify a legitimate link with the registered name.
- Foreign entity — local equivalent of the RC from the country of origin, with a certified translation if the document is not in Arabic or French.
- Liberal professional — certificate of registration with the relevant professional order or regulatory body.
ServOrbit applies the policy at the point of order
ServOrbit is an ANRT-accredited registrar for .ma, .co.ma and .press.ma (accreditation published on anrt.ma in the list of accredited providers). The order form integrates the naming policy checks: label format, length, characters and chosen subdomain. Checks are carried out before submission to the registry, not after — preventing a rejection that would block your registration for several days.
Summary of rules to remember
Before finalising your order, check these five points from decision ANRT/DG/N°02/2024:
Characters: a-z — including the accented letters à â ç è é ê ë î ï ô ù û ü ÿ —, 0-9 and the hyphen -; no spaces, no underscores, no other special characters.
Length: between 2 and 63 characters for the label (excluding the extension).
Hyphen position: never in the first or last position, and never in the 3rd or 4th position (slots reserved for the xn-- prefix).
Duration: up to five (5) years, renewable at any time, with validity never exceeding five years.
Second-level subdomain: .co.ma, .net.ma and .org.ma are registered directly; .press.ma, .ac.ma and .gov.ma are restrictive and go through prior ANRT review. For commercial use without additional documentation requirements, .ma remains the most straightforward path.
These rules are set by decision ANRT/DG/N°02/2024 of 5 February 2024, published in Official Bulletin no. 7280 of 7 March 2024, which serves as the .ma naming policy. An accredited registrar applies them transparently — if you see a form field you do not understand, it is usually one of these criteria at play.
