Six things create friction in a migration — the domain, the hosting, admin access, the transfer lock, DNS timing, and page addresses — and five of them are cheap to clear if you handle them in the right order. Secure access before announcing anything.
Worth knowing before you start: almost nobody in Delhi NCR advertises for this work. Top-of-page bids on website transfer searches sit under ₹8, which means you’ll need to look for migration specialists deliberately — and that you’ll get better attention when you find them than you would in the crowded new-build market.
The moment it happens
Trying to move your website to a new developer starts optimistically. You’ve found someone better. Then the new developer asks for the access, and you discover you don’t have it.
The six friction points
1. The domain isn’t in your name
The biggest one. If the registrar account belongs to the old developer, you can’t point the domain at new hosting.
To clear it: request a transfer as routine housekeeping — not as part of a departure. If they cooperate, it’s a few days. If not, registrars have ownership-claim processes and will weigh evidence: GST registration, invoices, payment records, trademark.
Cost: free to modest. Time: days to weeks.
2. You don’t have hosting access
You can’t copy the site without reaching the files.
To clear it: ask for the login, or contact the hosting company directly as the account owner. Where the plan sits inside the developer’s reseller account, ask the host what recovery requires.
Cost: free. Time: days.
3. No site admin access
Needed to edit content, though a new developer can often work around it once they have hosting.
To clear it: recoverable through hosting access, without the old developer.
4. The 60-day transfer lock
A detail that surprises people. Domains recently registered or recently transferred are typically locked against transfer for around sixty days.
To clear it: you wait. It isn’t obstruction and nobody can override it. Plan around it — and note that you can still change hosting during a lock, since that’s separate from moving the registrar.
5. DNS propagation
After pointing the domain at new hosting, the change takes time to reach everyone — usually hours, occasionally up to a day or two.
To clear it: keep the old hosting running for a few days after the switch. Turning it off immediately is how sites go dark mid-migration.
6. Page addresses changing
If the new developer rebuilds and every page address changes without redirects, you lose whatever search visibility you’d accumulated.
To clear it: ask the new developer, in writing, how they’ll handle redirects from old URLs to new ones. This is the most commonly skipped step in a migration and the one with the longest-lasting cost.
| Friction | Cost to clear | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Domain not in your name | Free to modest | Days to weeks |
| No hosting access | Free | Days |
| No admin access | Free, via hosting | Hours |
| 60-day transfer lock | Nothing — just time | Up to 60 days |
| DNS propagation | Free | Hours to 2 days |
| Page addresses changing | A developer’s hour | Do it during the move |
The order that avoids downtime
- Secure access first, before announcing anything. Telling a developer you’re leaving before you hold the domain converts an unresponsive vendor into an uncooperative one.
- Download a full backup — files and database — and keep your own copy.
- Note every current page address, or ask the new developer to crawl the site and list them.
- Set up the new hosting and get the site working there, on a temporary address, before switching anything.
- Then point the domain at the new hosting.
- Keep the old hosting live for a week. Cheap insurance against propagation gaps.
- Check redirects and forms after the switch, from your own phone.
Following that order, downtime is usually zero. Skipping step four is what causes a site to be down for two days.
What to tell the old developer
Once you hold the domain and a backup, one civil message:
Hi [name]. I’m moving the website management elsewhere. Could you confirm the hosting login and site admin login, and let me know whether anything — Google Business Profile, analytics, business email, payment gateway — is registered under your account for my business? Happy to settle anything pending. Thanks for your work.
Settle any genuine balance. A few thousand rupees is cheap against a contested handover. And don’t burn it — a developer you part from politely will usually answer one question six months later.
What to ask the new developer
Three things, before work starts:
- “Will the domain stay in my own account?” The answer must be yes.
- “How will you handle redirects if page addresses change?” A specific answer, in writing.
- “Will you keep the old site accessible until the new one is verified?” This is what makes a rollback possible.
What to do this week
- Run a WHOIS check and find out whose name the domain is in.
- Request the transfer as routine housekeeping, before announcing anything.
- Download a full backup and keep your own copy.
- Ask the new developer about redirects, in writing.
- Keep old hosting running for a week after the switch.
If you want it done the certain way
Tell us what access you currently hold and we’ll map the migration — what’s recoverable without the old developer, what the 60-day lock means for your timing, and how redirects will be handled. Domain and logins end up in your name. WhatsApp us; we reply in about five minutes between 9am and 7pm.
Related reading
- What finally makes you leave your old developer
- Whose name is your domain registered in?
- The day you discover your website was never yours
- The website handover checklist
FAQ
How do I transfer my website to a new developer?
Secure the domain and hosting access first, download a full backup, get the new site working on temporary hosting, then point the domain across and keep the old hosting live for a week. Announce the move only after you hold access.
Why can’t I transfer my domain immediately?
Domains recently registered or transferred are typically locked for around sixty days. Nobody can override it. You can still change hosting during the lock, since that’s separate from moving the registrar.
Will moving my website affect my Google ranking?
It can if page addresses change without redirects. Ask the new developer in writing how they’ll redirect old URLs to new ones — the most commonly skipped step in a migration and the costliest to fix later.
