L - Live

This is the normal state a domain is in when it is in use by a registrant.

• Live domains are registered by a 3rd party
• They exist in DNS
• Have whois records

B - Banned

• Banned domains are not available for registration
• They exist in the database as a domain
• Cannot be activated in DNS 
• Don't have a whois record
• Don't follow regular domain lifecycle (don't expire and are not billed)
• Are included in the Escrow Deposit as NNDN elements

EPP flags for status "B"

• 'pendingDelete'
• 'serverHold'
• 'serverUpdateProhibited'
• 'serverRenewProhibited'
• 'serverDeleteProhibited'
• 'serverTransferProhibited'

   

When to use the Banned state?

When you absolutely don't want a domain to get registered or show up in DNS in any way.

Example use of Banned domains: ICANN specification 5 labels

How to release a banned domain?

To release banned domains, you first need to turn them into E (Reserved/Evergreen).

E - Reserved (aka "Registry Reserved" or "Evergreen")

• Reserved domains are not available for registration
• They exist in the database as a domain
• Up to 100 reserved domains can be activated in DNS 
• They have a whois record
• Don't follow regular domain lifecycle (don't expire and are not billed)
• Are included in the Escrow Deposit as Domains (so will be billed by your Escrow provider)

How to release a banned domain?

To release banned domains, use the release reserved domains function. The reserved domains will then be deleted and become available for registration. Note that if a domain has a catch-action defined it will apply first as it gets deleted. So if your intention is to release it and make it available, remove the catch-action on the domain first.

P - Pending Delete

This is the state a domain is in when it expires due to its normal lifecycle.

• Pending Delete domains are not available for registration
• They exist in the database as a domain
• They are not active in DNS 
• They don't show up in whois
• They are deleted automatically when in this state for 45 days

EPP flags for status "P"

H - Server Hold

This is a special state 

• Server hold domains are not available for registration
• They exist in the database as a domain
• They are not active in DNS and even if they have nameserver they are not published in the zone 
• They have a whois record
• Don't follow regular domain lifecycle (don't expire and are not billed)

EPP flags for status "H"

• 'serverHold'

When to use the Server Hold state?

This state is used for example when abuse is detected or a domain violates the Registries policy.

C - Pending Create

This is a special state used for in some TLDs when a domain is just registered but still has to pass a verification/validation process.

• Pending Create domains are not available for registration
• They exist in the database as a domain
• They are not active in DNS 
• They don't show up in whois

EPP flags for status "C"

• pendingDelete'
• 'serverHold'
• 'serverDeleteProhibited'

I - Delete Immediately

This is not part of the normal domain lifecycle and used only minutes before the domain is being deleted.

• Delete immediately domains are not available for registration
• They exist in the database as a domain
• They are not active in DNS 
• They don't show up in whois
• They are deleted automatically within 1-60 minutes

EPP flags for status "I"

• pendingDelete'
• 'serverHold'
• 'serverUpdateProhibited'