To begin the Google Workspace Domain Transfer process, you need to complete the following tasks. We recommend starting as soon as possible to detect any potential issues.
A dry run is required before a production transfer to validate all environment settings and preconditions, such as license checks, to determine whether there are issues preventing the final transfer. Administrators in both the source and destination environments must complete the following tasks before you can schedule and execute a dry run.
Step 1: Verify your super administrator access (across both environments)A super administrator from each environment must demonstrate to Google they hold Super Admin privileges in their respective Google Workspace environments. This verification of ownership acts as a security check before proceeding with a domain transfer.
Through remote screen sharing, each super admin is asked to access the Google Admin console. The signed-in user must demonstrate that the account they're using to access the Admin console has a Super Admin role assigned to it.
This task can be completed during the formal kickoff meeting (time permitting) or as a scheduled 10-minute session afterwards.
- Destination environment—The destination environment must prove ownership of each transfer domain in the source environment. To do this, a destination environment administrator must use the Search Console to start the site ownership verification process. The verified domain must match the one registered in Google Workspace. Domain Name System (DNS) record updates might be required (for example, to avoid the www subdomain).
Notes:
- Domain verification using the Search Console is not the same as verifying domain names in the Google Admin console, since the destination admin is proving ownership of the domains currently in the source environment.
- All source domains (other than the placeholder) must be verified. If a domain is not needed, it must be removed from the source.
- Source environment—The source must verify all domain names and domain aliases being transferred. This verification process is completed within the Admin console. Learn more about verifying your domain.
Important: Deactivate the test domain alias (@test-google-a.com) in the source environment as you’re unable to verify this domain. If there are any domain names or domain aliases you don’t want to transfer, they must be removed before transfer. Learn more about the consequences of removing domain names.
