As a Sponsored TLD, it is vital that the integrity of the cooperative online community is maintained. Customers, members, employees, partners and suppliers must be assured that when they see a .COOP website they are dealing with a trusted cooperative business.

To be approved to register and use a .coop domain name, an applicant must qualify under at least one of the following criteria:

• members of the National Cooperative Business Association (NCBA) if otherwise eligible;
• members of the International Cooperative Alliance(ICA) if otherwise eligible;
• organizations formed as and/or considered cooperatives under applicable local law;
• associations comprised of cooperatives;
• organizations that are committed to the seven cooperative principles;
• organizations that are majority controlled by cooperatives;
• entities whose operations are principally dedicated to serving cooperatives; and
• for no more than 5,000 registrants, persons or entities whose use of a .coop domain name would, in the opinion of the DCLLC Board, advance the interests of the cooperative sector in general or would assist in the development of cooperatives worldwide.