How to Set Up a Free .com.np Domain for Your InstaPasal Store (Step-by-Step Guide)

Your store URL is part of your brand. A shop running on myshop.instapasal.com already looks professional — but a store on shop.mystore.com.np looks like yours, builds instant trust with Nepali customers, and is easier to remember and share. The best part? You can get the domain completely free from Nepal's official registry, manage it with Cloudflare for free, and connect it to your InstaPasal store in a few clicks.

[!IMPORTANT] Before you start, keep these three things ready:

1. A clear scan of your citizenship certificate (front and back) — or passport, voter ID, or driving licence.
2. An InstaPasal store on the Starter or Business plan — the custom domain feature is included in those plans.
3. About 30 minutes of setup time, plus a few days of waiting for domain approval.

What You Need Before You Start

• A Nepali identity document. For personal domains, register.com.np accepts your citizenship certificate, passport, voter's card, or driving licence. The domain name must match the name on that document.
• A signed request letter (cover letter). A short letter asking Mercantile to register the domain for you. A sample is included below.
• For businesses: the company/firm/organization registration certificate (plus PAN/VAT where applicable) and a request letter on your company letterhead. The domain must match your company, brand, product, or service name.
• A free Cloudflare account. You'll use it to manage DNS for your domain.
• An InstaPasal store. Custom domains are available on the Starter and Business plans.

Step 1: Claim Your Free .com.np Domain on register.com.np

The .np country domain is administered by Mercantile Communications Pvt. Ltd., and registrations under .com.np are free of cost — with no renewal fee, ever. Here's how to get one:

1. Check availability

Go to register.com.np, enter the domain you want (e.g. mystore.com.np), and hit Search. Names must be at least 3 characters and can contain letters, numbers, and hyphens. If it's taken, try a variation.

2. Create your account

Click Register Now, then sign up with your email address and a password. Verify the email before continuing.

3. Fill in the application

Select Personal (or Organization for a company domain) and fill in your details exactly as they appear on your documents. The form also asks for primary and secondary nameservers — here's a shortcut: complete Step 2 below first (adding the site to Cloudflare takes about 5 minutes), then paste Cloudflare's two nameservers into the form. Already submitted with different nameservers? No problem — you can change them after approval, as shown in Step 3.

4. Upload your documents

Upload a clear scan of your citizenship certificate (front and back) or other accepted ID. For organization domains, upload the registration certificate and the request letter. Keep files small, sharp, and readable — unreadable scans are one of the most common reasons applications get rejected.

5. Attach your cover letter

A short, signed letter addressed to the Hostmaster. For a personal application, something like this works:

Date: 2077/07/__ (or AD date)
To,
The Hostmaster
Mercantile Communications Pvt. Ltd.
Durbar Marg, Kathmandu, Nepal

Subject: Request to register the domain "mystore.com.np"

Dear Sir/Madam,
I would like to request the registration of the domain
mystore.com.np for my personal use. A scanned copy of my
citizenship certificate is attached for verification.

Name: Ram Bahadur Shrestha
Address: Pokhara, Kaski, Nepal
Contact: 98XXXXXXXX

Signature: ______________

Submit the application and wait — approvals usually take 3–4 business days, sometimes longer during busy periods. If your application is rejected, register.com.np publishes the rejection reason (name mismatch with documents, unclear scans, invalid DNS entries), fix it, and reapply.

Step 2: Add Your Domain to Cloudflare (Free Plan)

Cloudflare operates one of the world's fastest DNS networks, and its Free plan is more than enough for a store. It also gives you quick DNS management from a clean dashboard — you'll be adding records here in Step 5.

1. Sign up at cloudflare.com and click Add a domain (Add a site).
2. Enter your domain — e.g. mystore.com.np — and click Continue.
3. Select the Free plan.
4. Cloudflare scans your existing DNS records. Nothing needs to exist yet, so just continue.
5. Cloudflare assigns you two nameservers, something like:

Replace with your own assigned pair:
  anna.ns.cloudflare.com
  bob.ns.cloudflare.com

Copy both nameservers somewhere safe — you'll enter them at register.com.np in the next step. Your Cloudflare zone will show as Pending until the registry points to these nameservers.

[!IMPORTANT] If your zone stays in Pending for a long time while you wait for domain approval, don't worry — nothing is lost. Once the domain is approved and the nameservers are set (next step), the zone activates automatically and Cloudflare emails you. If Cloudflare ever removes a stale pending zone, just delete and re-add the site.

Step 3: Point register.com.np to Cloudflare's Nameservers

Now tell Nepal's registry that Cloudflare manages your domain's DNS:

1. Log in to the register.com.np domain management system with the account you created in Step 1.
2. Open the ACTIVE DOMAIN tab (or the domain list) and select your approved domain.
3. Choose Edit DNS.
4. Replace the nameservers with the two Cloudflare nameservers from Step 2, in full FQDN format:

Nameservers must be hostnames — IP addresses are not accepted. Save the change and wait: DNS propagation can take up to 24–48 hours. When Cloudflare shows your zone as Active (you'll get an email), your domain's DNS is fully under your control.

Step 4: Connect the Domain in Your InstaPasal Dashboard

Time to plug the domain into your store.

1. Log in to your InstaPasal dashboard and go to Store → Domain.
2. Under Your own domain, enter the address you want customers to visit. Use a subdomain of your domain, such as:

shop.mystore.com.np     ✅ Recommended
www.mystore.com.np      ✅ Works too
mystore.com.np          ❌ Not supported

[!IMPORTANT] The bare domain (mystore.com.np) is not supported. Your store's traffic and its security certificate are served through InstaPasal's edge network, which requires a subdomain. shop. or www. in front of your domain looks just as professional and works reliably.

3. Save the domain. InstaPasal registers it on its platform and immediately shows you two DNS records to add at Cloudflare:
   • A CNAME record — name shop.mystore.com.np, pointing to InstaPasal's target (typically origin.instapasal.com — the exact value shown in your dashboard).
   • A TXT record — an ownership/certificate verification value you must copy exactly.

Step 5: Add the DNS Records in Cloudflare

Back in the Cloudflare dashboard, open your domain → DNS → Records, and add both records:

Record 1: The CNAME

The proxy status matters: set it to DNS only, not Proxied. The security certificate for your store address is issued and renewed automatically through InstaPasal's Cloudflare — if you orange-cloud the record in your own zone, visitors will run into certificate errors.

Record 2: The TXT record

This record proves you control the domain so the SSL certificate can be issued. Save both records.

Step 6: Verify and Publish

1. Return to InstaPasal → Store → Domain and press Check status. InstaPasal re-checks the CNAME and the certificate — the certificate is usually issued within a few minutes after your DNS records are in place.
2. When the status is Active, your store answers on your new address with a valid padlock in the browser. If your store isn't live yet, press Publish Now.
3. Test it: open https://shop.mystore.com.np in a private browser window, browse a product, and place a test order. Make sure your payment methods behave exactly as they do on your instapasal.com address.

The certificate renews itself automatically, and Cloudflare keeps answering DNS for free — there's genuinely nothing to maintain.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Why a Custom Domain Is Worth the (Small) Effort

• Trust at first glance. Shoppers notice the address bar. A branded .com.np address signals a real, local business — which directly improves your conversion rate.
• Freedom from platform lock-in worries. Your brand's address is yours, registered in your own name with Nepal's official registry.
• Better marketing. A short, memorable domain is easier to print on flyers, mention on TikTok, and type on a phone keypad.
• Free forever. Zero registration and renewal costs from the registry, free DNS from Cloudflare, and automatic SSL from InstaPasal.

Combined with setting up your online store, a custom domain makes your business look established from day one.

Conclusion

That's the whole journey: register.com.np (free domain, 3–4 day approval) → Cloudflare (free DNS management) → InstaPasal (connect, verify, publish). Total out-of-pocket cost: zero rupees.

Ready to put your brand in the address bar? Log in and connect your domain today.

Connect Your Domain on InstaPasal →

Last updated: October 26, 2026