"I paid for it, so it's mine" is a reasonable assumption and not always a correct one. Here's what's actually going on.
This is general information, not legal advice. For anything contentious, speak to an attorney.
It isn't one thing
A website is at least three separate assets, and they can each sit with a different person.
The domain name. Whoever is listed as the registrant controls it. Not whoever pays the renewal — whoever is named. If your designer registered it under their own details, they control your business address online.
The hosting account. Whoever holds the account can take the site offline. If it sits inside your designer's reseller account, you don't have independent access.
The website itself. The design, code, images and copy.
You can own the third and still lose the site because someone else holds the first two.
Who owns the design and code by default
Under South African copyright law, the person who creates a work is generally the first owner of the copyright in it. Paying an independent contractor for work does not automatically transfer copyright to you in every situation — that's usually done by a written assignment.
In practice, most reputable designers hand everything over and never think about it again. The problem only surfaces during a dispute, which is exactly when you don't want an unanswered question.
So get it in writing. One clear sentence is enough: on final payment, all rights in the delivered website transfer to the client.
Two things that are almost never fully yours
Licensed components. Stock photography, paid themes, premium plugins and licensed fonts are typically licensed for use, not owned. That's normal. Just ask which licences are in your name and which sit with the designer, because those need transferring or re-purchasing if you move.
Proprietary platforms. If the site is built on a builder the agency owns, there is no version of it you can take anywhere. You're licensing access. Again — not wrong, but you should know before you sign.
What to get in writing before you pay
- The domain is registered in your business name, with you as registrant
- Ownership of the completed website transfers to you on final payment
- You receive full administrator access at handover
- A list of any third-party licences and whose name they're in
- What you receive if the relationship ends — files, database, exports
If you're already in a bad position
Start with the domain. Domain registrations can generally be transferred, and the registrar's dispute process exists for exactly this. Get that back first, because everything else is easier once the address is yours.
Related reading: Our process · Our pricing · What to ask a web designer
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