When a website or web application project finishes, you should walk away with full control of the code, the domain, the hosting environment, the design files and every platform account that underpins your site. If any of those things stay in your developer’s hands without a clear handover plan, you are renting access to your own business asset rather than owning it. The time to establish exactly what you will receive is before you sign anything, not after the project goes live.
Why ownership handover matters
Most disputes between SME buyers and developers do not start with bad code. They start with ambiguity about who controls what. A developer who retains your domain registration, your hosting account login or your source code repository has significant leverage over you, even if that was never their intention. Clarifying ownership at the outset removes that leverage and protects the investment you are about to make.
The files and code
You should receive a complete copy of the production codebase at project close. For a WordPress or WooCommerce site, that means all theme files, custom plugin files and any bespoke templates written for you specifically. For a web application, it means the full source code repository, ideally transferred to a version control account you own or have admin rights to.
Check whether any third-party licences are embedded in that code. A developer may have used a commercial plugin or a licensed component as part of the build. You need to know which licences are yours to renew and which were provided under the developer’s own account, because those may lapse once the project relationship ends.
The domain name
Your domain should be registered to you, not to your developer or their agency. The registrant contact is the legal owner of a domain, so if that field contains your developer’s name or email address, you do not fully own it yet. Ask for the registrant details before project completion and, if necessary, request a transfer to a registrar account you control. This is a straightforward process but it takes a few days, so build it into the handover timeline.
Hosting and server access
Hosting can be arranged several ways. Some agencies provide managed hosting as an ongoing service, which is a legitimate and often sensible arrangement. Others set up hosting in their own accounts as a convenience during the build. Either way, you should understand clearly who holds the hosting contract and what happens to your site if that relationship ends. If hosting is part of an ongoing service agreement, make sure the contract specifies what is included and what happens to your files if you leave. If hosting is meant to be yours independently, ensure you have admin credentials for that account before the project is signed off.
Design files and brand assets
The finished website is only one output. The design files sitting behind it, such as Figma files, layered graphics or original logo files in vector format, have long-term value for future work. Ask for those source files as part of handover. Receiving only exported images means paying again to recreate the working files if you ever need to update your brand or brief a different designer. As a hypothetical example, a business that received only PNG exports of its logo later had to commission entirely new artwork when it needed a version suitable for embroidery, because the original vector file was never transferred.
Platform and third-party accounts
Modern websites connect to multiple platforms: Google Search Console, Google Analytics, email marketing tools, payment gateways, social media ad accounts and more. Each of these should be set up under your own account where possible, with the developer added as an administrator during the project rather than the other way around. If any accounts were set up in the developer’s name as a shortcut, request ownership transfer before the project closes. Removing someone’s access is much simpler than recovering an account that was never registered to you.
A simple handover checklist to take into a briefing
- Full codebase or repository, transferred to your control
- Domain registration showing you as registrant
- Hosting account admin credentials or a written service agreement covering what happens if you leave
- All original design and brand source files in editable formats
- Admin access to the CMS with the developer removed or downgraded once handover is confirmed
- Access to all connected platform accounts under your own login
- A list of any third-party licences included in the build and their renewal dates
When to raise this
Raise ownership expectations during your first conversation with any developer, not after work begins. A professional studio will not find these questions unusual. If anything, clear agreement at the start saves everyone time. Build the handover list into the project brief and ask for it to be referenced in the contract or statement of work.
If you are planning a new website or web application and want to understand how a bespoke project is scoped and delivered, explore what Synergi Digital’s website studio covers. When you are ready to talk through your requirements, get in touch and we can take it from there.