Domain Lifecycle: Renewal, Grace Period and Release

A domain is registered for a term, usually a year, and after it ends it passes through several stages before becoming free again. Understanding these stages saves domains people forgot to renew.

The stages

1. Active term. The domain works and can be renewed at any time; the term is added to the current one rather than restarted.
2. Expiry. On the end date the domain usually stops resolving: the site and mail do not work.
3. Grace period. In many zones the registrar allows from a few days to a month to renew at the normal price. Not in every zone and not at every registrar.
4. Redemption. After the grace period the domain can only be restored through the registry, with a substantial surcharge, usually for up to a month.
5. Deletion and release. The domain is deleted from the registry and after a few days becomes available to anyone; popular names are caught by automated services within seconds.

How not to lose a domain

• Enable auto-renewal in the domain card: at Riki Domains it is the "Enable auto-renewal" button under My domains.
• Keep the renewal amount on the balance: it is shown in the card and for cheap zones is usually higher than the purchase price, for example $10.80 for .top.
• Watch the "Expires" date in the card and the notifications.

For Platinum and Titan zones

Registration and renewal there are done by the service staff, and the grace-period rules are set by the zone's registry. Clarify the timing with support in advance, not on the expiry day.