7 min read · Updated 2026-11-14

The Domain Name Lifecycle: Expiry, Grace, Redemption, Pending Delete and Drop

What happens when a domain expires: auto-renew grace, expired auctions, the 30-day redemption period, 5-day pending delete and the drop, explained with a timeline.

Domains don't vanish the day they expire. For generic extensions like .com, .net and .org, an expired name moves through a predictable series of stages governed by ICANN policy, registry rules and the registrar's own terms. Knowing the stages helps owners avoid losing names and helps buyers time their moves.

Stage 1: Active registration

The owner holds the domain for the paid period, from one to ten years. Status codes such as clientTransferProhibited are normal locks. You can check any domain's status in the WHOIS lookup.

Stage 2: Expiry and the registrar grace period

On the expiry date the registry typically auto-renews the domain and the registrar has an auto-renew grace period, up to 45 days, to decide what to do. ICANN's Expired Registration Recovery Policy requires registrars to send renewal reminders, let the owner renew after expiry, and interrupt the domain's normal use (often by pointing it to a parking page) for at least eight consecutive days at some point after it expires, so owners notice. Many registrars auction expired names during this window.

Stage 3: Redemption grace period (30 days)

If the registrar deletes the domain, it enters redemption. The previous owner can still restore it, usually for a restoration fee on top of renewal. Nobody else can register it.

Stage 4: Pending delete (5 days)

No one can renew or restore the domain now. At the end of this stage the registry releases it.

Stage 5: The drop

For .com and .net the release happens during the daily "drop", and drop-catching services compete to register the most valuable names within milliseconds. Names nobody catches become available to anyone.

Timeline at a glance

Use the drop date calculator for dates on a specific domain.

Country-code extensions are different

ccTLD registries set their own rules. Some delete names quickly, some hold them much longer, and some run their own release auctions. Always read the registry's policy.

How owners avoid losing domains

• Turn on auto-renew and keep a valid payment method on file.
• Use an email address on a different domain for your registrar account.
• Track renewals in one place with the portfolio tracker.