In the early days when a domain name expired, other people can register it immediately. Today Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) made it more complex to protect registrants. They created a “Grace Period”.
After domain name expired it will enter the “Auto-Renew Grace Period” which is 0-45 days. In this phase domains is still in zone (domain name will still resolve). Registrar often use the domain for its own purposes in this phase. During this period the registrar becomes the official owner of the domain but might still allow the registrant to renew it. Many registrar will try to make money by putting up PPC (pay per click) ads on the domain.
After the “Auto-Renew Grace Period”, it will then enter the “Redemption Grace Period” for 30 days which is no longer in zone (domain name will not resolve). Registrars would be able to redeem the name by paying renewal fees, plus a service charge, to the registry operator.
If the domain registrant does not take action to renew the domain within the 30 day redemption period, the domain will went into “pending deletion”, which lasts for 5 days. Once the domain enters into this period, the registrant can no longer renew the domain name. After the 5 days period the domain is deleted by the domain registry, allowing anyone to register it.
Here’s the summary:
- “Auto-Renew Grace Period” 0-45 days
- “Redemption Grace Period” 30 days
- “Pending deletion” 5 days
