What Happens If My Domain Name Expires?
Site5 offers domain registration through two different registrars: eNom and OpenSRS, and the registrar your domain is registered through will determine what happens if your domain expires. The sections below will let you know what to expect based on the registrar of your domain:
If you do not know which registrar your domain was created through, you may perform a WHOIS lookup and check the Registrar Info section:
If the domain was registered with OpenSRS, it will indicate “TUCOWS, INC.” If it was registered via eNom, it will indicate “ENOM, INC.” in the Registrar Info.
Domains Registered with OpenSRS
The following expiration periods and policies apply to domains registered through OpenSRS:
Days 0 through 40: Expiration Grace Period
If a domain name has expired and is still within the 40 day Grace Period, the domain will continue to resolve, but, the top of the web page may display a renewal reminder message three days after the expiry date.
During the Grace Period, the domain name is still considered to be owned by the registrant, and the WHOIS information continues to display the registrant’s information (or WHOIS Privacy, if applicable).
Note: The grace period for ccTLDs varies; for information about a specific ccTLD, please refer to that section.
Reinstating the domain during the Grace Period
During the 40 days following the expiry date (Grace Period) the registrant can reinstate the domain name simply by manually renewing it. The cost is the standard renewal rate that is normally charged to renew a domain name. For information on how to manually renew a domain, please visit the following article:
If the registrant renews the domain name during this period, the original nameservers are restored (unless you have enabled Parked Pages for that domain, in which case, the Parked Page is displayed).
If a third party wished to purchase the domain directly during the expiration grace period, they would still need to contact the original registrant.
Days 41 through 70: Redemption Period
After the expiration grace period, the domain name then enters a 30 day Redemption Period. During the redemption period, the domain may be queued for deletion, auctioned off , or OpenSRS may add it to their portfolio.
During this period, if the domain name is not in the Live Auction, the domain name is still considered to be owned by the registrant, who can renew it for a redemption fee* plus the regular registration cost of the domain. The WHOIS information displays a Contact Privacy address.
Notes:
- * The redemption fee varies based on the TLD, starting at $80. A complete list of redemption fees per domain may be found here.
- Once the domain name is queued to enter the Live Auction, it cannot be redeemed by the original registrant.
If a third party wants to purchase the domain name during the redemption period, they need to contact the registrant; however, the domain name cannot change ownership during this period. The original registrant has to redeem the domain name first and then they can sell it if they choose.
Days 70 through 75: Deletion
After the Redemption Period, if the domain name has not been auctioned, or moved into the Tucows portfolio, it is dropped and made available for re-registration by the general public.
Domains Registered with eNom
The following expiration periods and policies apply to domains registered through eNom:
Days 0 through 29: Expiration Grace Period
When a domain name expires, it will enter a grace period for 29 days. During this grace period, the domains nameservers will be changed and it will no longer resolve. The website will show an advertisement page from the registrar. Expired Site5 domains from eNom will look like this:
Additionally, a WHOIS lookup will reveal that the domain expires in the future, but was updated a day after it renewed, and the nameservers are changed, such as in this example:
Name Server: DNS1.NAME-SERVICES.COM
Name Server: DNS2.NAME-SERVICES.COM
Name Server: DNS3.NAME-SERVICES.COM
Name Server: DNS4.NAME-SERVICES.COM
Name Server: DNS5.NAME-SERVICES.COM
Updated Date: 29-mar-2016
Expiration Date: 28-mar-2017
During this grace period, the domain may still be renewed for the regular renewal cost by manually renewing the domain. For information on how to manually renew a domain, please visit the following article:
After the domain has been renewed, the nameservers will automatically revert back when the registration fee is paid. If the domain is not renewed by the end of the 29th day, it will enter a redemption period.
Days 30 through 60: Redemption Period
After 29 days of being expired, the domain enters a ‘Redemption Grace Period’, which lasts for 30 days. eNom requires $250.00 plus the normal renewal fee to renew the domain name. Site5 will request that you to pay this cost until the 30th day past expiration, after which the domain may no longer be available.
Days 61 through 65: Pending Deletion
After the Redemption Period, if the domain name has not been auctioned, it is dropped and made available for re-registration by the general public.
