What Is an Expired Domain? How Long Until You Can Buy It Back?

Expired domain : what is it? How long after expiry you can buy a domain back is important information for any business to know. Knowing a domain's expiry timeline lets a business plan the right time to buy it back. That helps a business optimize from the very first step of buying a domain and building a website. Read the details in this article from MONA Media.

What is an expired domain?

An expired domain is a domain domains registered by an individual, organization or business that was not renewed after the contract ended, or was terminated on purpose.

There are many reasons someone might give up a domain. The most common are listed below:

• Did it for fun, or lost interest.
• The project failed and got no further investment.
• The investment item is no longer active.
• Not enough money to renew the domain.
• Profit does not cover the costs.

How long after expiry can you buy a domain back?

For Vietnamese domains

• The grace period for renewing a Vietnamese domain is 20 days from the expiry date. During this time, if you want to keep using the domain, the owner has to pay the renewal fee.
• The provider will give details of the final deadline for renewing a Vietnamese domain. You will see it as soon as you visit the domain right after it expires.
• If the owner still does not renew within 20 days from the date the .vn domain expires, the domain automatically becomes free at 24:00 on day 21. At this point, anyone can register a domain or buy and use the domain if they want.

For international domains

For international domains, you can buy back an expired domain after about 75 to 80 days.

• Stage 1 is 45 days: The owner has 45 days from the moment the international domain expires to renew it. You pay only the normal renewal fee and no other charges.
• Stage 2 is the next 30 days: This is your last chance to renew and get your usage rights back. However, you pay quite a bit more, because on top of the renewal fee there is a redemption fee.
• Stage 3 is the remaining 5 days: After 5 days pending deletion, the domain becomes free and anyone can register it.

See also: Guide to choosing the right domain extension for your business

The domain lifecycle

International domain life cycle

By regulation, the lifecycle of an international domain has 7 different stages, and a business has specific tasks to do depending on the stage.

• Free registration stage: Any business can choose to register, as long as the domain is valid.
• Active domain stage: In this stage the domain is registered and used as a website or email address. Its life usually lasts from a minimum of 1 year up to a maximum of 10 years. A domain cannot be renewed further once it has been used for more than 10 years.
• Domain expiry stage: This is the stage where the owner has not renewed the domain and it cannot operate.
• Domain renewal stage: The domain is in a waiting period but is still within its renewal window, so no one else can register it.
• Domain redemption stage: In the redemption stage, the domain is treated as dead and cannot operate at all. All admin information for the domain has been removed from the system. However, it cannot yet be opened for free registration because it is waiting for the owner to redeem it.
• Pending delete stage: This is the final stage of an international domain's lifecycle. When a domain reaches this step, you can no longer intervene to renew it.
• Released stage: The domain lifecycle returns to the start, and it can be bought and registered freely.

Vietnamese domain life cycle

The lifecycle of a Vietnamese domain is simpler than an international one. It goes as follows:

• Free domain status: it can be registered by any agency, organization or individual.
• Registered status: the domain is used for a website or email in Vietnam, and the minimum term is 1 year.
• Renewal status: this is when the owner pays the renewal fee within 10 days.
• Expired status: the domain has expired but can still work while waiting for the owner to renew for another 10 days.
• Suspended status: the domain is fully suspended but has not yet been removed from the system.
• Domain handling and revocation status if the renewal fee has not been received.
• Revocation status is the final stage of a Vietnamese domain, and it is returned to free registration.
• Free registration status is the same as the initial status, after the domain has officially expired.

How to renew a domain, step by step

To renew your domain, follow the steps below. Work carefully so you don't waste time redoing them.

• Step 1: Contact your domain registrar directly. They are also the one managing your domain, and they will process the renewal.
• Step 2: At this step the registrar renews the domain for you through a process that starts with receiving the owner's request. Then they check the domain's information. Once they confirm the domain is not in a case where renewal is not allowed, the registrar renews it in the system.
• Step 3: The registrar will notify the business owner of the renewal result.
• Step 4: The domain owner must check the new expiry date using the Whois tool.

Domain renewal costs

Renewal costs differ depending on the registrar and the type of domain you own. Renewing international domains such as .com, .net and .biz costs around 200,000 to 400,000 VND per year. Renewing Vietnamese domains such as .vn and .com.vn costs around 250,000 to 500,000 VND per year.

Things to know when renewing a domain

Once a domain is registered, you pay a maintenance fee every year to keep it active. Paying that fee is the owner's responsibility. If you don't pay, the domain expires and stops working.

By regulation, the minimum renewal term is 1 year, and there is no maximum. It depends on the owner's needs. While using a domain, you can renew at any time, except in a few special cases.

At MONA Media, when you buying a domain, our specialists will tell you the exact key dates in your domain purchase contract. We will also remind our business clients to renew their domains so their websites run into no unnecessary risks.

REGISTER A DOMAIN NOW today for the best offers from MONA, If you need any help while buying a domain, don't hesitate to contact CONTACT the customer support team at MONA. We will gladly help you and make sure you have the smoothest domain buying experience.

Details:

• Address: 1073/23 Cach Mang Thang Tam, Ward 7, Tan Binh District, Ho Chi Minh City
• Phone: 1900 636 648
• Email: info@themona.global

With the information above, you now know the basics of what an expired domain is and how long a domain can be renewed. If you own a domain, note down the key dates so you don't lose the right to use it by letting it expire.