In case you forget to renew your domain, here are the different scenarios you can expect:
a) Domain name is registered or renewed: Domain names can be registered or renewed for a period of 1-10 years such that they do not cross the maximum allowed period from the registration or renewal date.
b) Domain name expires; Renewal Grace Period begins: Once the domain expires, it enters the "Renewal Grace Period (RGP)," which is 36 days for .Online Domains. All services associated with the domain name (eg. website, emails) will stop working. During the grace period, the domain owner can renew their domain names at any time at their regular price without penalty.
c) End of Renewal Grace Period; beginning of redemption period: At the end of Renewal Grace Period, the domain name enters the "queued for deletion stage" for 5 days, and it is subsequently deleted by the registrar after this period ends. After this, it enters the redemption period of 30 days. During the redemption period, the domain owner can redeem their domain name by paying a redemption fee in addition to the cost of a one-year domain renewal.
d) Redemption period ends; pending delete: Once the 30 days of the redemption period end, the domain name will be placed in a "pending delete" status at the registry for up to 5 days. During this time, it is not possible to redeem, recover, or renew the domain name. The only way to get the domain back is to wait until the domain name is dropped by the registry and made available for registration.
e) Domain name is deleted; made available for registration: After the 5-day pending delete period, the domain name will be deleted from the registry. At this point, the domain will be available to the general public for registration on a first-come, first-serve basis. If a domain is valuable or has a lot of traffic, it will be snapped up in seconds after it has been dropped.
The best policy is to renew your domain names for multiple years before the expiry date. After the last date, your domain will go into the restoration period. If you wish to restore your domain, you may still be able to do so. A restoration fee of $138 will apply. If the domain is not restored, it will go into the pending delete stage, and after 5 days, it will be deleted.