How it works
A domain isn’t bought outright; it is registered for a term, usually one year. For generic TLDs such as .com the registry keeps the expiry date. If the registrar doesn’t renew in time, a fixed sequence follows: an auto-renew grace period of up to 45 days, then a 30-day redemption period during which only the previous owner can restore the domain for a fee, and five days of pending delete. After that the name is up for grabs.
Many registrars switch the name servers to a parking page on the expiry date itself. Website and email go down right away, not just when the domain is deleted.
For .de, DENIC does not publish an expiry date; the contract is between the owner and the provider. If the provider terminates it, for example over an unpaid invoice, it can have the domain deleted or hand it to DENIC’s TRANSIT procedure. Auto-renew at the registrar only protects you as long as the payment method and account are in good standing.
Why it matters
An expired domain takes everything with it: website, email, shop, “forgot password” logins and, along with the DNS records, SPF, DKIM and DMARC. Incoming mail is rejected or stuck in queues without senders noticing right away.
Once the domain is released, drop-catching services grab well-known names within seconds. The new owner can receive mail sent to the old addresses, reset accounts or use the domain’s reputation for spam and phishing.
How to prevent it
- Turn on auto-renew for every client domain and check the stored payment method at least once a year.
- Use a registrar contact address that is not on the domain itself – otherwise the final reminder never reaches you.
- Keep a domain inventory per client: registrar, account, expiry date, payment method and who is responsible.
- Renew important domains several years in advance.
- Monitor expiry dates and status codes automatically instead of relying on registrar emails.
How DomainWarn detects it
The Domain check queries the expiry date, registrar and status codes daily via RDAP. Fewer than 30 days to expiry is a warning with the “Domain expires soon” incident, fewer than 60 days a notice; an expired or no longer registered domain is critical (“Domain expired”). The statuses clientHold, serverHold, redemptionPeriod and pendingDelete lead to the “Domain on hold” incident.
If the registry publishes no expiry date (typical for .de), a notice appears; if the registrar is connected through an integration (INWX, IONOS, OVHcloud or Route 53), DomainWarn uses its expiry date instead. With auto-renewal turned on it stays a notice until seven days before expiry; if the date is still pending then, the renewal has failed and it becomes a warning with an incident again. Every renewal is logged as an event in the timeline.
DomainWarn checks this for all your domains on a schedule and alerts you when something is missing or changes.