ICANN Publications on Domain Grace Periods

3. Grace period policy

1. Introduction
This document describes VeriSign Global Registry Services (VGRS) practices for operational "Grace" and "Pending" periods, including relationships among sequential operations that occur within given time frames. A Grace Period refers to a specified number of calendar days following a Registry operation in which the domain may be deleted and a credit may be issued to a registrar. Relevant registry operations in this context are:
• Registration of a new domain,
• Extension of an existing domain,
• Auto-Renew of an existing domain;
• Transfer of an existing domain, and
• Deletion of an existing domain.
Extension of a registration period is accomplished using the RRP RENEW command or by auto-renewal; registration is accomplished using the RRP ADD command; deletion/removal is accomplished using the RRP DEL command; and transfer is accomplished using the RRP TRANSFER command or, where ICANN approves a bulk transfer under Part B of Exhibit B to the Registry-Registrar Agreement, using the procedures specified in that Part .
There are four grace periods provided by the VGRS Shared Registration System: Add Grace Period, Renew/Extend Grace Period, Auto-Renew Grace Period, and Transfer Grace Period.
A Pending Period refers to a specified number of calendar days following a Registry operation in which final Registry action is deferred before the operation may be completed. Relevant Registry operations in this context are:
• Transfer of an existing domain, and
• Deletion of an existing domain.
2. Grace Periods

2.1 Add Grace Period
The Add Grace Period is a specified number of calendar days following the initial registration of a domain. The current value of the Add Grace Period for all registrars is five calendar days. If a Delete, Extend (RRP Command Renew), or Transfer operation occurs within the five calendar days, the following rules apply:
Delete. If a domain is deleted within the Add Grace Period, the sponsoring Registrar at the time of the deletion is credited for the amount of the registration. The domain is deleted from the Registry database and is immediately available for registration by any Registrar. See Section 3 for a description of overlapping grace period exceptions.
Extend (RRP Command "Renew"). If a domain is extended within the Add Grace Period, there is no credit for the add. The account of the sponsoring Registrar at the time of the extension will be charged for the initial add plus the number of years the registration is extended. The expiration date of the domain is extended by the number of years, up to a total of ten years, as specified by the registrar's requested Extend operation.
Transfer (other than ICANN-approved bulk transfer). Transfers under Part A of Exhibit B to the Registry-Registrar Agreement may not occur during the Add Grace Period or at any other time within the first 60 days after the initial registration. Enforcement is the responsibility of the Registrar sponsoring the domain name registration and is currently enforced by the SRS.
Bulk Transfer (with ICANN approval). Bulk transfers with ICANN approval may be made during the Add Grace Period according to the procedures in Part B of Exhibit B to the Registry-Registrar Agreement. The expiration dates of transferred registrations are not affected. The losing Registrar's account is charged for the initial add.

2.2 Renew/Extend Grace Period
The Renew/Extend Grace Period is a specified number of calendar days following the renewal/extension of a domain name registration period through an RRP Command Renew. The current value of the Renew/Extend Grace Period is five calendar days. If a Delete, Extend, or Transfer occurs within that five calendar days, the following rules apply:
Delete. If a domain is deleted within the Renew/Extend Grace Period, the sponsoring Registrar at the time of the deletion receives a credit of the renew/extend fee. The domain is deleted from the Registry database and is immediately available for registration by any Registrar. See Section 3 for a description of overlapping grace period exceptions.
Extend (RRP Command "Renew"). A domain can be extended within the Renew/Extend Grace Period for up to a total of ten years. The account of the sponsoring Registrar at the time of the additional extension will be charged for the additional number of years the registration is extended.
Transfer (other than ICANN-approved bulk transfer). If a domain is transferred within the Renew/Extend Grace Period, there is no credit. The expiration date of the domain is extended by one year and the years added as a result of the Extend remain on the domain name up to a total of 10 years.
Bulk Transfer (with ICANN approval). Bulk transfers with ICANN approval may be made during the Renew/Extend Grace Period according to the procedures in Part B of Exhibit B to the Registry-Registrar Agreement. The expiration dates of transferred registrations are not affected. The losing Registrar's account is charged for the Renew/Extend operation.

2.3 Auto-Renew Grace Period
The Auto-Renew Grace Period is a specified number of calendar days following an auto-renewal. An auto-renewal occurs if a domain name registration is not renewed by the expiration date; in this circumstance the registration will be automatically renewed by the system the first day after the expiration date. The current value of the Auto-Renew Grace Period is 45 calendar days. If a Delete, Extend, or Transfer occurs within the Auto-Renew Grace Period, the following rules apply:
Delete. If a domain is deleted within the Auto-Renew Grace Period, the sponsoring Registrar at the time of the deletion receives a credit of the Auto-Renew fee. The domain is deleted from the Registry database and is immediately available for registration by any Registrar. See Section 3 for a description of overlapping grace period exceptions.
Extend (RRP Command "Renew"). A domain can be extended within the Auto-Renew Grace Period for up to a total of ten years. The account of the sponsoring Registrar at the time of the additional extension will be charged for the additional number of years the registration is extended.
Transfer (other than ICANN-approved bulk transfer). If a domain is transferred under Part A of Exhibit B to the Registry-Registrar Agreement within the Auto-Renew Grace Period, the losing Registrar is credited with the Auto-Renew charge and the year added by the Auto-Renew operation is cancelled. The expiration date of the domain is extended by one year up to a total maximum of ten by virtue of the transfer and the gaining Registrar is charged for that additional year, even in cases where a full year is not added because of the 10-year maximum limitation.
Bulk Transfer (with ICANN approval). Bulk transfers with ICANN approval may be made during the Auto-Renew Grace Period according to the procedures in Part B of Exhibit B to the Registry-Registrar Agreement. The expiration dates of transferred registrations are not affected. The losing Registrar's account is charged for the Auto-Renew.

2.4 Transfer Grace Period
The Transfer Grace Period is a specified number of calendar days following the transfer of a domain according to Part A of Exhibit B to the Registry-Registrar Agreement. The current value of the Transfer Grace Period is five calendar days. If a Delete, Extend, or Transfer occurs within that five calendar days, the following rules apply:
Delete. If a domain is deleted within the Transfer Grace Period, the sponsoring Registrar at the time of the deletion receives a credit of the transfer fee. The domain is deleted from the Registry database and is immediately available for registration by any Registrar. See Section 3 for a description of overlapping grace period exceptions.
Extend (RRP Command "Renew"). If a domain is extended within the Transfer Grace Period, there is no credit for the transfer. The Registrar's account will be charged for the number of years the registration is extended. The expiration date of the domain is extended by the number of years, up to a maximum of ten years, as specified by the registrar's requested Extend operation.
Transfer (other than ICANN-approved bulk transfer). If a domain is transferred within the Transfer Grace Period, there is no credit. The expiration date of the domain is extended by one year up to a maximum term of ten years.
Bulk Transfer (with ICANN approval). Bulk transfers with ICANN approval may be made during the Transfer Grace Period according to the procedures in Part B of Exhibit B to the Registry-Registrar Agreement. The expiration dates of transferred registrations are not affected. The losing Registrar's account is charged for the Transfer operation that occurred prior to the Bulk Transfer.

2.5 Bulk Transfer Grace Period
There is no grace period associated with Bulk Transfer operations according to Part B of Exhibit B to the Registry-Registrar Agreement. Upon completion of the Bulk Transfer, any associated fee is not refundable.

3. Overlapping Grace Periods
If an operation is performed that falls into more that one grace period, the actions appropriate for each grace period apply (with some exceptions as noted below).
• If a domain is deleted within the Add Grace Period and the Extend Grace Period, then the Registrar is credited the registration and extend amounts, taking into account the number of years for which the registration and extend were done.
• If a domain is auto-renewed, then extended, and then deleted within the Extend Grace Period, the registrar will be credited for the Auto-Renew and the number of years for the extension.

3.1 Overlap Exception
• If a domain is deleted within one or several Transfer Grace Periods, then only the current sponsoring Registrar is credited for the transfer amount. For example if a domain is transferred from Registrar A to Registrar B and then to Registrar C and finally deleted by Registrar C within the Transfer Grace Period of the first, second and third transfers, then only the last transfer is credited to Registrar C.
• If a domain is extended (through the RRP command "Renew") within the Transfer Grace Period, then the current Registrar's account is charged for the number of years the registration is extended.
Note: If several billable operations, including transfers, are performed on a domain and the domain is deleted within the grace periods of each of those operations, only those operations that were performed after the latest transfer, including the latest transfer, are credited to the current Registrar.

4. Pending Periods

4.1 Transfer Pending Period
The Transfer Pending Period is a specified number of calendar days following a request from a registrar (registrar A) to transfer a domain in which the current registrar of the domain (registrar B) may explicitly approve or reject the transfer request. The current value of the Transfer Pending Period is five calendar days for all registrars. The transfer will be finalized upon receipt of explicit approval or rejection from the current registrar (registrar B). If the current registrar (registrar B) does not explicitly approve or reject the request initiated by registrar A, the registry will approve the request automatically after the end of the Transfer Pending Period. During the Transfer Pending Period:
a. RRP TRANSFER request or RRP RENEW request is denied.
b. AUTO-RENEW is allowed.
c. RRP DELETE request is denied.
d. Bulk Transfer operations are allowed.
4.2 Delete Pending Period
The Delete Pending Period is a specified number of calendar days following a request to delete a domain in which the domain is placed in REGISTRY-HOLD status without removing the domain from the Registry database. The current value of the Delete Pending Period for all registrars is five calendar days. Registrars may request retraction of a Delete request by calling the VGRS Customer Support staff within the Delete Pending Period. Retraction requests processed during the Delete Pending Period will be at no cost to the registrar. If no action is taken within the Delete Pending Period, the domain will be deleted from the Registry database and returned to the pool of domain names available for registration by any Registrar. During the Delete Pending Period:
a. RRP RENEW or AUTO-RENEW request is ignored.
b. RRP TRANSFER request is denied.
c. Bulk Transfer operations are allowed.