Guide · updated November 15, 2026
Bought an SSL certificate? What the 200/100/47-day limits mean for you
If you bought a certificate from a reseller and install it yourself, the industry limits mean more frequent reinstalls: certificates issued from March 15, 2027 (In 120 days) last at most 100 days, and from March 15, 2029 at most 47 days.[CA/Browser Forum]
The limits
| Certificates issued from | Maximum lifetime | Domain validation reuse | New certificates a year (at least) |
|---|---|---|---|
| March 15, 2026 | 200 days | 200 days | 2 |
| March 15, 2027 | 100 days | 100 days | 4 |
| March 15, 2029 | 47 days | 10 days | 8 |
The last column is the minimum if you renewed at the very last moment: 365 divided by the maximum lifetime, rounded up. In practice you renew earlier.[CA/Browser Forum] Some CAs switch a few days early: DigiCert on February 24, 2026, SSL.com on March 11, 2026 and Sectigo on March 12, 2026, for the 200-day step.[DigiCert; SSL.com; Sectigo]
What this means for a multi-year plan
You still pay for the years you chose; you just receive several shorter certificates. Namecheap calls a 1–5-year plan “a sequence of 200-day certificates” and warns that if you skip a reissue, the timer keeps running and unused days aren’t added back.[Namecheap] GoDaddy puts the reissue-and-reinstall frequency at 2 times a year from March 2026, 5 times a year from March 2027 and 12 times a year from 2029.[GoDaddy]
The three ways out of manual reinstalling
- Use your host’s free automatic certificate. Most hosts, CDNs and site builders include one (see the provider guides). For a standard website it does the same job; see do I still need to buy a certificate?
- Keep a paid certificate, but automate it. GoDaddy documents ACME re-installation for Deluxe Automated SSL.[GoDaddy] Namecheap documents SSL Proxy (Namecheap DNS) and SSL Manager (cPanel/Apache/NGINX), with ACME scheduled.[Namecheap]
- Move to a host that installs certificates for you.
One more change: email validation
If you approve each certificate by clicking a link sent to admin@ or webmaster@ your domain, that method ends on March 15, 2028.[CA/Browser Forum] What to switch to.
Provider guides
Questions
Is my multi-year SSL plan still valid?
Yes. Resellers now deliver a multi-year plan as a series of shorter certificates. Namecheap describes it as “a sequence of ${ncDays}-day certificates”, each issued at no extra charge until your term is covered.
How often will I have to install a new certificate?
At least 2 times a year now, 4 times a year from March 15, 2027 and 8 from March 15, 2029, if you renew at the last moment. GoDaddy’s own figures, which allow time to renew early, are 2, 5 and 12 times a year.
What if I skip a reissue?
Your site’s HTTPS stops working when the certificate expires. Namecheap adds that the subscription keeps running and the unused days are not added back.
Can I avoid reinstalling by hand?
Yes: use your host’s free automatic certificate, or a paid certificate with automation (ACME or an install agent). For example, GoDaddy’s Deluxe Automated SSL or Namecheap’s SSL Manager and SSL Proxy.
Sources
- CA/Browser Forum — Baseline Requirements for TLS Server Certificates (v2.3.1, 4 Oct 2026) (CA/Browser Forum, accessed November 15, 2026)
- CA/Browser Forum — Ballot SC081v3: Introduce Schedule of Reducing Validity and Data Reuse Periods (CA/Browser Forum, accessed November 15, 2026)
- GoDaddy Help — Why are SSL certificate validity periods changing? (GoDaddy, accessed November 15, 2026)
- GoDaddy Help — Understanding validity vs. subscription periods for SSL certificates (GoDaddy, accessed November 15, 2026)
- Namecheap Knowledgebase — How your SSL coverage works (Namecheap, accessed November 15, 2026)
- DigiCert — Moving to 199-day validity for public TLS certificates (DigiCert, accessed November 15, 2026)
- Sectigo — Shorter validity periods for TLS Certificates and Domain Validation reuse (Sectigo, accessed November 15, 2026)
- SSL.com — Reminder: For SSL Customers, The 200-Day Certificate Deadline Arrives March 11, 2026 (SSL.com, accessed November 15, 2026)
Facts on this page last checked November 15, 2026.