Set the expiration timeline for customer credits after they’re added to an account. Once credits expire, customers can't use them for future orders.

This guide explains credit expiration best practices, available credit expiration policy options, and configuration steps.

Before you start

Batch rolling and grace period expirations are in Early Adopter status. Request access by signing up for the waitlists. See Early Adopter Program for more information. Complete the following forms to access these Early Adopter features:

• Batch rolling expiration EAP form
• Grace period expiration EAP form

Credit expiration best practices

Use the following best practices to manage credits effectively when setting expiration policies:

Set clear expiration policies

Limit long-term liability with policies that prevent customers from accumulating excessive credits, reducing the risk of significant financial obligations. Regularly review and update expiration settings to align with your business goals. 

Storewide Loyalty Programs

Use this when customers earn and redeem credits across your entire storefront.

• Batch rolling expiration: All a customer’s credits share a common expiration date that extends upon qualifying activity (e.g., a storewide purchase or referral). This approach simplifies tracking and reinforces engagement through regular action.
• Dynamic expiration: Each credit receives an individual expiration date based on when it's earned (e.g., 90 days after issuance). This structure works well for ongoing engagement, one-time promotions, or distributed spending patterns.

Subscriber-only Loyalty Programs

Use this when customers earn and redeem credits based solely on their subscription activity.

• Grace period expiration: Credits remain available for a short period (e.g., 7–30 days) after a customer cancels their last subscription, giving them a window to reactivate and retain value. Best for retention-focused subscription models aiming to reduce churn.

Plan for potential redemptions

Proactively prepare for credit redemptions to avoid cash flow issues. Include potential redemptions in your financial forecasts and reserves to minimize the risk of unexpected financial strain, particularly during peak redemption periods.

Communicate policies clearly to customers

Communicate credit policies transparently to build trust and encourage timely redemption.

• Inform customers about their credit balance, expiration dates, redemption thresholds, and other important details through email notifications.
• Add this information to your policy pages or product descriptions on your Shopify storefront to prevent confusion.
• Send reminders when balances exceed a certain amount or during key moments, such as preventing cancellations, to drive engagement and credit redemption.
• Highlight the potentially lost credits on the Cancellation Prevention landing page and within win back campaigns.

See Credits for more information about the Recharges credit offering.

Batch rolling expiration

Batch rolling expiration assigns the same expiration date to all of a customer's credits and resets it with each new purchase.

Step 1 - Access credit settings

Open your Credit settings to get started:

1. Click Loyalty in the merchant portal and select Rewards.
2. Select Create from template.
3. Select Batch rolling expiration.

Step 2 - Configure batch rolling expiration

You can choose one of the following options when configuring credit expiration settings:

• Never expire: Customers credits never expire
• After a set time period: Customer credits expire a set number of days after they're issued

Recharge defaults to a 12-month expiration period if your credits are set to expire. You can update the time frame and configure batch rolling expiration: 

1. Select After a set time period.
2. Enter a number in the Credits expire in field.
3. Select a time unit (days, weeks, or months) from the dropdown to set how long after issue each credit should expire.
4. Select Last customer activity from the Date earned drop-down.
5. Click Save settings to activate batch rolling expiration.

Grace period expiration

Create a time-sensitive grace period after subscription cancellation, during which customers can reactivate to prevent their credits from expiring.

1. Click Loyalty in the merchant portal and select Rewards.
2. Click Create from template and select Grace period expiration.
3. Click the Update credits node to configure the credit expiration for this flow.
4. Select the credit types that need updating.
5. Choose when credits should expire. The following options are available:
   • After a set time period: Choose from days, weeks, and months to determine when the credits expire.
   • Immediately: Credits expire immediately upon cancellation.
   • Never, remove existing expirations: Credits never expire, and Recharge removes all credit expirations.
6. Select Apply.
7. Configure the Wait for action node. The Wait for action node checks whether a customer reactivates to recover their credit balance. By default, it monitors for any subscription reactivation within 45 days of cancellation. If the customer reactivates, the experience ends. If not, Recharge considers the flow as complete after 45 days.
8. Review the Update credits node on the Action complete branch. This automatically removes or updates credit expiration when a customer reactivates their subscription.
   • To ensure that customers who received a 45-day grace period at cancellation no longer have an active expiration, configure this node to set credit expiration to Never, remove any existing expirations.