Grace period
A short window after payment failure or subscription expiry when the customer keeps access while they fix the problem.
See it
What it is
When a renewal fails, a grace period keeps the customer working for a limited time instead of cutting access immediately. That window gives payment retries, card updates, and support time to recover the account.
Use one when immediate shutoff would destroy work, interrupt a service, or create more support cost than the unpaid access is worth. Set a clear start and end, run dunning during the window, and decide which entitlements remain available.
Gotcha: an undefined grace period becomes accidental free service. Base access on a stored grace deadline, not a loose status check, and tell the customer exactly when access will change if payment is not recovered.
Ask AI for it
Add a configurable grace period around Stripe Billing's invoice.payment_failed webhook. Store an exact access_end_at timestamp and keep only the chosen entitlements active while Stripe Smart Retries and dunning run. Show the deadline in the product and emails, restore normal access after invoice.paid, revoke access idempotently when the deadline passes, and record every extension as an audited support action.