Project or workflow
What happens to your Jira data when you stop paying
If you cancel a Jira subscription, Atlassian stops renewing it. After the subscription period ends you can still open the site for 15 days. The site is then deactivated. Free, Standard, Premium, and Enterprise plans keep the app data for 60 days after that. Trials are kept for 15 days. Unsubscribing from every Jira app on the site deletes the Jira data immediately.
| Rule | What changes |
|---|---|
| When you stop paying | If you cancel a Jira subscription, Atlassian stops renewing it. |
| Deletion events | 5 events. See the timeline below. |
| Export | 5 steps. See the steps below. |
| Who can export | The cloud backup starts at Settings, then System, then Backup manager. |
| What the export requires | The cloud backup can include work items, fields, boards, sprints, users, comments, and, if you tick the option, attachments, avatars, and logos. |
| Recovery after deletion | You can reactivate during the retention period, and the app data and preferences come back. |
| Free-plan limits | If every Jira Cloud app on the site is on the Free plan, those apps are deactivated after inactivity. |
What Jira does when you stop paying
Canceling the subscription and unsubscribing from every Jira app are different endings. On the ordinary cancel path Atlassian stops renewing, you can still open the site for 15 days after the period ends, and then retention starts. Free, Standard, Premium, and Enterprise plans keep the data for 60 days. Trials are kept for 15 days. A missed payment deactivates the site after 15 days and starts that same retention. If you unsubscribe from one Jira app and keep another, the data stays. If you unsubscribe from every Jira app on the site, the data is deleted immediately. You can reactivate during retention, and the app data and preferences come back. After that period the data is permanently deleted and cannot be recovered. Atlassian cannot use its daily database backups to roll a deleted issue, project, or site back. Atlassian explains what happens when you stop paying in Track storage and move data across apps. For the other tools you still pay for, read what happens to company data when you cancel software. Closing this subscription while the company closes is part of how to wind down a company.
Deletion timeline for Jira
| Event | After | What the vendor says |
|---|---|---|
| Access after the subscription period ends | 15 days | After the subscription period ends, you can open the site for 15 more days. The site is then deactivated and the app enters retention. |
| Retention on Free, Standard, Premium, and Enterprise | 60 days | Those plans keep the app data for 60 days after deactivation. At the end of that period the data is permanently deleted and cannot be recovered. |
| Trial retention | 15 days | A trial is retained for 15 days. |
| Missed payment | 15 days | If payment is still missing 15 days after the due date, you are unsubscribed and the site is deactivated, which starts the retention period. |
| Unsubscribe from every Jira app | 0 days | If you unsubscribe from one Jira app and keep another, the Jira data stays. If you unsubscribe from every Jira app on the site, the Jira data is deleted immediately. |
See Jira in the deletion-window dataset beside the other systems.
Export your Jira data before you cancel
Backup manager is the cloud file. It can include work items, fields, boards, sprints, users, comments, and space configuration. Tick the option if attachments, avatars, and logos have to travel with it. Allow 48 hours between backups that include those files. Automation flows, third-party app data, Opsgenie-powered Service Management content, Assets, and Product Discovery views stay out. You can export automation flows by hand. From January 22, 2026, a restore only accepts a backup that is 30 days old or less. Download the file and open the zip before retention ends. The database data sits in activeobjects.xml and entities.xml.
The cross-vendor checklist is what to do before canceling software when closing a business.
Select Settings, then System.
Select Settings, then System.In the Import and export section, select Backup manager.
In the Import and export section, select Backup manager.Under Backup for cloud, select Create backup for cloud.
Under Backup for cloud, select Create backup for cloud.Tick the option to include work item attachments, user avatars, and space logos if those files should travel with the backup.
Tick the option to include work item attachments, user avatars, and space logos if those files should travel with the backup.When the backup finishes, select Download backup file.
When the backup finishes, select Download backup file.
Who can run the export
The backup starts at Settings, then System, then Backup manager, under Backup for cloud. An organization may block exports for one app instance or for certain classification levels. If the control is missing, that block is the reason. Ask the organization admin to allow the export, then run it again while the site is still open. A site admin is the person who can open storage and see how much of the plan's space the app has used. That storage screen is not the backup. Create the backup as someone who can still open System settings.
What to keep from Jira
Jira keeps the work as items, comments, and the board that ordered them. A cloud backup is that queue, plus users, field values, and the attachments you chose to include. A licensed copy can keep the items, the comments, the board and sprint data, and those attachments. Names, emails, and the other details that follow are removed before any copy is shared. A backup that omitted attachments does not grow those files back later. Open the zip and confirm activeobjects.xml and entities.xml are inside before you cancel. Attachments, when you included them, sit in their own folder in that zip.
- Work items and field values
- Comments
- Board and sprint data
- Attachments included in the backup
Removed before sharing:
- Names, emails and phone numbers
- Customer and staff details
- Passwords and legal files
Read what data is shared when licensing company data before you decide which of the items below can stay.
Plan-specific caveats
Free Jira apps on a site with no paid Jira app are deactivated after inactivity. Atlassian emails the site admin first. Logging in and viewing a dashboard, a report, an admin screen, or an issue counts as activity. Data for a deactivated Free Cloud app is permanently deleted soon after, following a notice. That inactivity path is separate from canceling a paid subscription. Atlassian does not delete data for an active subscription. If you still need the Free site, sign in and view a page while you finish the backup. Atlassian recommends staying within 25 GB of data and 50 to 100 GB of attachments so the export and a later import can succeed.
What a licensing program can use from project or workflow
A licensing program can keep issues and tasks as the record of what was assigned, blocked, and finished.
For the tools that are not a Jira backup, read what happens to your Asana data when you stop paying, what happens to your monday.com data when you cancel, and what happens to your ClickUp data when you cancel.
Jira is named on software and SaaS company data for AI research, fintech company data for AI research, pharma company data for AI research, and manufacturing company data for AI research.
Related
- What's shared
Which records can be licensed, which details never leave, and what you approve.
- How it works
The six steps from a short enquiry to payment, and how to stop.
Questions about Jira cancellation
Can deleted Jira data be recovered?
You can reactivate during the retention period, and the app data and preferences come back. After that period the data is permanently deleted and cannot be recovered. Atlassian cannot use its daily database backups to roll back a deleted issue, project, or site. If every Jira app on the site is unsubscribed, the Jira data is deleted immediately.
Do we need a paid Jira plan to export everything?
The cloud backup can include work items, fields, boards, sprints, users, comments, and, if you tick the option, attachments, avatars, and logos. It leaves out automation flows, third-party app data, Jira Service Management content powered by Opsgenie, Assets, and Jira Product Discovery views. Allow 48 hours between backups that include attachments. Restores are limited to backups 30 days old or newer.
What happens to Jira data if we unsubscribe from only one Jira app?
If you unsubscribe from one Jira app and keep another Jira app on the same site, Atlassian keeps the Jira data. The data is deleted immediately only when you unsubscribe from every Jira app on the site. That immediate deletion is separate from canceling a subscription, which leaves 15 days of access and then a retention period. Free, Standard, Premium, and Enterprise plans keep the data for 60 days after deactivation. Download the cloud backup before you remove the last Jira app.
How long do we have to wait between Jira cloud backups?
If the backup includes work item attachments, user avatars, or space logos, allow 48 hours before you run another one. You can back up Jira data at other times when those files are not included. From January 22, 2026, Backup Manager restores only backups that are 30 days old or less. Download the file when it finishes. Automation flows, third-party app data, and Assets are not in that backup.
Sources
- Atlassian Support. Track storage and move data across apps. Checked 2026-11-04
- Atlassian Support. Export data from Jira Cloud. Checked 2026-11-04