Re-consent & Evidence Retention

Browser choice lifetime

In Banner Design → Timing & re-consent, the Re-consent period defaults to 365 days and is configurable from 30 to 730 days. The runtime stores the browser choice with an expiry derived from this setting.

This is a product renewal interval, not a universal lawful validity period. Browser storage deletion/restrictions, withdrawal and material purpose/notice changes can require a new choice earlier. A settings change should not be assumed to rewrite every already-stored browser expiry.

Scheduled renewal in new records

For new records, expiresAt is the scheduled renewal date of the recorded decision, not an evidence-retention deadline. Both the public banner writer and REST consent writer calculate it as the decision time plus the applied number of 24-hour days, including across leap years.

The banner sends a consentTiming snapshot (decidedAt and renewalDays) captured when it stores the choice. This preserves a cached banner's or A/B variant's period even if settings change before the log arrives. REST integrations can supply the same snapshot. These values are sender-reported, not independently verified by the server.

Without a snapshot, older senders use the site's current banner setting from server receipt time, defaulting to 365 days if the setting is unavailable or invalid. This is an estimate, not proof of the old browser's exact expiry. A dismissal has no renewal date because it stores no choice; a rejection's renewal date is not a grant of consent.

Historical records retain their original metadata: older public records used one calendar year and older REST records used 365 days. They are not backfilled.

Do not treat that field as proof that a browser's current choice remains valid, or that the record has been deleted. Historical evidence must not be silently rewritten using today's banner settings.

Actual log retention

Passing the re-consent interval or a record's expiresAt does not delete the record. By default, ConsentEase keeps each consent record until its scheduled renewal date + 24 months, and never shorter than recording time + 365 days + 24 months.

The 365-day floor also applies when expiresAt is missing, shorter (for example a 30-day renewal period) or carries older metadata, so a short renewal never shortens retention. Long renewal periods are kept for the full period plus 24 months. Withdrawals and other later choices are separate records and follow the same rule from their own recording time.

After that date, a record becomes eligible for removal by ConsentEase's daily retention cleanup. Example: a choice recorded on 1 March 2026 with a 365-day renewal is kept until 1 March 2029; with a 30-day renewal the floor applies, so it is also kept until 1 March 2029. Website deletion can remove associated records earlier.

Controller and default retention

The website owner is the controller for these records; the rule above is ConsentEase's default retention period. The EDPB consent guidelines, paragraph 107 require consent evidence while the relevant consent-based processing continues. After it ends, longer retention must be strictly necessary for legal obligations or claims.

If you need a record for longer, for example for an open complaint or dispute, export it and store it securely before its retention date. A renewal setting on its own never approves deleting logs.