# Deleting Your Organization — What Actually Happens to Your Data

Deleting an organization on Closient is a reversible 90-day process, not an instant wipe. Here's exactly what happens to your products, billing, API keys, and traceability records — and how to undo it.

_Your data, your control_

# Deleting your organization, in plain terms.

When you delete an organization on Closient, nothing is destroyed on the spot. The organization is **disabled and scheduled for removal in 90 days** — and you can change your mind and restore it at any point during that window. This page explains exactly what happens, so there are no surprises.

## The short version: it's reversible for 90 days

Deleting is **not** an instant wipe. It works the way closing an account does at AWS, Google, or GitHub:

- Your organization is **disabled immediately** — it disappears from your active organizations and can't be used normally.
- It stays fully **restorable for 90 days**. Open your organization picker and click **Restore** — it comes straight back.
- We **email the owners** when deletion starts, and again before the final removal. If someone deletes your organization without your knowledge, those emails — and the 90-day window — are your safety net.

Only after 90 days, with no restore, do we permanently remove the organization-only data.

## What happens the moment you delete

The instant you delete, your organization **behaves as if it's already gone** — but nothing is actually destroyed yet. Every change below is a reversible switch, not a deletion, which is why a restore brings everything back exactly.

### Your QR codes still scan — safely

The QR codes you've already printed **keep resolving**, but to a **stripped-down safety page**: the product's name and code, any **active recall**, and **recyclability** info — nothing else. Your custom branded pages and destinations are paused. We never hide a recall or recycling instruction from a shopper, even mid-deletion.

### Billing drops to zero

You are **not charged for a suspended organization** — usage-based billing reports **zero** the whole time it's disabled. (The subscription itself is formally cancelled at day 90, when deletion finalizes.)

### API access is paused, not wiped

Your API keys **stop working** while the organization is disabled — but they are **not destroyed**. Restore the organization and the same keys work again instantly, with no rotation.

### Owners are notified

We email the organization's owners right away, then send reminders as the 90-day deadline approaches.

Because none of this is destructive, **Restore is lossless** — your catalog ownership, claims, branded pages, API keys, and subscription all come back exactly as they were.

## What we keep, and why

Some records carry a **legal retention duty** that outlives your account. If your organization captured food-traceability or pharmaceutical-tracing data, the law requires that data be kept for a set period — so we keep it, even through deletion, rather than destroy it and put you out of compliance. Here's how each kind of data is treated:

- **Brands, locations, products, lots, serials** — *Yours during the grace window* (so a restore is lossless), then **unclaimed at day 90** — released as crowd-sourced records so the QR codes you've already printed keep resolving.
- **Traceability records (FSMA 204 / DSCSA — events, critical tracking events, reference documents)** — *Retained* until they age out of their legal window, then removed. FSMA 204 requires 2 years; DSCSA requires 6 years.
- **Billing & subscription** — *Reports zero* the moment you delete (no charges for a suspended organization); the subscription is formally *cancelled at day 90*.
- **API keys** — *Paused* immediately (refused at sign-in), but never destroyed — they work again the instant you restore.
- **Organization-only data (settings, internal analytics, memberships)** — *Removed* after the 90-day window. There's no legal reason to keep it once you're gone.

The 90-day clock governs reversibility and the organization-only data. Regulated traceability records are on their **own, longer clock** — they age out on the schedule the law sets, and the organization is fully removed once the last one expires. You can read more about those requirements in our [FSMA 204 guide](/learn/fsma-204/).

## The 90-day timeline

- **Day 0 — You delete.** The organization is disabled: QR scans drop to the safety page, billing reports zero, API access is paused, and we email the owners. Nothing is unclaimed or cancelled yet — **Restore is available immediately and lossless.**
- **Through day 90 — Grace window.** The organization shows in your picker as *"Scheduled for deletion — N days left"* with a **Restore** button. We send reminder emails before the deadline.
- **Day 90 — Removal.** The catalog is unclaimed (released to crowd-sourced records), the subscription is cancelled, and organization-only data is permanently removed. Anything still under a legal retention duty is kept until it ages out, after which the organization record is removed too.

## Want your data removed sooner?

If you were just trying things out and want your organization gone immediately rather than waiting out the 90 days, **[get in touch](/support/)** and we'll help. Note that records under an active FSMA 204 or DSCSA retention duty can't be deleted early — that's a legal requirement, not a Closient policy.

## Questions about deletion or data retention?

We'd rather you understood exactly what happens before you click delete. If anything here is unclear, reach out.

- [Read the FSMA 204 guide](/learn/fsma-204/)
- [Contact us](/support/)