Start Date / "Anniversary Date" for WDW Annual Pass Renewal

[Duckbug.Ducktales]

Hello! I hope this is the right place for this question. I was thinking of renewing annual passes that will expire within a month (after being extended due to closure). A cast member I spoke to over the phone told me that after renewal, the clock wouldn't start counting on the annual pass until I visit the parks. Is that true? I thought this was the case for the first time a pass is purchased, but I thought renewal meant that the AP would be valid from the end date of the previous AP. The FAQ on the WDW website says the pass is renewed starting on the "anniversary date" but they don't say when that is exactly--sounds like the end date of the previous AP.

I want to make sure because if the CM is correct, I will renew now to get the 15% discount. But if not, I will wait since I don't plan on going until next year when the pandemic (hopefully) will be more under control.

I hope my question makes sense, and thanks for any advice!

 

[DisBuckMan]

Unless things have changed due to covid, the cast member is incorrect. AP renewals are valid for one year from the end date of the previous AP.

 

[Robo]

Hello! I hope this is the right place for this question. I was thinking of renewing annual passes that will expire within a month (after being extended due to closure).
A cast member I spoke to over the phone told me that after renewal,
1. the clock wouldn't start counting on the annual pass until I visit the parks. Is that true?
2. I thought this was the case for the first time a pass is purchased, but I thought renewal meant that the AP would be valid from the end date of the previous AP.
3. The FAQ on the WDW website says the pass is renewed starting on the "anniversary date" but they don't say when that is exactly--
4. sounds like the end date of the previous AP.

1. Incorrect.
2. Correct.
3. Yup.
4. Correct.

 

[Disneykingofkings]

years ago(10-12?) when you renewed your AP, the clock didn't start ticking until you passed through the turnstiles but they changed that wonderful perk;

 

[Lalabubbles]

I kind of have the same question. We did renew our passes and I was under the assumption that they would just continue and the expiration date would be the same month/day plus one year. But the CM emailed me the vouchers and it has the expiration date of 2030. I know that new APs have the 2030 expiration date and that would change once activated. I didn’t think we would have to activate these renewals but it looks like we do. So will the new expiration date be our original or the first time we go to the parks with the renewals?

 

[skeeter31]

I kind of have the same question. We did renew our passes and I was under the assumption that they would just continue and the expiration date would be the same month/day plus one year. But the CM emailed me the vouchers and it has the expiration date of 2030. I know that new APs have the 2030 expiration date and that would change once activated. I didn’t think we would have to activate these renewals but it looks like we do. So will the new expiration date be our original or the first time we go to the parks with the renewals?

The expiration date will be the same. Especially right now with the only AP available for purchase being renewals, they’ll make sure the expiration date stays the same as your last pass. You just have to stop at a ticket window to get your yellow cards printed out. So you can actually go to the window prior to your current pass expiring and they’ll be able to activate it for you. Or you could also go after they’ve expired, but your pass will still start the day after your old one expired.

I have the same instance right now. Showing vouchers in the system, but they’ll become passes with the same expiration date once I go to the ticket window.

 

[Lalabubbles]

@skeeter31 Thank you!

 

[focusondisney]

I kind of have the same question. We did renew our passes and I was under the assumption that they would just continue and the expiration date would be the same month/day plus one year. But the CM emailed me the vouchers and it has the expiration date of 2030. I know that new APs have the 2030 expiration date and that would change once activated. I didn’t think we would have to activate these renewals but it looks like we do. So will the new expiration date be our original or the first time we go to the parks with the renewals?

Well that is very strange. I am an out of state AP holder & I have never been mailed vouchers. The pass has always just continued with no interruption. The new date has shown in the MDE & we picked up new yellow cards on our next visit. A voucher with a 2030 expiration date sure sounds like you will get the date you activate it to me.

 

[Lalabubbles]

Well that is very strange. I am an out of state AP holder & I have never been mailed vouchers. The pass has always just continued with no interruption. The new date has shown in the MDE & we picked up new yellow cards on our next visit. A voucher with a 2030 expiration date sure sounds like you will get the date you activate it to me.

We will be there Thanksgiving week, I guess we will find out then, lol. I am going to plan on them to have the original expiration date and if it ends up being the new date we will take that as being pixie dusted .

 

[Judique]

I kind of have the same question. We did renew our passes and I was under the assumption that they would just continue and the expiration date would be the same month/day plus one year. But the CM emailed me the vouchers and it has the expiration date of 2030. I know that new APs have the 2030 expiration date and that would change once activated. I didn’t think we would have to activate these renewals but it looks like we do. So will the new expiration date be our original or the first time we go to the parks with the renewals?

You can probably ignore the 2030 date. Renewals start when the old pass expires. There may be a little twist this time around if you did not take any refunds. That would be the pass extension expiration may become your new anniversary date. (I say may because I am not an authority on this.)

So, your new expiration date most likely will be 1 year from whatever your extension was.

There is a poster above who does know what he is talking about. He's already answered on this thread. That would be @Robo above. You should be able to trust what he says. I would.

And to the poster above @Disneykingofkings - I've been using AP's since the late 90ties on and off and I've never seen one that was activated later than the expiration date of the original. Perhaps your experience is pre - 1997??

 

[fla4fun]

I have been getting renewal vouchers from AAA the past few years, and the expiration date on the voucher/card itself is meaningless really because it hasn’t been activated yet. It’s basically there as a sort of batch number for Disney to use in case they need to segregate one group of blank stock from another (for example, if they create new cards with a different magnetic strip, or RFID chip, they will easily know which stock to use and which to remove.

The renewal voucher will start right after the old one expires, once it is activated at a ticket window or guest relations. You do usually get a 30 day grace period after your expiration date to activate the renewal voucher, but the grace period does not affect the validity dates of your new pass. It will still only be active for one year from your last expiration date. If you wait longer than the 30 day grace period, and then try to activate the renewal, they should be requiring you to apply the value of the renewal voucher toward a brand new pass, which would then have a new expiration date.

This is different than just renewing directly through Disney. When I renewed directly with Disney, I just bought the renewal online, and when the old pass expired, the new one was activated automatically in MDE for my MB. The only time I would go to a ticket window or guest relations was when my AP card had expired and I needed a new one for merch and dining discounts (They used to have a date range by year, so you could go two years before needing a new card).

I have never come close to waiting until the end of the grace period, because my expiration date has always required a slightly early renewal in order to book FP. That’s how I got started buying the AAA vouchers. I wasn’t restricted to renewing only 60 days ahead of my expiration date. I could buy the AAA renewal voucher anytime, and add it to MDE at 65 or 70 days out, and then I could book FP without issues.