Built from Atlassian's licensing pages, documentation and announcements, plus G2 review data, checked on 28 and 29 September 2026. No vendor reviewed or paid for this article. We did not run hands-on tests.
Jira Data Center end of life is March 28, 2029. That day, Data Center subscriptions, including Jira Service Management Data Center, expire and instances become read-only (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026). New customers could no longer buy from March 30, 2026, and existing customers can buy or expand only until March 30, 2028 (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026).
If you run Jira Service Management Data Center, your service desk now has a fixed date to be live elsewhere. This guide covers the dates, what each changes, your options, what an Atlassian cloud migration moves, and a backwards plan.
Key takeaways
- Jira Service Management Data Center becomes read-only on March 28, 2029 (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026).
- Existing customers can buy licenses and expansions until March 30, 2028. Later renewals are prorated to end on March 28, 2029 (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026).
- Bitbucket Data Center and Jira Align Data Center are excluded (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026).
- Atlassian's migration assistant moves SLAs, queues and request types, but not services, linked knowledge base articles or mail handlers (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026).
- Migrated automation flows arrive disabled (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026).
Jira Data Center end of life: the key dates
Atlassian announced the wind-down on September 8, 2025 (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026). The dates that matter:
| Date | What happens | Source (as of 28 Sep 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| December 16, 2025 | New Data Center apps can no longer be submitted to the Marketplace | Atlassian |
| March 30, 2026 | New customers can't buy Data Center subscriptions or apps. Self-serve Data Center trials end | Atlassian, Atlassian staff post |
| June 2027 | Last month to buy Cloud Enterprise with a possible 10 to 20% first-year discount | Atlassian |
| March 30, 2028 | Last date for existing customers to buy subscriptions, apps and expansions | Atlassian |
| March 28, 2029 | End of life. Data Center and Marketplace app licenses expire; instances turn read-only | Atlassian |
In scope: Jira Software, Jira Service Management, Confluence, Bamboo and Crowd Data Center, the Data Center mobile apps, and their Marketplace apps. You are an existing customer if your organization paid for any Data Center subscription before March 30, 2026 (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026).
Until end of life, Atlassian supports each Data Center release for two years after it ships (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026).
What changes on each date for Jira Service Management teams
In short, existing customers can buy until March 30, 2028, then only renew. On March 28, 2029, the instance turns read-only (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026).
| Phase | You can | You can't |
|---|---|---|
| Now to March 30, 2028 | Renew, buy licenses and add agents (existing customers). Run a cloud migration trial | Start a self-serve Data Center trial |
| March 30, 2028 to March 28, 2029 | Renew, prorated to end on March 28, 2029 | Buy licenses, apps or expansions, so agent headcount can't grow |
| After March 28, 2029 | Read your data | Get updates or support. Use expired Marketplace apps |
Sources: Atlassian, Atlassian staff post, as of 28 Sep 2026.
What read-only means for a live service desk
Atlassian says that when your subscription expires, "your instance will become read only" (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026). For a service desk, that means no new incidents or requests through the portal or email, no change approvals and no running SLA clocks.
So the real deadline is earlier: cutover, reconciliation and hypercare must be finished before the instance freezes.
Extended maintenance by exception
Atlassian says it will offer "extended maintenance for certain Data Center customers by exception after March 28, 2029" (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026). Criteria and cost aren't public. Ask your account executive in writing, but don't plan around it.
Your options after Jira Data Center end of life
You have four options: Jira Service Management Cloud, Atlassian Government or Isolated Cloud, another ITSM platform, or staying on Data Center until read-only. Atlassian's answer is Cloud. It says 99% of its customers are in cloud or on a path there, including 75% of regulated and enterprise customers (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026).
| Option | Choose this if | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Jira Service Management Cloud, sold in Atlassian's Service Collection (Standard, Premium and Enterprise up to 100,000 agents; Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026) | JSM still fits your processes and you want to keep your Atlassian workflows and integrations | No database access, automation step limits and Assets object allowances by plan |
| Atlassian Government Cloud (FedRAMP Moderate authorized; Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026) or Isolated Cloud (dedicated environment; Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026) | You stayed on Data Center for sovereignty, isolation or public-sector rules | Isolated Cloud lacks some JSM features, such as the virtual agent and Assets reports (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026) |
| Another ITSM platform, such as ServiceNow or Freshservice | JSM no longer fits your scale, CMDB or process depth, or the forced move is the moment to rightsize | Atlassian's migration tool only targets Atlassian Cloud. Workflows, SLAs and automations are rebuilt |
| Stay on Data Center until read-only | You need time and treat old history as reference only | No support after end of life and no license growth after the 2028 cutoff |
On G2, Jira Service Management scores 4.3/5 (986 reviews), with ease of use praised and a steep learning curve the top complaint (G2, as of 28 Sep 2026). If you are weighing a different platform, compare ServiceNow vs Jira Service Management and Freshservice vs ServiceNow before you commit.
What's different in Jira Service Management Cloud
- No database access. Atlassian points to Atlassian Analytics, Data Lake, REST APIs and exports for reporting instead (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026).
- Automation limits. Standard includes 3,000 automation steps per user per month, Premium 6,500 and Enterprise 9,500 (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026).
- Assets allowances. Asset and configuration management is listed from Standard up. Standard stores 5,000 Assets objects free, Premium 50,000 and Enterprise 500,000; more start at $0.02 per object per month (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026).
- Data residency. Available from Standard up, but user account data and automation configuration stay out of scope (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026).
For per-agent prices and add-on charges by plan, see this Jira Service Management pricing breakdown.
Atlassian's migration incentives
Cloud migration trials run for the rest of your Data Center subscription, or 60 days if it has expired, for up to 20,000 users (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026). Atlassian also offers step-up credits for unused Data Center maintenance and dual licensing to avoid double paying. Customers buying Cloud Enterprise by June 2027 "may be eligible for a 10-20% discount for the first year" (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026).
What Atlassian cloud migration moves, and what it doesn't
Atlassian's tool is the Jira Cloud Migration Assistant (JCMA). It comes pre-installed in newer Jira versions and can migrate everything at once or selectively (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026). In short, service project configuration, customers and Assets data move. Services, linked knowledge base articles and mail handlers don't (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026).
| Moves | Rebuilt or re-verified on the target | At risk: check in test |
|---|---|---|
| Service projects, request types, queues, portal settings, workflows, approvals, reports | Services (not migrated) | SLA results on closed tickets and running timers (not documented) |
| SLA configurations and calendars | Knowledge base articles linked to service projects | Third-party app fields |
| Customers, organizations, agents and groups | Mail handlers (email channels) | Duplicate accounts for users who are also customers |
| Assets schemas, objects, attachments and object history | Automation flows (arrive disabled; outgoing webhooks unsupported) | Assets limits: 20 objects per field per work item |
| Custom fields and notification templates | Assets imports, reports and automation; global permissions | Archived Assets objects arrive un-archived |
Sources: Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026.
Three details trip up service desks. First, Atlassian lists "SLAs" as migrated but doesn't say whether elapsed time or past results carry over. Test it.
Second, Atlassian's Assets migration guide lists a Premium or Enterprise cloud plan as a prerequisite (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026), while the pricing page lists asset management from Standard (as of 28 Sep 2026). Confirm with Atlassian which plan your Assets migration needs.
Third, migrated customers get no notification, so plan your own portal communication (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026).
The rule holds for every migration. Workflows, automations, business rules, SLA definitions and running SLA timers are rebuilt and re-validated on the target, even when a tool copies their configuration.
Leaving Atlassian for another ITSM platform
Leaving Atlassian is an ITSM platform migration, not a cloud migration. Atlassian's assistant only moves data into Atlassian Cloud (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026), so it doesn't apply to ServiceNow, Freshservice or other platforms. You are moving incidents, requests, problems, changes, knowledge and CIs, plus the links between them, into a different data model.
An Assets object schema export from Jira Service Management Data Center includes objects, attributes and attachments, but excludes object history, comments, import configurations and connected Jira tickets (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026). Ticket-to-CI relationships must be rebuilt in the target's CMDB, such as the ServiceNow CMDB and its CI relationships.
Map these first. For a ServiceNow target, the ServiceNow migration guide covers each mapping in more depth.
- States and priority matrix. JSM statuses rarely map one to one onto another platform's states.
- Request types. They become catalog items or request templates, with their fields.
- Comments. Keep the public and internal split.
- SLA history. Carry SLA outcomes as data for reporting; running timers start fresh.
- Links. Issue links, Assets references and knowledge links must land as real relationships.
A backwards plan from March 28, 2029
Work back from the freeze, and finish cutover and hypercare before the instance turns read-only. Quarters are anchored to Atlassian's dates, not a typical project length. Larger estates should start each step earlier, and one named migration project lead should own these dates.
| Quarter | Milestone | Why then (sources as of 28 Sep 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Q4 2026 | Inventory projects, request types, SLAs, automations, Assets schemas, apps, integrations and email channels. Decide how much history moves | A cloud migration trial runs for the rest of your subscription (Atlassian) |
| Q1 to Q2 2027 | Choose the target platform and plan tier | Cloud Enterprise discount applies to purchases by June 2027 (Atlassian) |
| Q3 to Q4 2027 | Map states, priority matrix, SLAs, groups and CIs. Run test migrations and user acceptance testing | Atlassian advises at least one end-to-end test migration (Atlassian) |
| Q1 2028 | License every agent you need until cutover | March 30, 2028 is the last date to buy or expand (Atlassian) |
| Q2 to Q4 2028 | Freeze window, cutover with delta sync, reconciliation, go/no-go, hypercare | Atlassian advises setting the source to read-only first (Atlassian) |
| Q1 2029 | Final backup, archive access, retire integrations | Read-only from March 28, 2029 (Atlassian) |
For Cloud moves with more than 1,000 users, Atlassian also offers its FastShift program (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026). It doesn't cover moves to other platforms.
Jira Data Center end of life checklist
- Confirm which Data Center products you run are in scope.
- Confirm your existing-customer status and next renewal date.
- List every service project, request type, queue, SLA and calendar.
- List automation flows and flag unsupported actions.
- Count Assets objects per schema against the target plan's allowance.
- Find a target equivalent for every Marketplace app.
- List email channels and mail handlers to rebuild.
- Audit your legacy service desk data, then decide which history moves and which stays archived.
- Choose your target from the options table.
- Run an end-to-end test migration, user acceptance testing and SLA checks.
- Plan the freeze window, delta sync, go/no-go and hypercare, and define how reconciliation will check data fidelity.
- Take a full database or XML backup before read-only (Atlassian, as of 28 Sep 2026).
Jira Data Center end of life FAQ
Methodology
We used Atlassian's end of life page, announcements, a staff community post, documentation and pricing page, plus G2 data, all checked on 28 September 2026, and rechecked Atlassian's migration timeline pages on 29 September 2026. We did not run hands-on tests. Where Atlassian doesn't publish a fact, such as extended maintenance terms or how SLA timers migrate, we say so rather than estimate.
Disclosure: MigrateX, the publisher of this article, runs ITSM data migrations, including between platforms named here. No vendor reviewed or paid for this article.