What happens after a UTXOs Time-lock expires?

When a UTXO’s time-lock expires, it becomes spendable according to the pre-defined conditions. This means that the beneficiary or entity designated to access the funds can now use them. For example, if a time-lock was set to allow a spouse access after 1 year of inactivity, once that period is over, the spouse can move the funds. If there are multiple recovery paths set up, such as 21st Capital’s Smart Backup after 15 months, the next time-lock condition will activate accordingly if no other action is taken.

Review and Refresh Time-locks. If you want to maintain control, renew or update the time-lock before it expires to extend the time-frame.

Practical Example:

Let’s say a UTXO was set to allow your spouse access after 1 year of inactivity, but no action was taken for 15 months. At this point, 21st Capital’s Smart Backup could activate to recover the funds based on the backup policy. However, 21st Capital can only act on your behalf if you or your heirs provide necessary wallet information, such as descriptors, and submit a formal request. Without this critical information, 21st Capital cannot sign or recover the funds for you. This ensures that control over your Bitcoin remains entirely in your hands or with your chosen heirs.