# Deprecation guidelines

This page includes information about how and when to remove or make breaking
changes to GitLab features.

## Terminology

It's important to understand the difference between **deprecation** and
**removal**:

**Deprecation** is the process of flagging/marking/announcing that a feature
will be removed in a future version of GitLab.

**Removal** is the process of actually removing a feature that was previously
deprecated.

## When can a feature be deprecated?

A feature can be deprecated at any time, provided there is a viable alternative.

## When can a feature be removed/changed?

See our [Release and Maintenance policy](../../policy/maintenance.md).