Hi there,
There must be some confusion.. The theme license is lifetime, you don’t have to pay after a year. You receive free updates and support for 1 year, and you only have to pay if you want to keep receiving updates and support after the 1 year has ended, but this is completely optional.
This is a standard for most premium themes. lifetime use product, with 1 year of free support and updates, which is listed in the terms.
If you’re having issues continuing to use the theme after the year, please contact us so we can look into & fix this issue.
You can create a ticket here through our helpdesk and we’ll be happy to help.
https://support.smartcatdesign.net/
Best regards