PHP 8.1 End of Life: Security Support Has Officially Ended

PHP 8.1 Is End of Life (As of December 31, 2025)

PHP 8.1 is now officially end-of-life. Security support ended on December 31, 2025, and as of January 2026, the PHP project no longer provides fixes of any kind for this version.

If PHP 8.1 is still running in your environment, it is now unsupported software.

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The PHP 8.1 Timeline

Here is the lifecycle, based on the current PHP support calendar:

• Initial release: November 25, 2021
• Active support ended: November 25, 2023
• Security support ended: December 31, 2025
• Status today: End of life
  
  

This means PHP 8.1 received security fixes through the end of 2025, but no fixes will be released after that date.

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What “End of Life” Actually Means

Once a PHP version reaches EOL:

• No security patches, even for critical vulnerabilities
• No bug fixes or stability updates
• No backports from newer PHP releases
• No upstream support, period
  
  

Any vulnerability discovered in PHP 8.1 after December 31, 2025 is permanent unless you take action outside the PHP project.

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Why Running PHP 8.1 in 2026 Is a Risk

Security Exposure

PHP continues to receive regular CVE disclosures. With 8.1 EOL, newly discovered issues will never be fixed upstream, leaving applications exposed indefinitely.

Compliance and Audit Findings

Unsupported runtimes are increasingly flagged during SOC 2, ISO 27001, PCI DSS, and HIPAA audits. “We are planning an upgrade” is rarely sufficient once a version is fully EOL.

Dependency Pressure

Frameworks and libraries are actively dropping PHP 8.1 support. Over time, you lose the ability to safely update dependencies without upgrading PHP itself.

Upgrade Becomes Harder Over Time

The longer an application stays on an EOL runtime, the more breaking changes accumulate. What could have been a controlled upgrade turns into a high-risk migration.

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Your Options After PHP 8.1 EOL

There are three realistic paths forward.

Upgrade to a Supported PHP Version

PHP 8.2, 8.3, and 8.4 are supported, with security coverage extending into 2026, 2027, and beyond. This is the best long-term option, but it requires time, testing, and coordination.

Accept the Risk

Some teams choose to remain on PHP 8.1 and accept the exposure. This often fails during audits, security reviews, or incident response.

Use Extended Security Support

If an immediate upgrade is not feasible, extended support can provide ongoing security patches for PHP 8.1, buying time without freezing risk in place.

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The Bigger Takeaway

PHP 8.1 reaching end of life is not an isolated event. It is the normal rhythm of open source infrastructure.

The real question teams need to answer is no longer:
“What version are we running?”

It is:
“How long will this be supported?”

As of 2026, PHP 8.1 is no longer supported. What you do next determines whether that becomes a manageable transition or a growing liability.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is PHP 8.1 still supported?

No. PHP 8.1 reached end of life on December 31, 2025. As of January 2026, it no longer receives security updates or bug fixes from the PHP project.

What is the difference between active support and security support?

Active support includes bug fixes and improvements. Security support is limited to critical security patches only. PHP 8.1 lost active support in November 2023 and security support at the end of 2025.

Can Linux distributions still patch PHP 8.1?

Some operating system vendors may backport fixes at the distro level, but that does not mean PHP 8.1 is supported upstream. These patches are limited, inconsistent, and do not replace official PHP maintenance.

Is running PHP 8.1 a compliance issue?

In many environments, yes. Unsupported runtimes are commonly flagged during SOC 2, ISO 27001, PCI DSS, and HIPAA audits unless compensating controls or extended support are in place.

What PHP versions are currently supported?

As of 2026, PHP 8.2, 8.3, 8.4, and 8.5 are supported, each with defined security support timelines extending into future years.

Do I have to upgrade immediately?

Not necessarily, but continuing to run PHP 8.1 without a plan introduces ongoing security and audit risk. Teams should either upgrade to a supported version or put alternative security measures in place.

What happens if a new vulnerability is found in PHP 8.1?

It will not be fixed by the PHP project. Any new CVEs affecting PHP 8.1 after December 31, 2025 remain unpatched unless addressed through third-party or extended support solutions.

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