The short answer
It depends on how Publisher was licensed, and the two cases ended differently:
- Microsoft 365 subscription. Microsoft said subscribers would lose access on or shortly after October 1, 2026, as its removal update rolls out, and that Publisher will not be available to install or download after October 2026.
- Bought outright, including Office LTSC 2021. Support ended on October 13, 2026, but the installed program keeps running on that machine. Microsoft's support article states that perpetual versions can still be installed and used after the support date; what stops is updates, bug fixes and security patches.
Source: Microsoft's support article, "Microsoft Publisher will no longer be supported after October 2026", announced February 2024.
What "unsupported" actually means
An unsupported program does not stop on its own. It keeps opening the way it always has, until something around it changes: a Windows update, a new computer, a font or printer driver it was never tested against. Because it gets no more security patches, it is also a program that opens other people's files without anyone checking it for new vulnerabilities. Neither risk is dramatic in the first weeks. Both grow the longer an unsupported install stays in the loop for work that matters.
What does not change either way
Your .pub files were not deleted, locked or altered on either date. The retirement removed access to the program, not to the documents on disk. If Publisher is no longer available to you, the files are still readable, just by something other than Publisher. See how to open a .pub file without Publisher for the practical routes.
A reasonable plan
- Check which case you are in. Subscription or bought copy. A subscription copy is being removed; if yours still opens, use it to save PDFs now. A bought copy still runs, unsupported.
- Do not wait for something to break. Open your most-used .pub file in stillPUB now and read the conversion report. If a bought copy of Publisher still runs, compare against it while you can.
- Keep a working copy that does not depend on Publisher. Save it as .stillpub, or export a PDF for anything you only need to read or print.
- Stop treating Publisher as the plan, even if it still opens. An install that gets no security patches is not a long-term answer for live documents.
For the full timeline and a wider checklist, see what happened when Publisher was discontinued.