It kicks you out otherwise if it didn't people would just stay logged in and never log out for as long as they could stay on to avoid having to pay their sub once it ran out.
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Can confirm, got kicked out of Turn 8 during a raid just before I pulled the avatar (back when SCOB was the relevant raid)
You don't always get kicked at the same second your sub runs out, but within an hour or two you will, yes.
If you have a recurring subscription (no matter if it's the 1-month option or the 6-month one), it doesn't matter; the new one will take effect the moment the old one expires, provided the payment went through. So I agree with the OP -- if the options in Steam is to buy "x days" instead of having it be a recurring payment that's automatically debited your account/card, why force you to wait until the sub expires before you can tab/log out and replenish it? Why not be able to pay before-hand and "queue" the new days to apply when the current/old ones expire? Similar to recurring subs?
Edit: managed to miss/forget that the first post mentioned not wanting a recurring sub, not that it wasn't an option. But still... it should (IMO) be possible to "queue" a 180-day 'game-time card' ^^;
To avoid automatic renewal issues when funds vary. Use Crysta. You can put a set amount in your account and leave it.
If you don't have the fund ready at renew time, then you can just let it lapse. When ready add Crysta and reactivate (instant really).
This has been the method I have been using for quite a while. It is convenient and prevents the auto renews i forget about.
Well, it's not an issue for me personally, since I use recurring subs anyway, but... can you even buy Crysta with your Steam Wallet? Since I don't have my FFXIV via Steam, I have no clue. If you can, then that's a good solution. If you can't, it doesn't really help OP with their problem ^^;