Once that time has passed, the item may be considered overdue (e.g., for work projects or school assignments).
In the case of work assignments or projects that are not completed by the deadline, this may adversely affect the employee's performance rating.
In the case of school assignments, essays or reports submitted after the deadline, marks or grades may be deducted from the student's assessment.
This may occur with calls for proposal, commercial tenders for bids, and application dates for universities and professional schools.
There is only indirect evidence that the term deadline in the sense of "due date" may be connected with the use of the term in prison camps during the American Civil War, when it referred to a physical line or boundary beyond which prisoners were shot.