# SetuptoolsDeprecationWarning: `license` as a TOML table is deprecated. Use a SPDX expression string instead.

- **ID:** `python/setuptools-license-field-deprecated`
- **Domain:** python
- **Category:** config_error
- **Verification:** ai_generated
- **Fix Rate:** 80%

## Root Cause

PEP 639 changes license metadata to SPDX expressions. The old `license = {text = "MIT"}` or `{file = "LICENSE"}` table format is deprecated and will be removed.

## Version Compatibility

| Version | Status | Introduced | Deprecated |
|---------|--------|------------|------------|
| 3.9 | active | — | — |
| 3.10 | active | — | — |
| 3.11 | active | — | — |
| 3.12 | active | — | — |

## Workarounds

1. **** (98% success)
   ```
   [project]\nlicense = "MIT"\nlicense-files = ["LICENSE"]
   ```
2. **** (95% success)
   ```
   license = "Apache-2.0 OR MIT"
   ```

## Dead Ends

- **** — Silences the warning but future setuptools will reject the old format. (60% fail)
- **** — Temporary; other tools will move to PEP 639. (50% fail)