You need to renew the license every 10 years, but as long as you renew you don't need to take a test (which is maybe what you mean by "lasts a lifetime").
Yeah depends on the country/jurisdiction - in Canada, an amateur radio certification is valid for life, and doesn't require any sort of re-testing or paid renewal or anything. Pretty nice. One of the few times the government has really done something right, IMO :)
In the US, it lasts a lifetime but you have to tell them you're still alive every ten years. This is free, but if you don't file the form, your license is no longer valid.
You need to renew the license every 10 years, but as long as you renew you don't need to take a test (which is maybe what you mean by "lasts a lifetime").