Frequently asked questions
Everything we get asked most often about buying, leasing, tunnelling, sponsorship and IPv6, collected in one place.
General
Is leasing IPv4 addresses legal?
Yes, in most regions. IPv4 leasing is widely practiced, though policies vary by RIR. Some RIRs have specific rules around sub-assignments and transfers. We ensure every lease complies with the applicable RIR policies.
How long does an IPv4 transfer take?
We file RIPE transfers within 24 hours of payment, and RIPE usually completes them in 1-3 business days, though registry processing is outside our control. ARIN and APNIC transfers take 2-4 weeks. Timing depends on documentation completeness.
What does 'clean' IP addresses mean?
Clean IPs are not listed on any major blacklists, have no abuse history, and have a clear routing history. We scan against 10+ blacklists before delivery. However, we make no guarantees with regards to routability or e-mail deliverability. Blacklist status and routing acceptance are ultimately determined by third parties outside our control.
Do I need my own ASN?
Not necessarily. Your data center can announce the subnet on their ASN, or we can announce the subnet on our infrastructure or help you apply for your own ASN if you need it.
What is a LOA?
A Letter of Authorization (LOA) is a document that gives you permission to announce a subnet from any data center or upstream provider. An LOA is not provided by default, but can be issued upon request.
Can I use leased IPs with cloud providers?
Yes. Many cloud providers (AWS, GCP, Azure, Vultr, Hetzner, OVHcloud) support BYOIP (Bring Your Own IP). We have extensive experience onboarding IP space across these platforms and can guide you through the full configuration process.
What is an IRR object, and do I need one?
An Internet Routing Registry object is a public record stating which AS number is entitled to announce a given prefix. Carriers and large networks build their route filters from these records, so an announcement with no matching object is frequently dropped before it propagates. It exists to stop address space being announced by parties with no claim to it. We create and maintain the object for any space you lease or buy through us, alongside the RPKI ROA, which serves the same purpose with cryptographic proof rather than a database entry.
Buying IPv4
Where can I buy IPv4 addresses?
From organisations that hold space they no longer need. In practice that rarely happens directly. Most sellers work through a broker who finds the counterparty, verifies the block and handles the registry side. Open marketplaces exist too. What matters more than the venue is whether whoever you buy through can show you the block's history and stands behind the transfer. We hold inventory ourselves and broker from a network of sellers, so most requests can be matched without you going to market alone.
How do I request IPv4 from a registry directly?
You open an account with the registry covering your region and meet its criteria. In practice this is no longer a route to meaningful quantities. The free pools are effectively gone and what remains is rationed or waitlisted, so almost all address space now changes hands on the transfer market. Tell us your region and we will say plainly whether a direct request is worth attempting or whether a transfer is the faster path.
Which registry regions can I buy in?
We handle purchases into RIPE, ARIN and APNIC, and inter-registry transfers between them where policy permits. We do not currently transact in the LACNIC or AFRINIC regions. Conditions differ by region: some require you to document need before approving a transfer, some require an account in good standing first, and the paperwork differs accordingly. We work out which applies to your case before anything is signed.
What should I check before buying a block?
Four things. Who has held it since it was assigned, and whether the seller is genuinely entitled to transfer it. Its current registry status. Whether it was announced by anyone without a claim to it while it sat dormant. And its blocklist history. We run all four as part of brokering, and you see the results before you commit rather than after.
Do I need a sponsoring LIR to buy in the RIPE region?
If you are not a Local Internet Registry yourself, the resource has to be tied to one. We can act as your sponsoring LIR, which means the purchase and the ongoing registry relationship sit with the same party instead of you arranging them separately.
Leasing IPv4
How small a block can I lease?
From a single /24, which is 256 addresses. Anything longer than a /24 is filtered by most networks on the public internet, so smaller fragments cannot be announced reliably.
Can I announce leased space with my own ASN?
Yes. We issue a Letter of Authorization for the block, which your upstream or data centre uses to accept the announcement. If you do not have an ASN, your provider can usually announce on theirs, or you can route the space through one of our GRE tunnels instead.
Are the addresses clean?
We check blocklist status before handover and monitor the major RBLs for the duration of the lease. If a listing appears we work through delisting with you. Reputation depends on what you send, so keeping it clean is a shared responsibility.
What happens at the end of a lease?
You can extend, resize, or hand the space back. Monthly leases can be cancelled with 30 days notice, and fixed terms of a year or more run to the end of the agreed period. If you want to keep the block, you keep it: that is the Block Continuity Guarantee, and it is in our Terms of Service rather than sold as a premium tier. If you do end a lease, we ask that you stop announcing the block on the end date so it can be reissued.
Can I use leased addresses with a cloud provider?
Often, yes. AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, Vultr, Hetzner and OVHcloud all support bringing your own IP in some form, though each sets its own requirements and most want a /24 minimum. Tell us which provider you have in mind and we will confirm before you commit.
Do you set up RPKI?
Yes. We create the ROA for your announcement as part of setup, so the route validates instead of being flagged invalid by the growing number of networks that enforce RPKI.
Selling IPv4
Is selling IPv4 addresses actually allowed?
Yes. Every registry has a transfer policy that lets a registered holder pass the rights to another party, provided both sides meet the conditions and the documentation holds up. What changes hands is the registration and the right to use the space, recorded through the registry rather than agreed privately between two parties, which is precisely what makes it enforceable.
What is my block worth?
It depends on size, registry region and how clean the space is. Larger contiguous blocks are worth more per address than fragments, legacy space usually carries a premium, and a history of blocklist entries pulls the figure down. We give a free valuation based on what comparable blocks are actually transacting at rather than a headline rate.
How long does a sale take?
Agreement, contract and paperwork usually run one to five business days on our side. Registry processing follows and is outside anyone's control: RIPE typically completes in 1-3 business days, while other regions take considerably longer.
When do I get paid?
Payment terms are set out in the agreement before it is signed, including when payment is due relative to the registry transfer. You will not be asked to give up control of the space before the agreed terms have been met.
Can I sell only part of a block?
Usually, provided it splits into prefixes that are still routable. A /24 is the practical floor, since most networks filter anything longer. Tell us what you hold and we will tell you how it can be divided and what each part is likely to fetch.
IPv6
Do I need IPv6 if my IPv4 works fine?
Not urgently, but it is cheaper to add now than to keep buying IPv4 as you grow. The usual trigger is either cost, since IPv4 per-address pricing starts to hurt at scale, or a reachability complaint from users on an IPv6-only mobile network.
What size should I take?
A /48 is the standard site allocation and is enough for most single deployments, since it still contains 65,536 /64 subnets. Take a /44 or /40 if you assign space downstream to customers or run many separate sites. If you are unsure, describe the deployment and we will suggest a size.
Can I announce it with my own ASN?
Yes. We issue a Letter of Authorization for the prefix and your upstream accepts the announcement, exactly as with IPv4. If you have no ASN, your provider can usually announce on theirs, or you can route it through one of our tunnels.
Does it work over a GRE or WireGuard tunnel?
Yes. We can deliver IPv6 over the same tunnel setup we use for IPv4, so a single endpoint can carry both. Worth mentioning up front so we configure it in one pass.
How is IPv6 priced against IPv4?
Far lower, because the scarcity that drives IPv4 pricing does not apply. We quote per allocation rather than per address. Tell us the size and duration and we will come back with a price.
GRE and WireGuard tunnels
Do I need my own ASN?
No, and that is the main reason to use a tunnel. We announce the space and hand it to you over the link, so your endpoint needs nothing more than the ability to bring up a tunnel interface.
What does a tunnel do to latency?
It adds the round trip to our nearest endpoint, so siting matters more than the protocol. Pick an endpoint close to your server and the overhead is typically small. We will tell you which endpoint suits your location before you commit.
Will it work behind NAT?
WireGuard handles NAT well. Plain GRE does not traverse NAT reliably, so if your endpoint has no public address of its own, WireGuard is the option to take.
What MTU should I use?
Lower than the standard 1500, to leave room for the encapsulation headers. We supply the exact value with your configuration along with MSS clamping, which is what prevents small packets working while large transfers hang.
Can I run BGP over the tunnel?
Yes, if you have an ASN and want to manage the announcement yourself. Most customers do not need this and take the simpler static setup instead.
Can I tunnel space I bought elsewhere?
Yes. We can route address space you already hold, provided you can issue a Letter of Authorization showing you are entitled to announce it.
PI and ASN sponsorship
What does a sponsoring LIR actually do?
Independent resources such as PI space, legacy blocks and AS numbers have to be tied to an LIR that maintains the registry relationship. We hold that relationship for you. The resource stays assigned to your organisation; we handle the agreement, the registry objects and the annual administration.
Do I lose control of my resources?
No. The assignment stays in your organisation's name. Sponsorship is an administrative relationship, not a transfer of ownership, and you can move it to another LIR whenever you choose.
Can you take over sponsorship from another LIR?
Yes, and it is a routine change. We coordinate with your current sponsor and the registry so the resource is never left unsponsored. Tell us what you hold and we will confirm what is involved.
What is the setup fee for?
The one-off €149 covers onboarding a resource: verifying the assignment, drawing up the sponsorship agreement, and creating the registry objects and RPKI configuration. After that it is the annual fee for that resource and nothing else.
Do you sponsor legacy space?
Yes. Legacy blocks are a significant part of what we sponsor. Legacy resources sit under different registry conditions than ordinary PA space, so tell us what you hold and we will walk through exactly what applies to your block.
What exactly is RIPE LIR sponsorship, and when do I need it?
In the RIPE region, provider independent resources cannot sit on their own; they have to be attached to a Local Internet Registry that maintains the registry relationship on the holder's behalf. That attachment is the sponsorship. You need one if you hold or are acquiring PI space, legacy blocks or an AS number and do not run your own LIR. It is common to arrange it at the same time as a purchase, so the transfer and the ongoing administration end up with one party rather than two.
Pricing and terms
Is there a setup fee?
Lease orders may include a one-time setup fee. This covers LOA generation, RPKI/ROA setup, rDNS configuration, and WHOIS updates. Contact us for details.
What payment methods do you accept?
We accept bank wire transfers, credit cards, and PayPal. Payment terms are set out in the agreement before you sign it.
Can I upgrade my block size?
Yes. You can upgrade to a larger block at any time. We will pro-rate the difference on your current billing cycle.
What is your cancellation policy?
Monthly leases can be cancelled with 30 days notice. Fixed terms of a year or more run to the end of the agreed period, with three calendar months' notice before renewal. Buying, selling, sponsorship and monitoring each have their own terms, set out before you sign.
Do you offer volume terms?
Yes. Orders of /20 and larger receive custom terms. Long-term commitments (12+ months) also receive favorable conditions. Contact us for details.
Are IPv6 leases available?
Yes. We offer /48, /44, and /40 allocations. Contact us for larger allocations.
Still not answered?
Ask us directly. We usually come back in 1-3 business hours, and you will get a straight answer rather than a sales call.
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