The three regional internet registries share one job and differ in nearly everything around it. The RIPE NCC charges every member the same and nothing for a transfer, ARIN charges by what you hold and keeps transfers needs-based beyond a first /24, and APNIC still delegates IPv4 from its own pool. The tables set them side by side as of 16 October 2026; each registry's own page has the detail.
Who they are
| The RIPE NCC | ARIN | APNIC | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Region | Europe, the Middle East, parts of Central Asia | Canada, the US, parts of the Caribbean and the North Atlantic | 56 economies in Asia and Oceania |
| Legal form | Association under Dutch law, Amsterdam | Nonprofit corporation, Virginia | Company in Australia, Brisbane |
| Members | 20,004, with 20,709 LIR accounts (September 2026) | 1,472 General and 25,085 Service Members (end of 2025) | 10,330, about 26,000 with NIR members (end of 2025) |
| Currency | Euro | US dollar | Australian dollar |
What they cost
| The RIPE NCC | ARIN | APNIC | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Joining | €1,000 per LIR account | $50 once, to create the organization | AUD 500 |
| Yearly fee, 2026 | €1,800 per LIR account | By category: from $275 up to a /24 | By formula: AUD 1,295 for a /24 and a /48 |
| Yearly fee, 2027 | €1,894 | 5% more: from $288.75 | AUD 1,356 for a /24 and a /48 |
| AS numbers | €50 each; from 2027 the first is included | No fee of their own; they count toward the category | The first two free, then AUD 500 once and AUD 100 a year |
| A transfer | Free | $500 from the seller; from $187.50 for the buyer | 20% of the yearly fee for the space |
The smallest setup in 2026: a /24 of your own, some IPv6 and one AS number, held directly at the registry.
| Year one, 2026 | Each year from 2027 | |
|---|---|---|
| The RIPE NCC | €2,850: sign-up, the yearly fee and the AS number | €1,894, the AS number included |
| ARIN | $325: the yearly fee and $50 to create the organization, with IPv6 up to a /40 | $288.75 |
| APNIC | AUD 1,795: sign-up and the yearly fee, the AS number free | AUD 1,356 |
The RIPE NCC charges the first year's fee pro rata by quarter, so joining later in the year costs less. At the RIPE NCC and ARIN the /24 itself comes by transfer or from the waiting list; APNIC can still delegate it.
IPv4 from the registry
| The RIPE NCC | ARIN | APNIC | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free pool | Ran out 25 November 2019 | Ran out 24 September 2015 | 0.18 of a /8 left on 30 June 2026 |
| What you can get | Exactly one /24, per LIR account that never had IPv4 from it, and no extra accounts for now (since 29 September 2026) | Up to a /22, if you hold no more than a /20 | Up to a /23 in total per account |
| Waiting list | 799 LIRs; the first waited 480 days | 84 requests; filled each quarter, 483 on 7 October 2026 | None until the pool runs out |
| Lock on space it hands out | 24 months | 60 months for waiting-list space | Five years for 103/8 space |
Transfer policy
| The RIPE NCC | ARIN | APNIC | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Needs test | None | None for a first /24; beyond it, half in use within 24 months | A plan for use within 24 months |
| Minimum size | None | A /24 | A /24 |
| Lock after receiving space | 24 months for IPv4 and 16-bit AS numbers | A seller cannot have received space from ARIN in the past 12 months | Five years for 103/8 space only |
| Signatures | A transfer agreement signed by both | A notarized letter from the seller's officer | Started in MyAPNIC, acknowledged within 30 days |
| Stated time | "Within one or two business days" in most cases | "Within two business days" of the agreement and fees | Not published |
| Other registries | ARIN, APNIC, LACNIC (IPv4 only) | The RIPE NCC, APNIC, LACNIC (IPv4 only); never IPv6 | The RIPE NCC, ARIN, LACNIC |
Space from ARIN arriving at the RIPE NCC needs a plan to use at least half of it within five years. From the start of transfers between registries to 30 June 2026, the largest flows ran from ARIN: 41.6 million addresses to the RIPE NCC and 23.0 million to APNIC.
A transfer in practice
What changes hands is the registration: the registry records the new holder, which is what makes a transfer enforceable and checkable afterward. What the rules above mean for a transaction:
- At RIPE NCC, an allocation (PA) can go only to a member, and independent space (PI) also to an organization with a sponsoring LIR (RIPE-807). Legacy space sits outside the policy: RIPE NCC registers its transfers "on a best effort basis", and the recipient needs no contract, though RPKI for the block does. The 24-month lock covers space received through a merger or acquisition too, so plan around it if you might sell again.
- At ARIN, get pre-approved for a size before you look for space, because it decides what you can buy. The seller's letter is signed by an officer of the organization, not by an engineer, and notarized, and it accounts for a surprising share of the delays. ARIN evaluates the request first; its two business days start once it has the buyer's signed registration agreement and all fees.
- At APNIC, both sides need an account with APNIC or with a national registry, and the block must be free of disputes. If the prefix starts with 103, check the date it was delegated before anything else.
- Between registries, the receiving registry's rules apply on top of the source's, at the pace of the slower one. Moving a block into ARIN means meeting its needs test, wherever the block comes from. These transfers are routine, and they take longer than one within a single region.
Policies change, so check the text that applies on the day you transact. Each registry's own page here gives its rules and the day we last checked them.
IPv6 and AS numbers
| The RIPE NCC | ARIN | APNIC | |
|---|---|---|---|
| IPv6 for an LIR or provider | A /32, up to a /29 without more information | A /32, or a /36 or /40 on request | A /32 at least |
| IPv6 for an end user | Independent /48, through a sponsoring LIR | A /48 by default | Independent /48 |
| AS number, who qualifies | Multihomed, with its own routing policy | Any organization, for a first one | Multihomed, or connecting with another network |
| AS number without membership | Through a sponsoring LIR | No sponsor: an agreement with ARIN | Through an account holder that obtains it for you |
| AS numbers assigned by 30 June 2026 | 39,551 | 34,012 | 31,115 |
| RPKI | Hosted or delegated; ROAs and ASPAs | Hosted, delegated or publication; ROAs and ASPAs | Hosted or self-hosted; ROAs and ASPAs |
The other two registries
- LACNIC, for Latin America and the Caribbean, ran out of IPv4 in 2020 and exchanges only IPv4 with the other registries. A proposal under discussion there would allow such transfers only with registries that also test need.
- AFRINIC, for Africa, exchanges nothing with the other registries: its policy for transfers between regions was ratified in November 2021 and still awaits implementation.
Where RTM Networks fits
We lease IPv4 from our own RIPE NCC address space, and buy and sell it in all three regions, with transfers between them where policy permits. Those three registries cover Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia, North America, the Caribbean and Asia Pacific, and staying inside them means we know their current policy properly. We are a member of RIPE NCC and sponsor independent space and AS numbers for organizations that would rather not run a membership of their own: see PI and ASN sponsorship. For a purchase or a sale, we work out which rules apply to your case before anything is signed, and take you through the registry's side, including a transfer between two of them (buy IPv4, sell IPv4).
Contact
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