Seller's guide

How to sell IPv4 addresses, including legacy space

Selling IPv4 addresses means transferring their registration to a buyer through the registry that holds them: ARIN, RIPE NCC or APNIC. The registry doesn't set the price, but it decides who can sell, who can buy and what paperwork the transfer needs.

This guide covers what to check before you list a block, the steps of a sale, legacy (pre-1997) ARIN space, and each registry's fees and resale restrictions.

ARIN Qualified Facilitator Checked against ARIN, RIPE NCC and APNIC sources November 2, 2026

In short

Who can sell: the current registered holder, with no dispute over the block. If the organization in the registry no longer exists (acquired, merged, renamed), the records must be updated first; at ARIN that is an 8.2 transfer.
Legacy ARIN space (issued before December 22, 1997) can be sold without the seller signing an ARIN agreement. A buyer in the ARIN region signs ARIN's RSA.
Registry fees for the seller: ARIN $500 per 8.3 or 8.4 transfer request (the buyer pays ARIN a separate recipient fee); RIPE NCC none (annual LIR fee must be paid); APNIC none within APNIC, 20% of the annual fee for that block size when transferring to another registry.
Resale limits: ARIN 12 months after receiving addresses from ARIN (60 months for waitlist space); RIPE NCC 24 months after receiving them; APNIC five years for addresses from its 103/8 pool.
Timeline: in IPv4 Depot's experience, ARIN transfers typically complete in about 7 to 10 business days when both parties move promptly.

Before you list a block: six checks

Does the registry show your current legal name? Look up the block in the registry's Whois. If it shows a company you acquired, merged with or renamed, fix that first. At ARIN this is an 8.2 transfer to the current owner, documented with, for example, the asset purchase agreement or merger filing (NRPM 8.2). See ARIN 8.2 vs 8.3 vs 8.4.
Can you log in? At ARIN, the transfer is filed in ARIN Online by an Admin or Tech point of contact (POC) of the Org ID (ARIN). ARIN emails every POC once a year; a POC that doesn't respond within 60 days is marked invalid, which restricts the organization's actions in ARIN Online and shows in the public registry (ARIN, Aug 2026). At RIPE NCC you need the LIR Portal (or your sponsoring LIR); at APNIC, MyAPNIC.
Is the block old enough to sell? ARIN: you must not have received IPv4 from ARIN, by transfer, allocation or assignment, in the 12 months before approval, and addresses issued from ARIN's waitlist can't be transferred for 60 months, except under 8.2 (NRPM 4.1.8). RIPE NCC: 24 months after you received it. APNIC: five years for 103/8 addresses. Details in the table below.
Whole block or part? You can sell part of a block. The minimum at ARIN and APNIC is a /24 (256 addresses).
Is it still in use? Plan when you will stop announcing the block, and who renumbers customers or servers. ARIN's checklist for sellers: remove the prefixes from your ROAs, review maxLength values, update or delete IRR route objects, and agree reverse DNS handover with the buyer (ARIN).
Will you need IPv4 from ARIN's waitlist later? A seller can't apply to ARIN's waitlist for 36 months after an 8.3 or 8.4 transfer (NRPM 8.3).

How a sale works, step by step

Price and terms. Buyer and seller agree on price, block, payment and timing. The registry plays no part in pricing.
The buyer qualifies. At ARIN, a first /24 needs no justification and larger blocks need a plan to use at least half within 24 months; at APNIC, the buyer shows a 24-month plan. Both registries offer pre-approval so this can be done before a deal (ARIN pre-approval). RIPE NCC has no needs test for transfers within its region, but the buyer of allocated (PA) space must be a RIPE NCC member.
Payment is secured. By escrow (for example Escrow.com) or direct invoice (wire or ACH), as the parties agree.
Each side files with the registry. At ARIN, the seller opens its own transfer ticket with a signed, notarized Officer Acknowledgement Letter and pays the $500 fee; the buyer opens its own, and ARIN links them. At RIPE NCC, the offering LIR submits the request in the LIR Portal with a Transfer Agreement signed by both parties. At APNIC, the seller starts the transfer in MyAPNIC and the buyer has 30 days to acknowledge it.
The registry approves and updates its records. ARIN completes the transfer within two business days of having the signed RSA and all fees (ARIN). RIPE NCC also checks both parties against the EU sanctions list (RIPE NCC). APNIC updates Whois after the transfer fee is paid (APNIC).
Funds are released and routing moves. The buyer creates its own ROAs, route objects and reverse DNS. Registries publish completed transfers in their public transfer logs.

In IPv4 Depot's experience, an ARIN transfer typically completes in about 7 to 10 business days when both parties move promptly. Transfers between two registries take longer, since both must approve.

Selling legacy IPv4 addresses (ARIN)

Legacy addresses are IPv4 blocks and AS numbers issued before ARIN was formed on December 22, 1997, by InterNIC or its predecessors, and not yet under an ARIN agreement (ARIN legacy FAQ).

You don't need to sign an agreement to sell

ARIN says that updating your registration data, requesting IPv6 or starting a transfer does not change your legacy resources and does not require an ARIN Registration Services Agreement (ARIN, August 5, 2026). The usual seller conditions still apply: you must be the registered holder, with no dispute, and provide the notarized officer letter. A buyer in the ARIN region signs an RSA covering the addresses and pays ARIN's annual fees from then on.

What happened to the LRSA

ARIN offered the Legacy Registration Services Agreement (LRSA), with a cap on annual fees, from October 11, 2007 through December 31, 2023 (ARIN).
Since January 1, 2024, legacy holders who bring resources under agreement sign the standard RSA and pay the current Registration Services Plan fees. LRSAs signed before then keep the fee cap for resources they already covered; no resources can be added to them.
An Org ID ending in -Z means the organization signed an LRSA before 2024.

The usual obstacle: out-of-date records

Legacy records are often decades old. ARIN reports that of about 17,000 legacy networks in its database, only 11% have a currently validated contact, and about half have no point of contact or one ARIN hasn't verified (ARIN). Before a sale, the seller has to prove it is the registered holder: link and validate the POC in ARIN Online, and if the registered organization has since been acquired or renamed, complete an 8.2 transfer with the documents that connect the old and new names.

Legacy blocks going to another region

RIPE NCC accepts legacy IPv4 from ARIN and APNIC, and resources that arrive with LEGACY status can keep it (RIPE NCC). In APNIC, historical (pre-APNIC) resources are transferred under their own policy, and the recipient must be an APNIC Member (APNIC).

The seller's side in each registry

Sources: ARIN transfers, NRPM section 8, RIPE NCC transfers, ripe-807, RIPE NCC billing, APNIC-127, APNIC transfer guide, APNIC-120 fee schedule.
	ARIN	RIPE NCC	APNIC
Who files	The seller, in ARIN Online (Admin or Tech POC)	The offering LIR in the LIR Portal (or the sponsoring LIR of an End User)	The seller starts it in MyAPNIC; the buyer acknowledges within 30 days
Seller's documents	Signed, notarized Officer Acknowledgement Letter	Transfer Agreement signed by both parties, company registration document, proof the signatory is authorized	The transfer request in MyAPNIC; to another registry, APNIC's Inter-RIR Transfer Template
Registry fee for the seller	$500 per 8.3 or 8.4 transfer request (the buyer pays a separate recipient fee)	None; the year's LIR fee must be paid first	None within APNIC (buyer pays); 20% of the annual fee for the block when going to another registry
Resale restriction	No IPv4 received from ARIN in the 12 months before approval; waitlist space not for 60 months	24 months after receipt (incl. mergers and acquisitions)	Five years for addresses from the 103/8 free pool
Minimum size	/24	No minimum stated for IPv4; partial blocks allowed	/24
Buyer must	Qualify under NRPM 8.5 and sign an RSA	Be a RIPE NCC member (PA space) or have a sponsoring LIR (PI space)	Show a detailed 24-month plan for the addresses

More detail: ARIN transfer fees, RIPE NCC transfer guide, APNIC transfer guide.

Working with IPv4 Depot as a seller

IPv4 Depot is an ARIN Qualified Facilitator and an APNIC registered broker, and handles transfers in ARIN, RIPE NCC and APNIC, including transfers between them. For a seller, that means one point of contact for:

Checking the registry records and fixing name or contact problems before the block is offered.
Finding a buyer who can qualify, and confirming the buyer's pre-approval where the registry offers it.
Payment by escrow or direct invoice (wire or ACH).
Coordinating both sides' registry filings through to completion.

Selling IPv4 FAQ

How do I sell my IPv4 addresses?

You sell IPv4 addresses by transferring their registration to the buyer through the registry that holds them: ARIN in North America, RIPE NCC in Europe and the Middle East, or APNIC in Asia-Pacific. You must be the current registered holder with no dispute over the block. Buyer and seller agree on the price and terms, the buyer qualifies under the registry's rules, each side files its part of the transfer, and the registry updates its records once fees are paid. Payment between the parties is usually by escrow or direct invoice.

Can I sell legacy IPv4 addresses without signing an ARIN agreement?

Yes. ARIN says that updating your registration data or starting a transfer does not require an ARIN Registration Services Agreement and does not change your legacy resources. The buyer, if it is in the ARIN region, must sign an RSA covering the addresses it receives. Legacy addresses are IPv4 blocks and AS numbers issued before ARIN was formed on December 22, 1997 that are not under an ARIN agreement.

Does ARIN still offer the Legacy Registration Services Agreement (LRSA)?

No. ARIN offered the LRSA from October 11, 2007 through December 31, 2023. Legacy holders who bring resources under agreement on or after January 1, 2024 sign the standard RSA and pay the current Registration Services Plan fees. LRSAs signed before 2024 keep their fee cap for the legacy resources they already covered.

What does it cost the seller at the registry?

At ARIN, the source pays a $500 non-refundable transfer request fee for 8.3 and 8.4 transfers. RIPE NCC charges nothing for transfers, but an LIR must have paid its annual fee for the year before it can transfer resources. At APNIC, the recipient pays the transfer fee for transfers within APNIC; for a transfer from APNIC to another registry, the APNIC source pays it (20% of APNIC's annual fee for a block of that size). Broker fees and escrow fees are separate.

Can I resell IPv4 addresses I bought recently?

It depends on the registry. ARIN: the source must not have received an IPv4 transfer, allocation or assignment from ARIN in the 12 months before approval (8.2 merger transfers don't count), and addresses issued from ARIN's waitlist can't be transferred for 60 months except under 8.2. RIPE NCC: IPv4 addresses cannot be transferred for 24 months after they were received, including through a merger or acquisition. APNIC: addresses delegated from APNIC's 103/8 free pool cannot be transferred for five years after the original delegation.

Can I sell only part of my IPv4 block?

Yes. ARIN, RIPE NCC and APNIC all allow part of a block to be transferred. ARIN and APNIC set the minimum transfer size at a /24 (256 addresses), and RIPE NCC's transfer page notes that partial blocks of an IPv4 prefix can be transferred. In practice, a /24 is also the smallest block that is widely routed on the internet.

How long does it take to sell IPv4 addresses?

In IPv4 Depot's experience, an ARIN transfer typically completes in about 7 to 10 business days when both parties move promptly. Most of the time goes into each party's paperwork and fees; ARIN completes the transfer within two business days of receiving the signed RSA and all fees. Transfers between two registries take longer because both registries must approve and update their records.

Sources

Registry facts on this page come from ARIN's, RIPE NCC's and APNIC's own documents, checked on November 2, 2026. Registry policies and fees change; where this page and the registry differ, the registry is right.

Thinking of selling a block?

Tell us the block, the registry and the name on the record. We'll tell you what needs fixing before a sale and how the transfer will run.

Talk to IPv4 Depot 1.800.856.5960