_______________________________________________________________________ prop-096-v001: Maintaining demonstrated needs requirement in transfer policy after the final /8 phase _______________________________________________________________________ Author: Tomohiro Fujisaki Co-authors: Masaru Akai Fuminori Tanizaki Toshio Tachibana Akira Nakagawa Version: 1 Date: 25 January 2011 1. Introduction ---------------- This is a proposal to maintain the requirement for recipients of IPv4 transfers to justify their need for address space beyond the current allocation phase and into the final /8 phase. 2. Summary of the current problem ---------------------------------- The current APNIC transfer policy removes the requirement to demonstrate a need for transferred IPv4 addresses after the final /8 phase begins. However, this removal of justification of need once APNIC enters the final /8 phase will make APNIC the only RIR that does not require a demonstrated need to be shown for an IPv4 transfer to be approved. If an inter-RIR transfer policy, such as prop-095, were to be approved, given that any transfers would be conducted according to the transfer policy of the source RIR, it would disadvantage APNIC if other RIRs were to be able to transfer IPv4 addresses from APNIC without requiring any justification. Contrast this with transfers where APNIC is the recipient of the transfer, and must follow the transfer policy of the source RIR. Since all other RIRs require justification in transfers, it would be more difficult to have transfers of addresses into the APNIC region than it would for addresses to be transferred out of the APNIC region. In addition, having no justification requirement in the final /8 phase is raising concerns in some RIR regions and making them reluctant to recognize any inter-RIR transfer policy with APNIC. Therefore, it is possible that even if APNIC were to adopt prop-095, no other RIR may be willing to engage in such inter-RIR transfers with APNIC. 3. Situation in other RIRs --------------------------- All other RIRs that adopt the IPv4 transfer policy require demonstrated need at the time of the transfer. AfriNIC: AfriNIC permits transfers of IPv4 addresses as part of name changes and transfers of tangible assets associated with addresses. Utilization of the addresses must be verified. See Section 8.1, "Introduction" in "IPv4 Address Allocation Policies": http://www.afrinic.net/docs/policies/AFPUB-2005-v4-001.htm ARIN: ARIN policy requires that transfers to specified recipients can take place provided the recipient can demonstrate the need for such resources, as a single aggregate, in the exact amount which they can justify under current ARIN policies. See Section 8.3, "Transfers to Specified Recipients" in the "ARIN Number Resource Policy Manual": https://www.arin.net/policy/nrpm.html#eight2 LACNIC: LACNIC policy has a transfer policy that will take effect when LACNIC or any of its NIRs becomes unable, for the first time, to cover an IPv4 block allocation or assignment because of a lack of resources. Under this policy, the recipient of the transfer must be able to justify its need for the IPv4 addresses. See Section 2.3.2.18, "Transfer of IPv4 Blocks within the LACNIC Region," in the LACNIC Policy Manual (v1.4): http://lacnic.net/en/politicas/manual3.html RIPE: The RIPE policy permits transfers of complete or partial blocks of IPv4 allocations. The RIPE NCC will evaluate the real need of the receiving LIR as per the policies for further allocation. For more, see section 5.5, "Transfers of Allocations", in "IPv4 Address Allocation and Assignment Policies for the RIPE NCC Service Region: http://www.ripe.net/ripe/docs/ripe-509.html 4. Details ----------- It is proposed that recipients of transfers continue to be required to justify their need for IPv4 address space after the final /8 policy is activated. 5. Pros/Cons ------------- Advantages: - It allows APNIC to maintain consistency with the pre-final /8 transfer policy and to observe its impact before any potential future removal of the justification requirement. - It places APNIC policy in line with other RIRs on the transfer conditions during APNIC's final /8 phase. - It will also prevent the APNIC region from having its address space transferred to other regions without the recipient in the other region needing to demonstrate a need for those addresses. Disadvantages: - Some may argue that justifying need is an unecessary additional requirement to the transfer of IPv4 addresses in the final /8 phase and could potentially be a barrier to the accurate recording of transferred IPv4 blocks registered in the APNIC Whois Database. However, if organizations have a genuine need for IPv4 addresses, they should be able to explain and justify their requirements for transfered IPv4 addresses, as they do before the final /8 phase today. 6. Effect on APNIC ------------------- This will change the condition of the transfer in the APNIC region in the final /8 phase. However, since the criteria remains the same as today, Members will actually not feel the impact. 7. Effect on NIRs ------------------ It is the NIR's choice as to whether to adopt this policy.