Regional Internet Registries

There are five Regional Internet Registries (RIRs) in the world. RIRs manage, distribute, and register Internet number resources (IPv4 and IPv6 address space and Autonomous System (AS) Numbers) within their respective regions.

 

 

RIR	Est.	Located	Service Region	Membership
African Network Coordination Centre (AFRINIC)	2005	Mauritius	Africa	Members: 2,290* Membership comprises: Resource Members (Local Internet Registries (LIRs) and end users) who apply for resources based on need. Associate Members who obtain AFRINIC membership but don’t apply for Internet number resources. More information
Asia-Pacific Network Coordination Centre (APNIC)	1993	Australia	Asia Pacific	Members: 24,659* Membership comprises: Members who are categorized into tiers based on the number of Internet number resources they hold, which are delegated based on need. Non-Members who can still hold Internet number resources but can’t hold membership with any organization. Associate Members who can hold APNIC membership, but don’t hold IP addresses. Members of NIRs that operate in the Asia Pacific region. More information
American Registry for Internet Numbers (ARIN)	1997	USA	United States, Canada, many Caribbean and North Atlantic islands	Members: 25,194* Membership comprises: Membership is on an organization level and is reserved for organizations that hold IPv4 address space, IPv6 address space, and/or Autonomous System Numbers (ASNs) from ARIN under a signed ARIN agreement. In addition to our Service Members, ARIN serves approximately 14,000 customers which hold Internet number resources that are not currently covered under any type of agreement with ARIN. More information
Latin American and Caribbean Internet Addresses Registry (LACNIC)	2002	Uruguay	Latin America and the Caribbean	Members: 12,691* Membership comprises: Active Members (organizations and end users that receive Internet number resources based on need). Adhering Members (individuals or organizations that are Members but have not been assigned IP addresses). More information
Réseaux IP Européens Network Coordination Centre (RIPE NCC)	1992	The Netherlands	Europe, the Middle East and parts of Central Asia	Members: 20,101* Membership comprises: Active members who can establish one or more Local Internet Registry (LIR) accounts. Through these accounts, members have the ability to apply for resources, which they can then assign or sub-allocate to their customers or use within their own infrastructure. In addition to the number above, the RIPE NCC serves a further 19,000+ End Users who can receive IP addresses for their own infrastructure without having to apply for RIPE NCC membership. These IP addresses cannot be further assigned to customers. End Users must have a sponsoring LIR who is responsible for maintaining the registry information. More information

* As at 31 December, 2023. These membership statistics are updated quarterly. Please see each RIR’s website, noted in the table above, for the most up-to-date membership statistics.

 

RIR Operation, Oversight and Stability

Each RIR operates as a not-for-profit, member-based association in its respective region in accordance with the laws of the country in which it is located. RIRs distribute Internet number resources according to the policies developed by their respective regional community using established open, inclusive and bottom-up Policy Development Processes (PDP).

Member-elected boards govern each RIR. Boards provide fiduciary oversight, strategic guidance, and verification of the policy development process. RIRs have also implemented mechanisms to avoid capture through election processes, Bylaws, articles of incorporation, and membership provisions. A Joint RIR Stability Fund also exists to ensure that the global RIR system remains robust. Find out more.

 

The NRO

The Number Resource Organization (NRO) was established in 2003 as a coordinating body for the five Regional Internet Registries (RIRs) to act on matters of global importance to all five RIRs, to participate in global Internet governance activities and to coordinate joint projects across the global RIR system. Find out more.

 

The Role of Regional Internet Registries

Within their respective regions, RIRs provide services to administer, manage, distribute and register Internet number resources, mainly to their members.

The global RIR system ensures that each Internet number resource is uniquely assigned to one party to ensure smooth functioning of the Internet, and that they are distributed based on justified need. How the RIRs distribute Internet number resources within their regions is defined by the policies that each RIR’s community develops using its own PDP.

 

RIR Members

RIR members are comprised of Internet service providers (ISPs), governments, universities, civil society, end users, for-profit and not-for-profit enterprises of all sizes and across all business sectors.

Members pay fees to an RIR based on the type and amount of services they require. Each RIR sets its own membership requirements and fees.

RIR membership information: AFRINIC | APNIC |  ARIN |  LACNIC | RIPE NCC

RIR Communities

RIR communities consist of anyone who is interested in Internet number resources and the policies governing how they are distributed. RIR community participants are not required to be a member of any RIR. Anyone can join the discussion and everyone has an equal voice.

Community participants can also take part in other Internet governance activities that are directly related to Internet number resource management, such as the Address Supporting Organization Address Council (ASO AC).

 

Open and Transparent

Discussions on public mailings lists are an important part of the policy-making process. Each RIR maintains policy discussion mailing lists, which are open to all and are publicly archived.

RIR policy development mailing lists: AFRINIC | APNIC |  ARIN |  LACNIC | RIPE NCC

 

RIR Meetings

Policy discussions also take place during RIR meetings, which are open for everyone to participate in, both on-site or via remote participation online. Each RIR holds around two meetings a year. In addition to discussions on Internet number resource policy, the meetings also include technical presentations, training courses and workshops. The NRO itself does not hold any meetings.

Upcoming RIR Meetings: AFRINIC | APNIC |  ARIN |  LACNIC | RIPE NCC

 

Regional Policy Development Process

RIR policy development processes (PDP) are designed so anyone who is interested in Internet number resource policy can participate. Anyone can propose a policy or an amendment to a current policy. Once a policy proposal is submitted, anyone can submit comments, or provide support or objection to the proposal. The community then accepts or rejects the proposal by consensus. While each RIR’s PDP is tailored to local requirements, they are all open, transparent and bottom-up. Find out more.

 

Global Policy Development

Global policies govern how Public Technical Identifiers (PTI), the organization charged with performing the IANA functions, issues Internet number resources to the RIRs. A global policy proposal can be submitted by anyone. For it to be accepted, the same version of the proposal must be considered in all five RIR regions and subsequently accepted according to each community’s policy development process before being ratified. Find out more.

 

 

Last modified on 27/02/2024