Procedure for Becoming a Member of the RIPE 
NCC
Olivia Ruimwijk 
Ingrid Wijte 
Agata Peszkowska  
Emma Bretherick 
Leo Vegoda 
Dominic Spratley

Document ID: ripe-303 
Date: February 2004  
Obsoletes: ripe-212, ripe-230, ripe-257 
Abstract

This document aims to provide the necessary information for those who wish to 
become a member of the RIPE NCC by setting up a Local Internet Registry 
(LIR). In this document initial guidelines are given to organisations that are 
planning to set up an LIR. Further, the necessary steps to set up an LIR are 
described.

Contents

1.0 Introduction 
1.1 Terminology 
2.0 Who Can Set Up a Local Internet Registry? 
2.1 Responsibilities of an LIR 
2.2 Business Considerations 
2.3 Other Considerations 
3.0 Setting Up an LIR 
Step 1: Completing the RIPE NCC Membership 
Application Form (Creation of the LIR) 
Step 2: Agreement on the Provision and Use of the 
RIPE NCC Services 
Step 3: Payment of Fees 
4.0 Requesting Address Space for the First Time 
5.0 Training Courses 
 
 
1.0 Introduction 

The RIPE NCC is the Regional Internet Registry (RIR) responsible for the 
distribution of Internet resources within the RIPE NCC service region.
Most organisations request these resources, i.e. IP addresses and Autonomous 
System (AS) Numbers, directly from their upstream service provider. However, 
there are circumstances when this is not appropriate, such as when a company 
needs large quantities of IP addresses to distribute to its downstream 
customers.

When these situations occur, an organisation will request to set up an LIR and 
therefore become a member of the RIPE NCC as an LIR. They can then request 
resources and services directly from the RIPE NCC. 

This document outlines the process that an organisation must follow to become a 
member of the RIPE NCC.
 
1.1 Terminology
Clarification of the terms used within the RIPE community: 
To allocate means to distribute address space to Internet Registries (IRs) for 
the purpose of subsequent onward distribution.

To assign means to delegate address space to an ISP or End User, for specific 
use within the Internet infrastructure they operate. Assignments must only be 
made for specific purposes documented by specific organisations and are not to 
be sub-assigned to other parties.

Regional Internet Registries are established and authorised by respective 
regional communities, and recognised by the IANA to serve and represent large 
geographical regions. The primary role of RIRs is to manage and distribute 
public Internet address space within their respective regions.

A Local Internet Registry is an IR that primarily assigns address space to the 
users of the network services that it provides. LIRs are generally ISPs, whose 
customers are primarily End Users and possibly other ISPs.
 
2.0 Who Can Set Up a Local Internet Registry?
Any organisation that requires services from the RIPE NCC is entitled to become 
a member of the RIPE NCC. 

The RIPE NCC can only accept membership applications from organisations that 
have a registered legal entity located in the RIPE NCC service region. To 
determine which RIR you should contact for services, please refer to the list of 
countries and their corresponding RIR, which can be found at: 
http://www.ripe.net/ripencc/mem-services/general/rir-areas.html 
 
Although there are no qualifying criteria to become an LIR, membership of the 
RIPE NCC does not necessarily lead to receiving an allocation of IP addresses. 
Certain qualifying criteria must be met to receive an allocation of IP 
addresses. 
These criteria are described in the RIPE Documents "IPv4 Address Allocation 
and Assignment Policies in the RIPE NCC Service Region" found at:

http://www.ripe.net/ripe/docs/ipv4-policies.html 

and the "IPv6 Address Allocation and Assignment Policy" found at:

http://www.ripe.net/ripe/docs/ipv6policy.html
 
2.1. Responsibilities of an LIR
The LIR holds certain responsibilities for the assignment of IP addresses that 
it 
makes from its allocated blocks. These responsibilities include:
?	Considering the advantages to having an independent block and whether 
they are ready for the extra cost, administrative overhead and 
responsibility of running an LIR.  

?	Making the right assignment decisions following assignment policies as 
described in the RIPE Document "IPv4 Address Allocation and 
Assignment Policies in the RIPE NCC Service Region" found at:  
 
http://www.ripe.net/docs/ipv4-policies.html
?	Keeping records of the information gathered in the assignment process.  

?	Storing assignment information in the RIPE Database and keeping this 
information up-to-date. These responsibilities are described in the RIPE 
Document "RIPE Database Reference Manual" found at: 
 
http://www.ripe.net/ripe/docs/databaseref-manual.html
The RIPE NCC has a consistency checking and auditing activity set up to train 
LIRs and help them follow the procedures and applying the policies. This process 
is intended to ensure that LIRs correctly follow their responsibilities. The 
process is outlined in the RIPE Document "RIPE NCC Consistency and Auditing 
Activity" found at:

http://www.ripe.net/ripe/docs/audit.html 
 
2. 2. Business Considerations 
When changing upstream providers an organisation that does not operate an LIR 
will probably have to renumber their networks and return the formerly used 
address space to the LIR that assigned it. Organisations operating an LIR do not 
depend on others for assigning address space to their own or their customers' 
networks. On the other hand, operating an LIR takes up a considerable amount 
of time and financial resources that should not be underestimated. 
2.3. Other Considerations 
Organisations currently operating an LIR that wish to establish another one must 
provide the RIPE NCC with a valid reason for the need of an additional LIR. In 
this case the RIPE NCC may require extra information to help us understand and 
process the request. 
3.0 Setting Up an LIR 
An organisation is required to complete the membership application procedure in 
order to set up an LIR at the RIPE NCC. 

Please note that much communication is needed between the LIR and the RIPE 
NCC. All communication is conducted via e-mail and in the English language.

The process of setting up an LIR can be divided into three steps: 

1. Completing the RIPE NCC Membership Application Form  
2. Agreement on the Provision and Use of the RIPE NCC Services  
3. Payment of fees 
 
The steps need to be performed in the order specified above. 
 
Step 1: Completing the RIPE NCC Membership Application Form 
(Creation of the LIR)
The RIPE NCC will need to collect administrative information about the new LIR 
such as address and telephone numbers, names of contact persons and billing 
information (including your VAT number if your billing address is in the 
European Union).

Upon receipt of your request, a ticket number will automatically be assigned. 
This ticket number can be found in the subject line of the e-mail 
acknowledgement sent to your initial request. Please use this ticket number in 
all your correspondence during the set-up of your LIR. This ticket number will 
be in the form: NCC#YYYYmm####

Currently, there are only three ticket status categories: 

1. OPEN-REG (the RIPE NCC is waiting for an answer from the applicant),  
2. OPEN-NCC (the RIPE NCC will attend to your e-mail as soon as possible) and  
3. CLOSED (process completed).

It is possible to check the current status of your request at: 
 
http://www.ripe.net/cgi-bin/rttquery 

Once the RIPE NCC has received all requested information, internal records will 
be created for the LIR. A registry identifier (RegID) will be assigned to you by 
the 
RIPE NCC. The RegID is used to identify you as an LIR and distinguish you from 
other organisations. 

The format for the RegID is: <country code><registry name> 
For Example: nl.bluelight

It is the responsibility of the LIR to keep the information supplied in the 
application form up-to-date. The information you provide in the application form 
is 
not stored in the RIPE Whois Database. If you want to change any information 
about your LIR or check the current contents, please send an e-mail to <lir-
help@ripe.net>, and include your RegID in the body of the mail.
 
Please note that the RIPE NCC may ask for more information according to your 
situation. 

Please complete the online "Membership Application Form" located at:

http://www.ripe.net/ripencc/new-mem/application-form.html
 
Step 2: Agreement on the Provision and Use of the RIPE NCC 
Services
In order to have an official contract between the LIR and the RIPE NCC, you 
must provide two signed copies of the "The Standard RIPE NCC Service 
Agreement" found at:

http://www.ripe.net/ripe/docs/service-agreement.html 

Signing a contract with the RIPE NCC means that all persons registered as an 
LIR contact are obliged to abide by the LIR policies and procedures outlined by 
the RIPE NCC and the RIPE community. Please note, LIR contacts are the only 
people from the LIR who can request services from the RIPE NCC.

A list of LIR policies and procedures as they pertain to the RIPE NCC service 
region can be found at: 

http://www.ripe.int/ripe/docs/internet-registries.html

The service agreement must be signed by a representative of the LIR who holds 
the power to sign contracts (usually a director). Please include the title of 
the 
person signing the contract as well as the name of the organisation, the 
location 
where the agreement was signed and the date it was signed. Please do not alter 
the layout or content of the service agreement.

Please send the two signed service agreements to the RIPE NCC by postal mail. 
Upon receipt the RIPE NCC will sign them and return one copy of the agreement 
to your organisation for your records. 

Registered and courier mail can be sent to:

RIPE NCC  
Singel 258  
1016 AB Amsterdam  
The Netherlands 

Regular postal mail can be sent to: 

RIPE NCC  
P.O. Box 10096  
1001EB Amsterdam  
The Netherlands

The RIPE NCC can only supply services to organisations that operate as a legal 
entity in the RIPE NCC service region. Therefore, together with the "The 
Standard RIPE NCC Service Agreement", the RIPE NCC requires you to send a 
copy of your organisation's registration with the local Chamber of Commerce, or 
the equivalent. The RIPE NCC will only sign an English language version of "The 
Standard RIPE NCC Service Agreement".
Step 3: Payment of Fees
After Step 1 is completed ("Completing the RIPE NCC Membership Application 
Form") the RIPE NCC will send an invoice to the billing address as specified by 
the prospective member. The amount on the invoice must be paid before the LIR 
receives services from the RIPE NCC, such as requesting address space or 
attending an LIR Training Course.

Upon receipt of the signed service agreement and registration documents, (e.g. 
the Chamber of Commerce form) the RIPE NCC will verify that the invoice has 
been paid. The RIPE NCC will then raise the service level of the LIR enabling it 
to start using the services of the RIPE NCC.

The new member will receive an invoice from the RIPE NCC that includes the 
one time start-up fee and yearly membership fee. The start-up fee is used 
partially to pay for the LIR Training Courses that all new registered contacts 
are 
encouraged to attend. These fees are agreed by the membership at the General 
Meeting (GM) of the RIPE NCC and therefore are subject to change from year to 
year. Please read the current version of the RIPE Document "RIPE NCC Billing 
Procedure and Fee Schedule" for the list of current fees at:

http://www.ripe.net/ripe/docs/billing.html

Each LIR is assigned a category (i.e. EXTRA SMALL, SMALL, MEDIUM, LARGE 
or EXTRA LARGE) on which the yearly fees are based. The categories are 
determined by the age and number of allocations/assignments received by the 
LIR from the RIPE NCC.

Please note that the LIR billing process begins right after the completion of 
Step 
1 (and NOT upon receiving an LIR first address space request). If an 
organisation takes up membership but does not request address space until 
months later, they are still required to pay for the months prior to their 
address request. In such cases it is better for the organisation to wait until 
they actually need IP address space before setting up the LIR. 

Be aware that most LIRs are not set up overnight and that it is best to apply 
well in advance of the operation date. Please consider one month to be a 
guideline for the completion of the application as an LIR.

Questions regarding billing and payments should be sent to: <billing@ripe.net>.
4.0 Requesting Address Space for the First Time 
After an organisation has officially set up an LIR, the RIPE NCC will send a 
message to notify the LIR that the set-up has been completed. 
At this time the LIR should use the <hostmaster@ripe.net> mailbox for 
requesting address space or AS Numbers. 

Policy or registry-related questions can be sent to <lir-help@ripe.net>. 

Please do not send address space requests to <new-lir@ripe.net> or use the 
ticket number that was assigned to you in the membership application. As soon 
as your LIR is established this ticket will be closed. 

All policy issues are described in more detail in the relevant RIPE Documents 
found at:

http://www.ripe.net/ripe/docs/index.html 

To request IPv4 address space you need to submit a "First Allocation Request 
Form." This can be done through the LIR Portal at:

http://lirportal.ripe.net

The document can be found at:

http://www.ripe.net/ripe/docs/first-allocation.html 
 
5.0 Training Courses 
The RIPE NCC offers LIR Training Courses given by RIPE NCC staff. Courses 
are paid for through the membership contribution. The course covers the 
following areas; the RIPE Whois Database, IP address policies, reverse 
delegation, the routing registry, Provider Independent (PI) address space and AS 
Numbers. The training course is open only to members of the RIPE NCC. We 
strongly recommend that new members send one or two of their staff members 
to this training course.

Advanced training courses are also offered covering the Internet Routing 
Registry and DNS Security.

For information on LIR Training Courses, location and dates of future LIR 
Training Courses, course material, policies and objectives and advanced 
courses, please see:

http://www.ripe.net/training/index.html