For years, every RIPE NCC member has paid the same flat annual fee. €1,800 per LIR, whether you hold a single /24 or sit on a /16 you barely route. On 20-22 May, that’s on the table.
At the General Meeting in Edinburgh, members vote between two options for 2027.
Option A: Flat fee, raised to €1,894.
Option B: 21 categories, fee depending on the larger of your IPv4 PA or IPv6 PA holdings.
A few rough estimations for Option B:
• /24 IPv4 = €648
• /22 IPv4 = €1,246
• /20 IPv4 = €2,417
• /16 IPv4 = €6,976
• Up to €39,864 for the largest holders.
Take an ISP with /22 IPv4 + /29 IPv6 + 1 ASN:
• Today: €1,850
• Option A: €1,894
• Option B: €1,246, a 33% reduction.
According to RIPE NCC, around 75% of LIRs would pay less under Option B. The burden shifts to the largest holders.
Why this matters beyond your invoice:
The IPv4 secondary market is real. A /20 is worth roughly $100-150k. Companies sit on PA allocations they barely route, while new ISPs get forced into brokers and leasing arrangements just to launch a service. The flat-fee model has never created any pressure to release what you don’t need. The category model does, gently but consistently.
Probably it’s not the best solution, but at least a step into the right direction. Legacy IPv4 and PI resources are excluded from the calculation, so many of the largest historical hoarders stay protected by legacy status. But PA allocations issued through RIPE NCC gets a price tag.
My take (and please, don’t throw rocks at me): Option B seems to be fair. Tying fees to consumption is how every other infrastructure cost works, bandwidth, compute, storage, electricity. Members holding less get a real benefit. Members holding more get fair pressure to release what they’re not using.
If you’re a RIPE NCC member, three things this week:
1. Run your numbers at https://pricing.ripe.net/
2. Register to vote via the LIR Portal. Registration closes 20 May at 14:00 UTC+1.
3. Show up in Edinburgh or online and vote.
One of the most consequential RIPE NCC votes in over a decade. Don’t skip it.
