If you decide to signup in november, you have to accept to pay the yearly fee.
My reading of it is that whilst the fee is Annual, _joining_ later in the year reduces it pro-rata to the period for which you are a member.
Also it is strange that the member should pay for the membership for the period when he hasn't been the member. Any government inspection can lead to problems.
The current "you have to pay for a couple more years" wording needs looking at - a simple "minimum membership period is 3 years" would I expect fix the disputable/legal ramifications, as the current setup isn't allowed in the UK for example (you cannot charge for a service that you do not, will not or cannot supply - so if the member no longer exists, you cannot supply them membership, so you cannot charge) I'm not (personally) in favour of the Annual-only payment option - quite the opposite - with advances in automation/technology RIPE should be looking at more payment options not less - if 50% of bills get queried, that is a serious problem, and the fix is wit the billing/invoice/automation/processes , not IMHO with the membership as such However the bulk of "pricing" discussions do tend to devolve into arguments about circumventing policy on resources ! Rob --- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. https://www.avast.com/antivirus