Resource transfer-Expenses and Costs-阿里云帮助中心

Scenarios

The resource transfer feature enables you to move resource instances from your current Alibaba Cloud account to another account. Only Alibaba Cloud accounts that have completed identity verification can perform transfers. Resource Access Management (RAM) users cannot perform transfers.

Only certain cloud products support resource transfer.

Note
Currently supported products include Elastic Computing Service (ECS) (subscription), ECS (pay-as-you-go), and elastic IP addresses (EIPs) (pay-as-you-go).
Supported transfer scenarios: An individual account can transfer resources to another individual account or an enterprise account. An enterprise account can transfer resources only to another enterprise account, not to an individual account.

Source account	Destination account	Support status
Individual account	Individual account	Same identity verification: Resource transfer is supported. Different identity verification or destination account has not completed identity verification: You can only transfer resources to one individual account. You cannot transfer resources to other individual accounts.
Enterprise account	Enterprise account	Resource transfer is supported between enterprise accounts with the same identity verification. The enterprise entities must be the same, and the names must also be identical. A single enterprise entity can verify a maximum of 10 Alibaba Cloud accounts.
Individual account	Enterprise account	You can only transfer resources to one enterprise account. You cannot transfer resources to other enterprise accounts.
Enterprise account	Individual account	Not supported.

Resource transfer process overview

Note

If the destination account does not confirm the transfer within 24 hours after the source account submits the request, the transfer expires.
The source account can cancel the transfer before the destination account confirms it.

Risks and limitations

Before transferring an ECS instance, read the [Alibaba Cloud ECS Instance Self-Service Transfer Risk Disclosure] to understand the notes and risks associated with the transfer. For more information, see Transfer an ECS instance across accounts.
Before transferring an EIP instance, read the [Alibaba Cloud EIP Instance Self-Service Transfer Risk Disclosure] to understand the notes and risks associated with the transfer. For more information, see Transfer a pay-as-you-go EIP.

Notes

If you perform risky operations such as modifying an instance or its data, pay attention to the instance's disaster recovery and fault tolerance capabilities to ensure data security.
If you modify the configuration or data of an instance, such as an ECS instance, create a snapshot in advance.
Resource instances created within the last 5 days or expiring within the next 3 days cannot be transferred.
Before the transfer, make sure you understand the notes for the product instance. For example:
- ECS transfer: A VPC-type ECS instance must be in the Stopped state during the transfer. Before the transfer, the source and destination accounts must coordinate. The source account must stop the VPC-type ECS instance before the destination account accepts the transfer. After a successful transfer, the VPC-type ECS instance remains stopped. The destination account must start the instance to use it.
- Pay-as-you-go EIP transfer: The EIP must be in pay-as-you-go mode. A subscription EIP can be converted to a pay-as-you-go EIP before the transfer. The EIP cannot be attached to any resource during the transfer.
For detailed notes and conditions, see Transfer an ECS server and Transfer a pay-as-you-go EIP.
The transfer operation changes only the ownership information. For example, after a subscription ECS instance is transferred, its term and expiration date remain unchanged.
After the transfer, the source account can no longer use the resource.

Procedure

Initiate a transfer

Select an instance and initiate the transfer
1. Log on to the Alibaba Cloud console with the source account. Go to My > Expenses and Costs > Subscription Orders to open the Resource Transfer page.
2. On the Transferable Resources tab, select the instance to transfer and click Initiate Transfer. You can also select Batch Initiate Transfer.
3. In the Transfer Recipient section, carefully enter the destination account information, select the checkbox to agree to the legal transfer agreement, and click Submit.
4. In the pop-up risk control identity verification window, complete the verification. Once verification succeeds, the resource transfer order is created. You can then view the transfer order on the Resource Transfer page, under the My Resource Transfers tab.
Confirm the transfer
1. Log on to the Alibaba Cloud console with the destination account. Go to Expenses and Costs > Subscription Orders > Resource Transfer and click the Transfers to Confirm tab.
2. Select the instance to receive and click Confirm Transfer Receipt in the Actions column. You can also perform this operation in batches.
3. On the page, enter the receiving configuration information, agree to the legal transfer agreement, and click Confirm Receipt.
4. Complete the verification in the risk control verification window that appears. After the verification is passed, the transfer process begins. The transfer is expected to complete in about half an hour.
View the transfer result.

The destination account can view the status of the transfer order on the My Confirmed Resource Transfers page to check the result. You can also click View Details in the Operations column to see the detailed procedure for the transfer order in the current account.

Cancel a transfer

Before the destination account confirms the transfer, the source account can go to the My Resource Transfer Requests tab and click Cancel Transfer. You can also perform this operation in batches.

Reject a transfer

The destination account can go to the My Confirmed Resource Transfers tab and click Reject Transfer. You can also perform this operation in batches.

Use resource transfer with an Enterprise MA (or administrator) account

The resource transfer feature now supports enterprise multi-account usage. An Enterprise MA (or administrator) can view the instance resources and transfer orders of other accounts within the enterprise (or organization) on the Resource Transfer page. This access is view-only. No operations can be performed.

Note

If you do not have an enterprise account and want to use this feature, see Activation Guide to upgrade to an enterprise account.

FAQ

Why did the transfer order expire when I tried to confirm it?

After a transfer order is sent to the destination account, the destination account must process it within 24 hours. Otherwise, the order expires.
The source account canceled the transfer before you confirmed it.

What are the service limitations for resource transfer?

Preparation: The entire transfer process includes many rules, and each step requires verification. If your instance does not meet the rules, the system notifies you during the process.
Operations not allowed during transfer: You cannot upgrade or downgrade configurations, perform manual renewals, unregister, unsubscribe, change the operating system, upgrade or downgrade bandwidth, or convert from subscription to pay-as-you-go.
Allowed operations: Auto-renewal. When auto-renewal occurs, the fee is deducted from the account that owns the resource instance.
Refunds for unsubscription and downgrade operations after a transfer:
- The refund amount for unsubscribing from or downgrading the original configuration is CNY 0.
- If you unsubscribe after a renewal, only the refundable amount from the renewal portion is returned.
- If you downgrade after an upgrade, only the refundable amount from the upgrade portion is returned.

Is there a limit on the number of destination accounts a single account can transfer resources to?

There is no limit on the number of accounts that share the same identity verification entity as the source account.
Only one account is allowed per identity verification entity that differs from the original account’s identity verification entity.