If the instance that hosts your website is deployed in Mainland China, you must apply for an Internet Content Provider (ICP) filing before you can run your website. During the process of ICP filing application, Alibaba Cloud will verify the instance and access information. This topic describes how to check the instance and access information before you apply for an ICP filing if your website is hosted on an Alibaba Cloud instance or a product from Alibaba Cloud Marketplace deployed in Mainland China.

Check the following items to make sure that your instance and access information meets the requirements for applying for an ICP filing:

Check access information

During the verification process, information about the service provider, access method, instance location, and website IP address will be verified.

If you host your website on your own server or data center, you must contact an Internet service provider (ISP), such as China Telecom or China Unicom, to apply for an ICP filing.

If you host your website on an Alibaba Cloud instance, you can apply for an ICP filing in the Alibaba Cloud ICP Filing System. Make sure that the following conditions are met before you apply for an ICP filing:
  • Instance location
    The instance is deployed in an Alibaba Cloud region in Mainland China.
    Note To obtain the detailed endpoint of the instance, consult the after-sales team of Alibaba Cloud through Smart Online.
  • Instance service type

    The instance is of the specified service type and meets the requirement on the subscription duration. For more information, see Table 1.

  • Number of service identification numbers available for websites
    The quantity of service identification numbers that can be applied for per supported instance varies based on its service type. Make sure that the instance you purchased has sufficient unused service identification numbers for your websites. For more information, see Table 1.
    Note
    • If you use the same Alibaba Cloud account to purchase the instance and apply for an ICP filing, you can directly select the instance during the ICP filing application process. You do not need to apply for a service identification number separately. You can directly select the instance or apply for a service identification number for ICP filing application. No matter which method you choose, the maximum quantity of service identification numbers supported by an instance does not change.
    • If you use different Alibaba Cloud accounts to purchase the instance and apply for an ICP filing, we recommend that you log on to the Alibaba Cloud Management Console and apply for a service identification number by using the account that is used to purchase the instance. For more information, see Apply for service identification numbers.
    • To apply for an ICP filing, you must apply for a service identification number first. If a service identification number is already in use for a website, you cannot reuse it to apply for an ICP filing for another website. If you deregister the website or remove Alibaba Cloud from the service provider list, the service identification number is still considered used. You cannot reuse it to apply for an ICP filing for another website.
The following table describes the supported instance service types and the quantity of service identification numbers supported by an instance of each service type.
Note After you purchase an Alibaba Cloud instance deployed in Mainland China, we recommend that you pay close attention to the expiration date and renew the instance at your earliest convenience. Otherwise, your website cannot be accessed and may be identified as a website whose ICP filing is invalid after the instance expires. If you do not resolve this issue promptly, the ICP filing will be canceled and your business will be affected.
Table 1. Supported instance service types and maximum number of supported websites
Instance service type Purchase requirement Purchase URL Quantity of service identification numbers
Elastic Compute Service (ECS)
  • The instance is deployed in an Alibaba Cloud region in Mainland China.
  • The subscription duration must be three months or more (including renewal).
  • You must purchase an Internet bandwidth package.
Note
  • You cannot apply for service identification numbers if the instance uses the pay-as-you-go billing method.
  • For more information about how to purchase an Internet bandwidth package, see the Adjust Internet bandwidth section in the Overview of instance upgrade and downgrade topic.
ECS Up to five per instance
Cloud Web Hosting
  • The instance is deployed in an Alibaba Cloud region in Mainland China.
  • The subscription duration must be three months or more (including renewal).
 Cloud Web Hosting Up to five per instance
Simple Application Server
  • The instance is deployed in an Alibaba Cloud region in Mainland China.
  • The subscription duration must be three months or more (including renewal).
 Simple Application Server Up to five per instance
Elastic Web Hosting
  • The instance is deployed in an Alibaba Cloud region in Mainland China.
  • The subscription duration must be six months or more (including renewal).
 Elastic Web Hosting has been offline since December 2019. The instances purchased before the offline date can still be used for ICP filing application. We recommend that you purchase Cloud Web Hosting for future use. Up to five per instance
Network Address Translation (NAT) Gateway
  • The instance is deployed in an Alibaba Cloud region in Mainland China.
  • The subscription duration must be one month or more.
 NAT Gateway Up to two per instance
IPv6 Translation Service
  • The instance is deployed in an Alibaba Cloud region in Mainland China.
  • The subscription duration must be one month or more.
 IPv6 Translation Service Up to two per instance
ENS
  • The instance is deployed in an Alibaba Cloud region in Mainland China.
  • The subscription duration must be three months or more (including renewal).
 ENS Up to five per instance
IoT Package
  • The subscription duration must be six months or more.
  • The order amount must be CNY 90 or more.
 IoT Package One per package
Product from Alibaba Cloud Marketplace for website building
  • The initial subscription duration must be 12 months or more.
  • The order amount must be CNY 99 or more.
  • You shall carefully read the introduction to the product from Alibaba Cloud Marketplace for website building and confirm that the server used by the product is located in Mainland China before purchase. Otherwise, you will not be able to proceed with the subsequent ICP filing application procedures. If you are not sure where the server is located, consult customer service first to ensure that the server is located in Mainland China.
Alibaba Cloud Marketplace One per instance

Check other Alibaba Cloud services

If your website uses Alibaba Cloud services such as Object Storage Service (OSS), Alibaba Cloud Content Delivery Network (CDN), Web Application Firewall (WAF), and Anti-DDoS Pro, you must determine whether to add Alibaba Cloud to the ICP filing information as a service provider based on actual scenarios.
Service Scenario Requirement
OSS If you associate a custom domain name with an OSS endpoint, you must apply for an ICP filing for this domain name. For more information, see Bind custom domain names. You must obtain an ICP filing for the domain name from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT). You are not required to add Alibaba Cloud to the ICP filing information as a service provider.
CDN Websites that are hosted on instances deployed in Mainland China must apply for an ICP filing to use Alibaba Cloud CDN. Assume that you use Alibaba Cloud CDN for content delivery acceleration in Mainland China or all over the world. You must obtain an ICP filing for the domain name from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT). You are not required to add Alibaba Cloud to the ICP filing information as a service provider.
WAF Websites that are hosted on instances deployed in Mainland China must apply for an ICP filing to use Alibaba Cloud WAF. You must obtain an ICP filing for the domain name from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT). You are not required to add Alibaba Cloud to the ICP filing information as a service provider.
Anti-DDoS Pro Websites that are hosted on instances deployed in Mainland China must apply for an ICP filing to use Anti-DDoS Pro.

Check changes in access information

If the service provider or the instance IP address changes, perform the corresponding operations based on the situations.
  • You have obtained an ICP filing through Alibaba Cloud. To host your website on another Alibaba Cloud instance, perform the following operations based on the specific scenarios:
    • If your website does not require an ICP commercial license, you can modify the domain name resolution record and direct the domain name to a new instance. You do not need to apply for a new ICP filing.
    • If the province where you obtained an ICP commercial license requires that the submitted IP address must be the same as the actual IP address, you must modify the submitted IP address in the Alibaba Cloud ICP Filing system.Contact your local authorities to confirm whether you are required to modify the IP address when you apply for a Public Security Bureau (PSB) filing or an ICP commercial license.
    Note If you have obtained an ICP filing through Alibaba Cloud and need to switch to another service provider, you must add the new service provider to the ICP filing information. For more information, consult the new service provider.
  • You have obtained an ICP filing for your website through another service provider, and want to change this service provider or direct a sub-domain name to Alibaba Cloud, you must add Alibaba Cloud to the ICP filing information as a service provider.
    Note To check whether your website has an ICP filing, go to the , click the ICP Filing tab, enter the website domain name in the search box, and then click Search.