Internet Assigned Numbers Authority

SMTP-Related Registries

Last Updated
2025-05-02
Note
This registry group was formerly known as "MAIL Parameters."
  
Associated Registries

[https://www.iana.org/assignments/message-headers]
  
Available Formats

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Registries Included Below

SMTP Service Extensions

Registration Procedure(s)
Either Model 1 (IETF) or Model 2 (FCFS) as described in Sections 8.1.1.1 of [RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43].
Reference
[RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43, Sections 8.1.1, 2.2.2]
Note
The Simple Mail Transfer Protocol [RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43] 
specifies a set of commands or services and a general procedure for 
extending that set. The table below lists SMTP service extensions. 
Both message submission [RFC6409]and mail transfer 
[RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43] may use these extensions unless 
otherwise specified.

As specified in [RFC5321] Section 2.2.2, no entry may be made in this
registry that starts in an "X". Entries may be made only for service
extensions (and associated keywords, parameters, or verbs) that are
defined in Standards-Track or Experimental RFCs specifically approved
by the IESG for this purpose.

The server response to a client EHLO command includes a keyword for
each service extension the server implements.  Some of these keywords
have parameters, which are listed in the "SMTP Service Extension
Parameters" registry.
    
Note
The SMTP Extension names/keywords registered in this section are for 
general use. For those specific to Multicast email, see the registry 
for that protocol below.
      
Available Formats

CSV
EHLO Keyword Description Reference EHLO Parameters Additional Verbs MAIL/RCPT Parameter Values RegMethod Message Submission Use and Values Length Added Note Contact Change Controller
SEND Send to terminal [RFC821] None [RFC821] [RFC821] IETF MUST NOT The description of SEND was updated by [RFC1123] and then its actual use was deprecated in [RFC2821] IETF IETF
SOML Send as mail or to terminal [RFC821] None [RFC821] [RFC821] IETF MUST NOT The description of SOML was updated by [RFC1123] and then its actual use was deprecated in [RFC2821] IETF IETF
SAML Send as mail and to terminal [RFC821] None [RFC821] [RFC821] IETF MUST NOT The description of SAML was updated by [RFC1123] and then its actual use was deprecated in [RFC2821] IETF IETF
VRFY VRFY command as specified in [RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43] [RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43] None None None IETF MUST NOT 0 Implementation support for VRFY is required in servers, but its listing in the EHLO response is optional. See Section 3.5.2 in [RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43] for details on this subject. IETF IETF
EXPN Expand the mailing list [RFC821] None [RFC821] [RFC821] IETF MUST NOT Command description updated by [RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43] IETF IETF
HELP Supply helpful information [RFC821] None [RFC821] [RFC821] IETF MUST NOT Command description updated by [RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43] IETF IETF
TURN Interchange the client and server roles [RFC821] None [RFC821] [RFC821] IETF MUST NOT The actual use of TURN was deprecated in [RFC2821] IETF IETF
8BITMIME SMTP and Submit transport of 8bit MIME content [RFC6152] None [RFC6152] [RFC6152] IETF SHOULD IETF IETF
SIZE Message size declaration [RFC1870] number [RFC1870] [RFC1870] IETF MAY For additional declarations or limits of this general type, see the LIMITS extension below and the SMTP Server Limits registry. IETF IETF
VERB Verbose [Eric Allman] Not supplied Not supplied Not supplied Legacy Not supplied Not supplied Eric Allman Eric Allman
ONEX One message transaction only [Eric Allman] Not supplied Not supplied Not supplied Legacy Not supplied Not supplied Eric Allman Eric Allman
CHUNKING Chunking [RFC3030] None [RFC3030] [RFC3030] IETF MAY IETF IETF
BINARYMIME Binary MIME [RFC3030] None [RFC3030] [RFC3030] IETF MAY IETF IETF
CHECKPOINT Checkpoint/Restart [RFC1845] None [RFC1845] [RFC1845] IETF MAY IETF IETF
DELIVERBY Deliver By [RFC2852] None [RFC2852] [RFC2852] IETF MAY IETF IETF
PIPELINING Command Pipelining [RFC2920] None [RFC2920] [RFC2920] IETF SHOULD IETF IETF
DSN Delivery Status Notification [RFC3461] None [RFC3461] [RFC3461] IETF SHOULD IETF IETF
ETRN Extended Turn [RFC1985] None [RFC1985] [RFC1985] IETF MUST NOT SMTP [RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43] only. Not for use on Submit port 587. IETF IETF
ENHANCEDSTATUSCODES Enhanced Status Codes [RFC2034] None [RFC2034] [RFC2034] IETF SHOULD IETF IETF
STARTTLS Start TLS [RFC3207] None [RFC3207] [RFC3207] IETF MAY IETF IETF
NO-SOLICITING Notification of no soliciting [RFC3865] Soliciting-keywords [RFC3865] [RFC3865] IETF MAY IETF IETF
MTRK Message Tracking [RFC3885] [RFC3885] [RFC3885] IETF MAY IETF IETF
SUBMITTER SMTP Responsible Submitter [RFC4405] None [RFC4405] [RFC4405] IETF MUST NOT Deprecated by [Moving RFC 4405, RFC 4406, RFC 4407 (Sender-ID) to Historic]. IETF IETF
ATRN Authenticated TURN [RFC2645] None [RFC2645] [RFC2645] IETF MUST NOT SMTP [RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43] only. Not for use on Submit port 587. IETF IETF
AUTH Authentication [RFC4954] SASL mechanism names [RFC4954] [RFC4954] IETF MUST IETF IETF
BURL Remote Content [RFC4468] Permitted URL prefixes [RFC4468] [RFC4468] IETF MUST NOT Submit [RFC6409] only. Not for use with SMTP on port 25. IETF IETF
FUTURERELEASE Future Message Release [RFC4865] None [RFC4865] [RFC4865] IETF MUST NOT IETF IETF
UTF8SMTP Internationalized email address [RFC5336] None [RFC5336] [RFC5336] IETF MUST NOT Experimental; deprecated in [RFC6531]. IETF IETF
CONPERM Content Conversion Permission [RFC4141] None [RFC4141] [RFC4141] IETF MAY IETF IETF
CONNEG Content Conversion Negotiation [RFC4141] None [RFC4141] [RFC4141] IETF MAY IETF IETF
SMTPUTF8 Internationalized email address [RFC6531] None [RFC6531] [RFC6531] IETF MUST NOT IETF IETF
MT-PRIORITY Priority Message Handling [RFC6710] Name of the Priority Assignment Policy (optional) [RFC6710] [RFC6710] IETF MUST NOT IETF IETF
RRVS Require Recipient Valid Since [RFC7293] None [RFC7293] [RFC7293] IETF MUST NOT IETF IETF
REQUIRETLS Require TLS [RFC8689] None [RFC8689] [RFC8689] IETF MUST NOT IETF IETF
LIMITS Server limits [RFC9422] None [RFC9422] [RFC9422] IETF MUST NOT See "SMTP Server Limits" registry. IETF IETF

SMTP Service Extension Parameters

Registration Procedure(s)
Registry closed
Reference
[RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43]
Note
These entries have been incorporated into the SMTP Service Extension registry's 
"EHLO Parameters" field.

Mail Transmission Types for the "Received:" Header Field

Reference
[RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43, Sections 8.1.3, 8.1.4][RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5322bis-12]
Note
The Simple Mail Transfer Protocol [RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43] 
and the Standard for Internet Message Formats [RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5322bis-12] 
specify that a set of "Received" lines will be prepended to the 
headers of electronic mail messages as they are transported through 
the Internet. These received line may optionally include either or 
both a "via" phrase and/or a "with" phrase.  The legal values for the 
phrases are listed here. The via phrase is intended to indicate the 
link or physical medium over which the message was transferred.  The 
with phrase is intended to indicate the protocol or logical process 
that was used to transfer the message.
    

VIA Link Types

Registration Procedure(s)
RFC Required
Reference
[RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43]
Available Formats

CSV

WITH Protocol Types

Registration Procedure(s)
RFC Required
Reference
[RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43]
Available Formats

CSV
WITH protocol types Description Reference
SMTP Simple Mail Transfer Protocol [RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43]
ESMTP SMTP with Service Extensions [RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43]
ESMTPA ESMTP with AUTH [RFC3848]
ESMTPS ESMTP with STARTTLS [RFC3848]
ESMTPSA ESMTP with both STARTTLS and AUTH [RFC3848]
LMTP Local Mail Transfer Protocol [RFC3848]
LMTPA LMTP with AUTH [RFC3848]
LMTPS LMTP with STARTTLS [RFC3848]
LMTPSA LMTP with both STARTTLS and AUTH [RFC3848]
MMS Multimedia Messaging Service [RFC4356]
UTF8SMTP ESMTP with SMTPUTF8 [RFC6531]
UTF8SMTPA ESMTP with SMTPUTF8 and AUTH [RFC4954][RFC6531]
UTF8SMTPS ESMTP with SMTPUTF8 and STARTTLS [RFC3207][RFC6531]
UTF8SMTPSA ESMTP with SMTPUTF8 and both STARTTLS and AUTH [RFC3207][RFC4954][RFC6531]
UTF8LMTP LMTP with SMTPUTF8 [RFC6531]
UTF8LMTPA LMTP with SMTPUTF8 and AUTH [RFC4954][RFC6531]
UTF8LMTPS LMTP with SMTPUTF8 and STARTTLS [RFC3207][RFC6531]
UTF8LMTPSA LMTP with SMTPUTF8 and both STARTTLS and AUTH [RFC3207][RFC4954][RFC6531]

Additional Registered 'Received:' Clauses

Registration Procedure(s)
IETF Review
Reference
[RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43]
Available Formats

CSV
Clause Name Service Extension Description Syntax Summary Reference
PRIORITY Records the value of the MT-PRIORITY parameter specified in the MAIL FROM command See Section 7 of RFC [RFC6710] [RFC6710]
state Indicates entry into a special queue state state <state-name> [RFC6729]
tls Indicates the TLS cipher used tls-cipher = tls-cipher-name / tls-cipher-hex

tls-cipher-name = ALPHA *(ALPHA / DIGIT / "_")
; as registered in the IANA TLS Cipher Suite Registry

tls-cipher-hex = "0x" 4HEXDIG
[RFC8314]
group Indicates the Diffie-Hellman group used with the TLS cipher (if applicable) dh-group = ALPHA *(ALPHA / DIGIT / "_" / "-")
; as registered in the IANA TLS Supported Groups Registry
[RFC8314]

Address Literal Tags

Registration Procedure(s)
Standards Action
Reference
[RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43]
Note
Sometimes a host is not known to the domain name system and
communication (and, in particular, communication to report and repair
the error) is blocked.  To bypass this barrier a special literal form
of the address is allowed as an alternative to a domain name.  For
IPv4 addresses, this form uses four small decimal integers separated
by dots and enclosed by brackets such as [123.255.37.2], which
indicates an (IPv4) Internet Address in sequence-of-octets form.  For
IPv6 and other forms of addressing that might eventually be
standardized, the form consists of a standardized "tag" that
identifies the address syntax, a colon, and the address itself, in a
format specified as part of the IPv6 standards [17].
    
Available Formats

CSV
Tag Reference
IPv6 [RFC-ietf-emailcore-rfc5321bis-43]

SMTP PRIORITY Extension Priority Assignment Policy

Registration Procedure(s)
Specification Required
Expert(s)
Unassigned
Reference
[RFC6710]
Available Formats

CSV
Policy Name Comment Reference
MIXER Default policy [RFC6710, Appendix B]
STANAG4406 [RFC6710, Appendix A]
NSEP [RFC6710, Appendix C]

Registered-states

Registration Procedure(s)
First Come First Served
Reference
[RFC6729]
Available Formats

CSV
Name Description Reference Use
auth Held for message authentication [RFC6729] current
content Held for message content analysis [RFC6729] current
convert Held for message content conversion [RFC6729] current
moderation Held for list moderation [RFC6729] current
normal Message is not being held other than to accommodate typical relaying handling [RFC6729] current
other Held for causes not covered by other registered state keywords [RFC6729] current
outbound Message placed in outbound queue [RFC6729] current
quarantine Held for operator action due to content analysis or local policy [RFC6729] current
timed Held to accommodate a specific requested delivery window [RFC6729] current

Multicast Email SMTP Extensions

Registration Procedure(s)
Specification Required
Expert(s)
Alexey Melnikov (primary), RFC Independent Submissions Editor (secondary)
Reference
[RFC8494]
Note
Extension names/keywords and status used with Multicast Email; see 
SMTP Service Extensions above for the list for more general use.
Available Formats

CSV
Name Status Multicast-Mail-Specific References Non-Multicast-Specific References Note
SIZE Required [RFC1870]
8BITMIME Required [RFC6152]
DSN Required [RFC3461]
MT-PRIORITY Required [RFC6710]
DELIVERBY Required [RFC2852]
BINARYMIME Required [RFC3030]
CHUNKING Special [RFC3030] SMTP CHUNKING MUST be supported on the receiving SMTP side of an SMTP-to-MULE gateway and MAY be used on the sending side of a MULE-to-SMTP gateway. A MULE relay doesn't need to do anything special for this extension.
ENHANCEDSTATUSCODES Special [RFC2034] The ENHANCEDSTATUSCODES extension is supported by including relevant status codes in DSN [RFC3461] reports.
RRVS Supported [RFC7293]
SUBMITTER Supported [RFC4405] Deprecated by [Moving RFC 4405, RFC 4406, RFC 4407 (Sender-ID) to Historic].
PIPELINING N/A [RFC2920]
STARTTLS N/A [RFC3207]
AUTH Special [RFC4954] The AUTH parameter to the MAIL FROM command is "Supported", but the rest of the AUTH extension is not applicable to MULE.
BURL N/A [RFC4468]
NO-SOLICITING N/A [RFC3865]
CHECKPOINT Disallowed [RFC1845]
CONNEG Disallowed [RFC4141]

SMTP Server Limits

Registration Procedure(s)
Specification Required
Expert(s)
John Klensin, Murray Kucherawy (backup)
Reference
[RFC9422]
Available Formats

CSV
Name Value syntax Description Restrictions Security Considerations Reference
MAILMAX %x31-39 0*5DIGIT ; "0" not allowed, six-digit maximum MAILMAX specifies the maximum number of transactions (MAIL FROM commands) the server will accept in a single session. The count includes all MAIL FROM commands, regardless of whether they succeed or fail. None See [RFC9422, Section 6] [RFC9422]
RCPTMAX %x31-39 0*5DIGIT ; "0" not allowed, six-digit maximum RCPTMAX specifies the maximum number of RCPT TO commands the server will accept in a single transaction. It is not a limit on the actual number of recipients the message ends up being sent to; a single RCPT TO command may produce multiple recipients or, in the event of an error, none. None See [RFC9422, Section 6] [RFC9422]
RCPTDOMAINMAX %x31-39 0*5DIGIT ; "0" not allowed, six-digit maximum RCPTDOMAINMAX specifies the maximum number of different domains that can appear in a recipient (RCPT TO) address within a single session. This limit is imposed by some servers that bind to a specific internal delivery mechanism on receipt of the first RCPT TO command. None See [RFC9422, Section 6] [RFC9422]

Mail Header Confidentiality Policies

Registration Procedure(s)
Specification Required or IETF Review (see Note)
Expert(s)
Unassigned
Reference
[RFC-ietf-lamps-header-protection-25]
Note
Adding an entry to this registry with an N in the "Recommended"
column follows the registration policy of SPECIFICATION REQUIRED.
Adding an entry to this registry with a Y in the "Recommended"
column or changing the "Recommended" column in an existing entry
(from N to Y or vice versa) requires IETF REVIEW.
    
Note
The Header Confidentiality Policy Name never appears on the wire.
This registry merely tracks stable references to implementable
descriptions of distinct policies. Any addition to this registry
should be governed by guidance in Section 3.4.2 of
[RFC-ietf-lamps-header-protection-25].
    
Available Formats

CSV
Header Confidentiality Policy Name Description Recommended Reference
hcp_no_confidentiality No header confidentiality N [RFC-ietf-lamps-header-protection-25, Section 3.2.3]
hcp_baseline Confidentiality for Informational Header Fields: Subject Header Field is obscured, Keywords and Comments are removed Y [RFC-ietf-lamps-header-protection-25, Section 3.2.1]
hcp_shy Obscure Subject, remove Keywords and Comments, remove the time zone from Date, and obscure display-names N [RFC-ietf-lamps-header-protection-25, Section 3.2.2]