> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.optivalux.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.optivalux.com/product/ownership-and-transfer.md).

# Ownership & Transfer

**Possession is not ownership.**

Holding a product does not make someone its owner in Optivalux. Ownership is recorded, and it changes only through defined processes that require the right people to agree.

## Becoming the first owner: claim

When a product is sold, the buyer **claims** it. A claim requires all three of:

1. the buyer's own request to claim the product into their account;
2. fresh evidence from the product's authenticator, bound to that claim;
3. the brand's authorization that this product may now be claimed, issued after eligibility (for example, the purchase) is confirmed.

Purchase or activation details are checked by the brand's claim service and are not written to the product record.

Because the brand's authorization is required, a shopper who taps a product in a store cannot claim it before buying it.

## Transferring ownership

When the product changes hands (a sale, a gift, an inheritance arrangement), the current owner transfers it. **Ownership changes only when all three conditions are met:**

| Step                  | Who           | What                                                                                     |
| --------------------- | ------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| 1. **Authorize**      | Current owner | Authorizes a transfer of this product to a specific, named recipient.                    |
| 2. **Accept**         | Recipient     | Accepts that exact transfer. Nobody receives a product they did not agree to take.       |
| 3. **Verify in hand** | Recipient     | Verifies the product with fresh evidence from its authenticator, bound to this transfer. |

No two of these are enough on their own. In practice:

* **A thief holding the product cannot transfer it**, because they do not have the owner's authorization.
* **Someone who gains access to the owner's account cannot transfer the product without it in hand**, because fresh evidence from the product is required.
* **The owner cannot push the product onto someone who did not agree**, because the recipient must accept.

### No generic waiting period

A transfer completes as soon as all three conditions are met. There is no fixed waiting window or cooling-off period built into transfer.

### Cancelling a transfer

Before completion, the current owner can withdraw a pending transfer and the named recipient can decline it. Authorizations also expire. Cancellation never changes ownership. A completed transfer cannot be cancelled.

### When a transfer is not possible

A transfer cannot complete while the certificate is **Suspended** or **Voided**, or while the owner has **reported the product lost or stolen**.

## Reporting a product lost or stolen

The protocol lets an owner mark their product as lost or stolen. While it is marked, the product cannot be transferred or have its authenticator replaced, and verification results show that the owner has reported it lost or stolen. Only the owner can set or clear this mark; no brand or Optivalux role can.

*How owner applications will present this is not yet defined.*

## Your account, in plain language

Owners hold their products in an ordinary account. In normal use there is no crypto vocabulary to learn and no recovery phrase to manage. The application experience is designed so users do not need to interact directly with protocol transaction mechanics.

**Optivalux will never ask for a recovery phrase, password or payment to verify a product.** Only accept transfers you expected.

## What ownership in Optivalux means (and does not)

Ownership in Optivalux is the recorded holder of a product's certificate. It is strong evidence within the Optivalux system: it cannot be reassigned by a brand, by Optivalux, or by later protocol software. See [Ownership & Control](/trust/ownership-and-control.md).

It is **not** a legal determination of title, and it does not override the law of any jurisdiction. See [Claims & Limitations](/trust/claims-and-limitations.md).


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