Requirements exchange refers to the idea of keeping multiple copies of requirements in coherence with one another, or to maintain data integrity.

Requirements synchronization is based on a snapshot that can be exchanged occasionally. To perform such lazy synchronization, a partner must first generate a snapshot of the requirements specifications (often referred to as an export); each requirement and link must be assigned a globally unique identifier, which is valid for the lifetime of the requirement. This ensures that the same requirement can be matched at every remote location, independently of the data sources.

A partner must be able to merge a snapshot with the specification in the local data source (for example requirements tools) often referred to as an import. The original specification and its replica may have been modified concurrently, leading to conflicts when trying to merge the requirements specifications. Decisions must be made as to which change must be updated; such decisions are called conflict resolutions.