diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index ebcc0f2..b3159b4 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -67,20 +67,14 @@ Security notes:
 - Replay protection is enforced by deduplicating `eventId` values in the ingestion service.
 - Duplicate deliveries are treated as safe no-ops and return `202 Accepted`.
 
-## Prometheus Metrics
+## API Versioning Policy
 
-The backend exposes a standard Prometheus metrics endpoint at `GET /metrics`.
+All new features and endpoints must be mounted under the `/api/v1` prefix.
 
-- **HTTP Metrics**: Tracks request duration, error rates, and throughput (labels: `method`, `route`, `status_code`).
-- **Custom Metrics**: Includes `job_sync_lag_seconds` to track background processing delay.
-- **Default Metrics**: Standard Node.js process and runtime metrics (GC, memory, CPU).
-
-### Security
-
-In `production` Environments, the `/metrics` endpoint is protected by a Bearer token.
-- Set `PROMETHEUS_AUTH_TOKEN` in your environment.
-- Clients must provide `Authorization: Bearer <token>`.
-- In non-production environments, authentication is bypassed for easier debugging.
+**Deprecation and Sunset Policy:**
+We use HTTP headers to signal end-of-life for specific API versions:
+- `X-API-Version`: Indicates the current version of the API responding to the request.
+- `Deprecation`: A boolean flag (`true` or `false`) indicating if the API version is deprecated. When `true`, developers should migrate to a newer version as soon as possible.
 
 ## Scripts
 
diff --git a/src/api/v1/router.ts b/src/api/v1/router.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..727fa09
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/api/v1/router.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+import { Router, Request, Response, NextFunction } from "express";
+import streamsRouter from "./streams";
+
+const v1Router = Router();
+
+// Global middleware for v1 APIs
+v1Router.use((_req: Request, res: Response, next: NextFunction) => {
+    res.setHeader("X-API-Version", "v1");
+    res.setHeader("Deprecation", "false");
+    next();
+});
+
+// Mount existing streams logic
+v1Router.use("/streams", streamsRouter);
+
+export default v1Router;
diff --git a/src/index.ts b/src/index.ts
index 7958f3a..b3f0f1a 100644
--- a/src/index.ts
+++ b/src/index.ts
@@ -4,8 +4,7 @@
 
 import cors from "cors";
 import express, { Request, Response } from "express";
-import streamRoutes from "./api/v1/streams";
-import { metricsMiddleware, metricsHandler } from "./metrics/prometheus";
+import v1Router from "./api/v1/router";
 
 import indexerWebhookRouter from "./routes/webhooks/indexer";
 
@@ -23,7 +22,7 @@ app.get("/health", (_req: Request, res: Response) => {
   res.json({ status: "ok", service: "streampay-backend", timestamp: new Date().toISOString() });
 });
 
-app.use("/api/v1/streams", streamRoutes);
+app.use("/api/v1", v1Router);
 
 if (require.main === module) {
   app.listen(PORT, () => {