diff --git a/doc/guides/prog_guide/kernel_nic_interface.rst b/doc/guides/prog_guide/kernel_nic_interface.rst
index 2fd58e1..80f731c 100644
--- a/doc/guides/prog_guide/kernel_nic_interface.rst
+++ b/doc/guides/prog_guide/kernel_nic_interface.rst
@@ -300,6 +300,32 @@ The sk_buff is then freed and the mbuf sent in the tx_q FIFO.
 The DPDK TX thread dequeues the mbuf and sends it to the PMD via ``rte_eth_tx_burst()``.
 It then puts the mbuf back in the cache.
 
+IOVA = VA: Support
+------------------
+
+KNI can be operated in IOVA_VA scheme when
+
+- LINUX_VERSION_CODE >= KERNEL_VERSION(4, 8, 0) and
+- eal option `iova-mode=va` is passed or bus IOVA scheme in the DPDK is selected
+  as RTE_IOVA_VA.
+
+Packet Pool APIs for IOVA=VA mode
+---------------------------------
+
+``rte_kni_pktmbuf_pool_create`` and ``rte_kni_pktmbuf_pool_free`` APIs need to
+be used for creating packet pools for running KNI applications in IOVA=VA mode.
+Packet pool's mbuf memory should be physically contiguous for the KNI kernel
+module to work in IOVA=VA mode, this memory requirement was taken care inside
+those KNI packet pool create APIs.
+
+Command-line option for legacy KNI
+----------------------------------
+
+Existing KNI applications can use ``--legacy-kni`` eal command-line option to
+work with DPDK 19.11 and later versions. When this option is selected, IOVA mode
+will be forced to PA mode to enable old KNI applications work with the latest
+DPDK without code changes.
+
 Ethtool
 -------
 
diff --git a/doc/guides/rel_notes/release_19_11.rst b/doc/guides/rel_notes/release_19_11.rst
index ab2c381..e4296a0 100644
--- a/doc/guides/rel_notes/release_19_11.rst
+++ b/doc/guides/rel_notes/release_19_11.rst
@@ -120,6 +120,19 @@ New Features
   Added EAL option ``--legacy-kni`` to make existing KNI applications work
   with DPDK 19.11 and later.
 
+* **Added IOVA as VA support for KNI.**
+
+  Added IOVA as VA support for KNI. When KNI needs to operate in IOVA = VA
+  mode, packet pool's mbuf memory should be physically contiguous. This memory
+  requirement taken care using the new ``rte_kni_pktmbuf_pool_create`` and
+  ``rte_kni_pktmbuf_pool_free`` routines.
+
+  The ``examples/kni/`` updated to use this API to enable IOVA as VA or
+  IOVA as PA mode.
+
+  When "--legacy-kni" selected, IOVA mode will be forced to PA mode to enable
+  old KNI application work with the latest DPDK without code changes.
+
 Removed Items
 -------------
 
diff --git a/examples/kni/main.c b/examples/kni/main.c
index c576fc7..d2f3b46 100644
--- a/examples/kni/main.c
+++ b/examples/kni/main.c
@@ -1017,8 +1017,9 @@ main(int argc, char** argv)
 		rte_exit(EXIT_FAILURE, "Could not parse input parameters\n");
 
 	/* Create the mbuf pool */
-	pktmbuf_pool = rte_pktmbuf_pool_create("mbuf_pool", NB_MBUF,
+	pktmbuf_pool = rte_kni_pktmbuf_pool_create("mbuf_pool", NB_MBUF,
 		MEMPOOL_CACHE_SZ, 0, MBUF_DATA_SZ, rte_socket_id());
+
 	if (pktmbuf_pool == NULL) {
 		rte_exit(EXIT_FAILURE, "Could not initialise mbuf pool\n");
 		return -1;
@@ -1085,6 +1086,9 @@ main(int argc, char** argv)
 			continue;
 		kni_free_kni(port);
 	}
+
+	rte_kni_pktmbuf_pool_free(pktmbuf_pool);
+
 	for (i = 0; i < RTE_MAX_ETHPORTS; i++)
 		if (kni_port_params_array[i]) {
 			rte_free(kni_port_params_array[i]);
diff --git a/lib/librte_eal/linux/eal/eal.c b/lib/librte_eal/linux/eal/eal.c
index f397206..f807044 100644
--- a/lib/librte_eal/linux/eal/eal.c
+++ b/lib/librte_eal/linux/eal/eal.c
@@ -947,6 +947,29 @@ static int rte_eal_vfio_setup(void)
 }
 #endif
 
+static enum rte_iova_mode
+rte_eal_kni_get_iova_mode(enum rte_iova_mode iova_mode)
+{
+	if (iova_mode == RTE_IOVA_PA)
+		goto exit;
+
+	if (internal_config.legacy_kni) {
+		iova_mode = RTE_IOVA_PA;
+		RTE_LOG(WARNING, EAL, "Forcing IOVA as 'PA' because legacy KNI is enabled\n");
+		goto exit;
+	}
+
+	if (iova_mode == RTE_IOVA_VA) {
+#if KERNEL_VERSION(4, 8, 0) > LINUX_VERSION_CODE
+		iova_mode = RTE_IOVA_PA;
+		RTE_LOG(WARNING, EAL, "Forcing IOVA as 'PA' because KNI module does not support VA\n");
+#endif
+	}
+
+exit:
+	return iova_mode;
+}
+
 static void rte_eal_init_alert(const char *msg)
 {
 	fprintf(stderr, "EAL: FATAL: %s\n", msg);
@@ -1110,24 +1133,16 @@ rte_eal_init(int argc, char **argv)
 				RTE_LOG(DEBUG, EAL, "IOMMU is not available, selecting IOVA as PA mode.\n");
 			}
 		}
-#ifdef RTE_LIBRTE_KNI
-		/* Workaround for KNI which requires physical address to work */
-		if (iova_mode == RTE_IOVA_VA &&
-				rte_eal_check_module("rte_kni") == 1) {
-			if (phys_addrs) {
-				iova_mode = RTE_IOVA_PA;
-				RTE_LOG(WARNING, EAL, "Forcing IOVA as 'PA' because KNI module is loaded\n");
-			} else {
-				RTE_LOG(DEBUG, EAL, "KNI can not work since physical addresses are unavailable\n");
-			}
-		}
-#endif
 		rte_eal_get_configuration()->iova_mode = iova_mode;
 	} else {
 		rte_eal_get_configuration()->iova_mode =
 			internal_config.iova_mode;
 	}
 
+	if (rte_eal_check_module("rte_kni") == 1)
+		rte_eal_get_configuration()->iova_mode =
+				rte_eal_kni_get_iova_mode(rte_eal_iova_mode());
+
 	if (rte_eal_iova_mode() == RTE_IOVA_PA && !phys_addrs) {
 		rte_eal_init_alert("Cannot use IOVA as 'PA' since physical addresses are not available");
 		rte_errno = EINVAL;
diff --git a/lib/librte_eal/linux/eal/include/rte_kni_common.h b/lib/librte_eal/linux/eal/include/rte_kni_common.h
index b51fe27..1b96cf6 100644
--- a/lib/librte_eal/linux/eal/include/rte_kni_common.h
+++ b/lib/librte_eal/linux/eal/include/rte_kni_common.h
@@ -123,6 +123,7 @@ struct rte_kni_device_info {
 	unsigned mbuf_size;
 	unsigned int mtu;
 	uint8_t mac_addr[6];
+	uint8_t iova_mode;
 };
 
 #define KNI_DEVICE "kni"
diff --git a/lib/librte_kni/Makefile b/lib/librte_kni/Makefile
index cbd6599..6405524 100644
--- a/lib/librte_kni/Makefile
+++ b/lib/librte_kni/Makefile
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ include $(RTE_SDK)/mk/rte.vars.mk
 # library name
 LIB = librte_kni.a
 
+CFLAGS += -DALLOW_EXPERIMENTAL_API
 CFLAGS += $(WERROR_FLAGS) -I$(SRCDIR) -O3 -fno-strict-aliasing
 LDLIBS += -lrte_eal -lrte_mempool -lrte_mbuf -lrte_ethdev
 
diff --git a/lib/librte_kni/meson.build b/lib/librte_kni/meson.build
index 41fa2e3..dd4c8da 100644
--- a/lib/librte_kni/meson.build
+++ b/lib/librte_kni/meson.build
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 # SPDX-License-Identifier: BSD-3-Clause
 # Copyright(c) 2017 Intel Corporation
 
+allow_experimental_apis = true
 if not is_linux or not dpdk_conf.get('RTE_ARCH_64')
 	build = false
 	reason = 'only supported on 64-bit linux'
diff --git a/lib/librte_kni/rte_kni.c b/lib/librte_kni/rte_kni.c
index 0f36485..1e53f05 100644
--- a/lib/librte_kni/rte_kni.c
+++ b/lib/librte_kni/rte_kni.c
@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@
 #include <rte_tailq.h>
 #include <rte_rwlock.h>
 #include <rte_eal_memconfig.h>
+#include <rte_mbuf_pool_ops.h>
 #include <rte_kni_common.h>
 #include "rte_kni_fifo.h"
 
@@ -97,11 +98,6 @@ static volatile int kni_fd = -1;
 int
 rte_kni_init(unsigned int max_kni_ifaces __rte_unused)
 {
-	if (rte_eal_iova_mode() != RTE_IOVA_PA) {
-		RTE_LOG(ERR, KNI, "KNI requires IOVA as PA\n");
-		return -1;
-	}
-
 	/* Check FD and open */
 	if (kni_fd < 0) {
 		kni_fd = open("/dev/" KNI_DEVICE, O_RDWR);
@@ -300,6 +296,8 @@ rte_kni_alloc(struct rte_mempool *pktmbuf_pool,
 	kni->group_id = conf->group_id;
 	kni->mbuf_size = conf->mbuf_size;
 
+	dev_info.iova_mode = (rte_eal_iova_mode() == RTE_IOVA_VA) ? 1 : 0;
+
 	ret = ioctl(kni_fd, RTE_KNI_IOCTL_CREATE, &dev_info);
 	if (ret < 0)
 		goto ioctl_fail;
@@ -687,6 +685,65 @@ kni_allocate_mbufs(struct rte_kni *kni)
 	}
 }
 
+struct rte_mempool *
+rte_kni_pktmbuf_pool_create(const char *name, unsigned int n,
+	unsigned int cache_size, uint16_t priv_size, uint16_t data_room_size,
+	int socket_id)
+{
+	struct rte_pktmbuf_pool_private mbp_priv;
+	const char *mp_ops_name;
+	struct rte_mempool *mp;
+	unsigned int elt_size;
+	int ret;
+
+	if (RTE_ALIGN(priv_size, RTE_MBUF_PRIV_ALIGN) != priv_size) {
+		RTE_LOG(ERR, MBUF, "mbuf priv_size=%u is not aligned\n",
+			priv_size);
+		rte_errno = EINVAL;
+		return NULL;
+	}
+	elt_size = sizeof(struct rte_mbuf) + (unsigned int)priv_size +
+		(unsigned int)data_room_size;
+	mbp_priv.mbuf_data_room_size = data_room_size;
+	mbp_priv.mbuf_priv_size = priv_size;
+
+	mp = rte_mempool_create_empty(name, n, elt_size, cache_size,
+		 sizeof(struct rte_pktmbuf_pool_private), socket_id, 0);
+	if (mp == NULL)
+		return NULL;
+
+	mp_ops_name = rte_mbuf_best_mempool_ops();
+	ret = rte_mempool_set_ops_byname(mp, mp_ops_name, NULL);
+	if (ret != 0) {
+		RTE_LOG(ERR, MBUF, "error setting mempool handler\n");
+		rte_mempool_free(mp);
+		rte_errno = -ret;
+		return NULL;
+	}
+	rte_pktmbuf_pool_init(mp, &mbp_priv);
+
+	if (rte_eal_iova_mode() == RTE_IOVA_VA)
+		ret = rte_mempool_populate_from_pg_sz_chunks(mp);
+	else
+		ret = rte_mempool_populate_default(mp);
+
+	if (ret < 0) {
+		rte_mempool_free(mp);
+		rte_errno = -ret;
+		return NULL;
+	}
+
+	rte_mempool_obj_iter(mp, rte_pktmbuf_init, NULL);
+
+	return mp;
+}
+
+void
+rte_kni_pktmbuf_pool_free(struct rte_mempool *mp)
+{
+	rte_mempool_free(mp);
+}
+
 struct rte_kni *
 rte_kni_get(const char *name)
 {
diff --git a/lib/librte_kni/rte_kni.h b/lib/librte_kni/rte_kni.h
index f6b66c3..2cfdc38 100644
--- a/lib/librte_kni/rte_kni.h
+++ b/lib/librte_kni/rte_kni.h
@@ -187,6 +187,54 @@ unsigned rte_kni_tx_burst(struct rte_kni *kni, struct rte_mbuf **mbufs,
 		unsigned num);
 
 /**
+ * Create a kni packet mbuf pool.
+ *
+ * This function creates and initializes a packet mbuf pool for KNI applications
+ * It calls the required mempool populate routine based on the IOVA mode.
+ *
+ * @param name
+ *   The name of the mbuf pool.
+ * @param n
+ *   The number of elements in the mbuf pool. The optimum size (in terms
+ *   of memory usage) for a mempool is when n is a power of two minus one:
+ *   n = (2^q - 1).
+ * @param cache_size
+ *   Size of the per-core object cache. See rte_mempool_create() for
+ *   details.
+ * @param priv_size
+ *   Size of application private are between the rte_mbuf structure
+ *   and the data buffer. This value must be aligned to RTE_MBUF_PRIV_ALIGN.
+ * @param data_room_size
+ *   Size of data buffer in each mbuf, including RTE_PKTMBUF_HEADROOM.
+ * @param socket_id
+ *   The socket identifier where the memory should be allocated. The
+ *   value can be *SOCKET_ID_ANY* if there is no NUMA constraint for the
+ *   reserved zone.
+ * @return
+ *   The pointer to the new allocated mempool, on success. NULL on error
+ *   with rte_errno set appropriately. Possible rte_errno values include:
+ *    - E_RTE_NO_CONFIG - function could not get pointer to rte_config structure
+ *    - E_RTE_SECONDARY - function was called from a secondary process instance
+ *    - EINVAL - cache size provided is too large, or priv_size is not aligned.
+ *    - ENOSPC - the maximum number of memzones has already been allocated
+ *    - EEXIST - a memzone with the same name already exists
+ *    - ENOMEM - no appropriate memory area found in which to create memzone
+ */
+__rte_experimental
+struct rte_mempool *rte_kni_pktmbuf_pool_create(const char *name,
+		unsigned int n, unsigned int cache_size, uint16_t priv_size,
+		uint16_t data_room_size, int socket_id);
+
+/**
+ * Free the given packet mempool.
+ *
+ * @param mp
+ *  The mempool pointer.
+ */
+__rte_experimental
+void rte_kni_pktmbuf_pool_free(struct rte_mempool *mp);
+
+/**
  * Get the KNI context of its name.
  *
  * @param name
diff --git a/lib/librte_kni/rte_kni_version.map b/lib/librte_kni/rte_kni_version.map
index c877dc6..5937bff 100644
--- a/lib/librte_kni/rte_kni_version.map
+++ b/lib/librte_kni/rte_kni_version.map
@@ -19,5 +19,8 @@ DPDK_2.0 {
 EXPERIMENTAL {
 	global:
 
+	# added in 19.11
 	rte_kni_update_link;
+	rte_kni_pktmbuf_pool_create;
+	rte_kni_pktmbuf_pool_free;
 };
