Methods and apparatuses for positioning in RRC_IDLE or RRC_INACTIVE states. A method of a user equipment (UE) in a wireless communication system includes determining a first set of configurations for positioning and determining a second set of configurations for positioning. The first and second sets of configurations include configurations for a downlink (DL) positioning reference signal (PRS) based positioning measurement or an uplink (UL) sounding reference signal (SRS) transmission. The method further includes receiving a downlink control information (DCI) format including an indication on which of the first or second sets of configurations to use for positioning.