Applicants without Part 1 will be able to join the register if they can demonstrate skills with more advanced qualifcations

ARB has approved a set of new streamlined registration processes which aim to create new ways for applicants without traditional qualifications to become architects.

Set to be introduced in spring next year, the registration assurance process (RAP) is described by the regulator as a move towards a “competence-based” regulatory framework which will modernise how architects join or return to the register.

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The new routes will be introduced in spring 2027

Under the new model, applicants with Part 2 and Part 3 qualifications but without a recognised Part 1 will be able to apply for registration if they can demonstrate competence with more advanced qualifications.

Applicants who have been off the register for more than two years, or who completed their Part 3 more than two years ago but did not register at the time, can also use a streamlined process to demonstrate their skills remain current before joining or re-joining the register.

Under a third route, architects removed from the register for failing to meet CPD requirements will also be able to return once they have “identified and planned for meeting their professional development needs”, ARB said.

Applicants returning through this third route will need to complete a personal development plan (PDP) before re-joining the register, which may also be required for those who have been off the register for more than two years.

ARB chair Alan Kershaw said: “The Registration Assurance Process introduces a clearer and more proportionate way to confirm that applicants meet the standard required for registration as an architect. 

“It ensures that competent professionals are not prevented from joining or returning to the Register because of unnecessary procedural barriers, while maintaining confidence in the standards the public expects.” 

The changes, part of a wider package of reforms to routes to registration, were consulted on between October 2025 and February this year. A full consultation report is available on ARB’s website.

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