Certification
Certification
Overview
Introduction
to Certification
Is Your Architect
NCARB-certified?
Standards of
Eligibility
Revocation of
Certification
U.S. Requirements
Canadian
Requirements
BEA Certification Process
Council Record
Compilation
Certification
Process Timeline

Certification
Application
Employment
Verification Form
Broadly Experienced
Foreign Architect
(BEFA) Eligibility
Verification Form

One way NCARB serves the architectural profession is through the administration of a certification program. Certification facilitates reciprocal registration among all 55 NCARB member boards and most Canadian jurisdictions. NCARB certification can also be used to support an application for registration in other countries. Unlike registration, however, certification does not qualify a person to practice architecture in a jurisdiction.

The first step toward NCARB certification is to complete an application for a NCARB Record. The Council verifies and maintains a record of an applicant's education, training, examination, registration, and character. When his or her NCARB Record has been completed, the Council will examine the applicant's qualifications and determine the applicant's eligibility for certification. If NCARB requirements are met, a Council Certificate will be issued.

As long as a Council Certificate is active, the Council will, upon application by the Certificate holder, transmit a certified copy of the individual's Certificate Record to any member board or to any foreign registration authority. The Certificate Record is the individual's NCARB Record together with the Council certification that the individual has complied with the Council's standards of eligibility for certification and the Council's recommendation that the individual be registered as an architect without further examination.

With this certification, registration may be obtained from most NCARB member boards without further examination and without the Certificate holder being required to make a personal appearance. A few boards may require that the Certificate holder's qualifications be supplemented by a personal interview and/or by additional examination on seismic forces, cold weather construction, or local law. It is possible to acquire reciprocal registration in some jurisdictions without being certified by NCARB, although almost half of NCARB's member boards require applicants for reciprocal registration to have a Council Certificate.

The fee for compiling a NCARB Record is $675 payable upon submission of your application.

The fee for processing an application for a Certificate is $175payable upon certification. (This fee is incuded in the $675 Council Record compilation fee.)