Chicago, IL—The National Council of Architectural Registration Boards’ (NCARB) member licensing boards passed resolutions to update two of NCARB’s Mutual Recognition Agreements (MRAs), one involving adjustments to the agreement with Australia and New Zealand and the other streamlining elements of the Canada/Mexico/U.S. Tri-National Agreement, which establish reciprocity with several of NCARB’s international counterparts. In both cases, the updates expand access to the MRAs, allowing more architects to pursue international licensure through these agreements.

These changes are part of NCARB’s ongoing efforts to reduce unnecessary barriers, including extended time requirements and limited paths to licensure and reciprocity, and instead increase opportunities toward licensure. The agreements’ terms are based on shared baseline of competency requirements at the point of initial licensure, while allowing for flexibility in competency assessment for each country’s licensure process.

“These updates create exciting opportunities for architects seeking to practice internationally,” said FY24 NCARB President Jon Alan Baker, FAIA, NCARB, LEED AP. “As the commonalities of architectural practice become more and more global, the NCARB Certificate becomes increasingly valuable in facilitating international reciprocity.”

The latest MRA updates were adopted by NCARB’s members during the organization’s 2024 Annual Business Meeting. One resolution implements a new MRA in place of NCARB’s existing agreement with the Architects Accreditation Council of Australia (AACA) and the New Zealand Registered Architects Board (NZRAB). Another resolution modifies the Tri-National Mutual Recognition Agreement between NCARB, Mexico’s Comité Mexicano para la Práctica Internacional de la Arquitectura (COMPIAR), and the Regulatory Organization of Architecture in Canada (ROAC).

New Agreement With AACA and NZRAB

The new MRA between NCARB and its counterparts in Australia and New Zealand eliminates the existing requirement that architects must have 6,000 hours of post-licensure experience in their home country, expanding eligibility to newly licensed architects. It also allows for acceptance of architects who hold the NCARB Certificate through the Education Alternative or Foreign Architect pathways. To be eligible for reciprocity under the new agreement, U.S. architects must:

• Be licensed and in good standing in a signatory jurisdiction
• Hold an active NCARB Certificate

Updated Agreement With COMPIAR and ROAC

The amended MRA between NCARB and its counterparts in Canada and Mexico reduces the existing post-licensure experience requirement from 10 years to five years. It also allows for acceptance of architects who hold the NCARB Certificate through the Education Alternative or Foreign Architect pathways, and allows work experience earned in any of the three countries to count toward the post-licensure experience requirement. To be eligible for reciprocity under the new agreement, U.S. architects must:

• Be licensed and in good standing in a signatory jurisdiction
• Hold an active NCARB Certificate
• Hold a degree in architecture from an accredited architecture program or recognized equivalent accepted as satisfying the education component in the home country
• Have a minimum of five years of post-licensure experience (at least two of which must be earned in the U.S.)

Architects who are certified via an MRA with another country are not eligible for reciprocity under either agreement. Because each U.S. jurisdiction is responsible for the regulation of architecture within its borders, each U.S. jurisdiction must individually determine if it will accept the new Mutual Recognition Agreements.

The updated MRAs will go into effect in late 2024/early 2025, after they have been signed by all parties. At that time, eligible architects will be able to pursue reciprocal licensure following the terms of the agreements.