Today, a landmark Mutual Recognition Agreement (MRA) has been reached between the UK’s Architects Registration Board (ARB) and United States’ National Council of Architectural Registration Board (NCARB) that will streamline the registration process for architects in both countries beginning on April 25, 2023.
Under the new agreement, qualified architects will be able to cross-register in the opposing country in an effort to reduce costs and the need for examinations while “upholding and maintaining the high standards and safety that help to protect the public in both nations.”
“Signing this MRA — creating a reciprocal arrangement whereby UK architects can register and practice in participating jurisdictions within the United States — is an exciting moment for the sector,” Hugh Simpson, the Chief Executive and Registrar of the Architects Registration Board said in a statement. “The agreement helps to open up opportunities for cooperation between individuals and firms in the UK and United States in a way which upholds standards.”
NCARB CEO Michael Armstrong added: “Through this agreement, NCARB celebrates a new relationship with the United Kingdom as it continues to enhance the value of the NCARB Certificate as a facilitator of domestic and international mobility for many U.S. licensed practitioners. We are pleased to sign this Mutual Recognition Agreement emphasizing a shared approach of appropriate rigor in guiding the licensure of architects, thus furthering our mutual desire to enhance the global health, safety and welfare of the public.”
First proposed four years ago and later ratified last June, the agreement is part of a slate of landmark changes undertaken by the ARB recently. Last week, the governing body also unveiled its plan to “fundamentally overhaul” architectural education and training in the United Kingdom, doing away with all three Parts that had been legally required to register in the country since the end of World War I.
“This landmark agreement will pave the way for our world-class architects to export their expertise across the Atlantic,” the UK’s Secretary of State for Business and Trade, Kemi Badenoch, offered finally. “Removing market access barriers is one of my top priorities, and this latest win will further strengthen our trading ties with the US, building on recent success getting British beef and lamb on American supermarket shelves for the first time in decades, and gaining tariff-free access for UK steel and aluminium.”
5 Comments
lookee here, NCARB doing more to increase CEO pay at the home office, and providing another largely unattainable goal for foreign applicants.
Assholes.
you mean you dont think the reciprocity is real?
First, the devil is in the details, second states will have the ultimate say in what happens.
got it. So it's complicated enough to not be much of a thing, at least for a while, if ever...that will suck, if it works out that way.
Such a wonderful pic to depict the term "CIRCLE JERK"
Block this user
Are you sure you want to block this user and hide all related comments throughout the site?
Archinect
This is your first comment on Archinect. Your comment will be visible once approved.