Membership and licensing
Membership and licensing
Registration with RIA is what permits you to offer architectural services in Rwanda. This section covers who must register, how to apply, what it costs, and how to keep a licence current.
Registration is admission to the profession. You satisfy RIA that you hold the qualifications and experience the law requires, and you are entered on the register. It happens once.
Two things, not one
Registration and licensing are different
A practising licence is annual. It confirms that you remain in good standing for a particular year, and only a current licence permits you to practise.
It happens every year, and it is where people most often come unstuck: far more members lose the right to practise through a lapsed licence than through anything else.
Where to start
| If you are | Start at |
|---|---|
| Practising and not yet registered | Who must register |
| A graduate working towards registration | Supervised professional experience |
| Ready to apply | How to apply — choose the route that matches where you qualified |
| Registered, and it is renewal season | Renew your practising licence |
| Setting up or running a practice | Register an architectural firm |
| Based outside Rwanda, working on one | Register a single project |
At a glance
RegistrationAdmission to the profession. Happens once.
LicensingAnnual confirmation of good standing.
Firms & projectsSeparate registration for practices and single commissions.
Good standingCertificates and letters for tenders and transfers.
What is in this section
Become a memberApply step by step: choose your class, submit documents and pay.Renew your membershipConfirm your details, attach CPD evidence and pay the annual fee.Who must registerWho is legally required to register before offering architectural services.Membership classesThe classes of RIA membership and what each permits.Apply — Rwandan applicantsWhat Rwandan applicants must supply to register.Apply — East African partner statesThe route for architects registered in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania or Burundi.Apply — qualified outside the regionThe route for architects qualified outside East Africa.Register a firmHow firms register and who carries responsibility for their work.Register a single projectWorking on one project in Rwanda rather than establishing a practice.Fees and paymentEvery fee RIA charges, and how to pay.Renew your licenceKeep your practising licence current for the year.Examinations and professional interviewsWhat is assessed, and how sessions and results work.Supervised professional experienceThe requirement between graduation and registration, and the logbook.Certificates and letters of good standingRegistration certificates, letters of good standing and duplicates.
Become a member