In this guide · 8 sections
- 01Who may call themselves an architect online
- 02What the conduct rules say about publicity
- 03Project pages: state your role and credit others
- 04Awards, competitions and media coverage
- 05Practice details to show on the site
- 06Building the site: speed, images and who is responsible
- 07Do it yourself or get help?
- 08Frequently asked questions
Short answer
Only registered architects with a practising certificate, and licensed practices, may present themselves as supplying architectural services. On the website, state your specific role in each project, credit other architects, avoid unverifiable or comparative claims, and protect client confidentiality.
Who may call themselves an architect online
The Board of Architects' circular on restricted job titles quotes section 10(3)(a) of the Architects Act 1991: a person must not use the word 'architect' or any of its derivatives in connection with their business designation, or any name that leads to the belief they are an architect, unless they are a registered architect with a practising certificate in force.
The same circular says, under section 10(3)(b), that no individual or business may advertise or hold itself out as authorised to supply architectural services in Singapore unless it is a registered architect with a practising certificate or a licensed architectural practice. A website is advertising for this purpose.
| Title on the team page | Who may use it, per BOA |
|---|---|
| Architect, Registered Architect, Project Architect, Associate Architect, Architectural Director | Registered architects with a practising certificate |
| Architectural Designer, Architectural Assistant | Staff of an architectural practice with suitable qualifications |
| Architectural Graduate, Architectural Associate | Staff of an architectural practice whose qualifications BOA recognises for registration |
| Architectural Coordinator | For example, contractor staff coordinating architectural information for construction |
| Designer, Design Lead, Interior Designer | Not restricted by the Architects Act, provided they do not imply architectural services |
What the conduct rules say about publicity
Paragraph 5 of the Schedule to the Architects (Professional Conduct and Ethics) Rules 2001 allows an architect to publicise their practice, and defines publicity widely enough to include websites and social media. It then sets limits. Publicity must uphold the dignity of the profession, and must not be misleading, deceptive, inaccurate or false.
The Rules spell out what counts as misleading: a material misrepresentation, leaving out a material fact, information that cannot be verified, or anything likely to create an unjustified expectation about the results an architect can achieve.
Fits the rules
- Project pages stating your exact role (for example, architect of record, design architect)
- Credits to collaborating architects, engineers and landscape architects
- Specialisms you can back with qualifications, similar projects and capacity
- Award names, year and awarding body, stated exactly
Likely to breach them
- Showing a building you did not provide architectural services for
- 'Singapore's leading' or 'best' claims you cannot verify
- Comparing your fees or quality with other architects
- Promising approval outcomes or timelines you cannot guarantee
Project pages: state your role and credit others
The project rules are the most practical part. Under paragraph 5(5), publicity must not refer to any building project you did not render architectural services for. Where it mentions a project, you must state your specific involvement and give due credit to any other architect involved. You must not mention a project at all if that would breach a confidentiality duty to a client.
Before a project page goes live
Photographer copyright is a separate issue. Under the Copyright Act 2021, photographers own commissioned photos by default. Our guide to website image copyright explains what to agree with your photographer.
Awards, competitions and media coverage
Awards are fair to publicise when stated precisely. Give the award name, category, year and awarding body, and say whether it went to the firm, a named architect or the project team. If the award went to a project where you were one of several architects, credit the others as you would on the project page.
Competition entries can be shown as design work, labelled as competition entries with the result. The Rules also restrict taking part in competitions that the Board has warned against or that are not run under Board-approved rules, so check before featuring an entry for one.
Paragraphs 7 and 8 allow architects to publish illustrations and descriptions of their own work, but they must not solicit advertising from anyone for such publications. A sponsored feature in a magazine, reproduced on the site, is worth checking against that rule.
Practice details to show on the site
Visitors and clients increasingly check credentials. Make that easy with a short 'Practice details' block on the About or Contact page.
- Registered name of the practice and its UEN
- That it is a licensed corporation or partnership, or a sole architect's practice, as applicable
- Names of registered architects in the practice, matching the BOA register
- A line inviting visitors to check registrations on the Board of Architects website
- Professional memberships such as SIA, stated exactly
Keep the tone measured. The Rules require statements about your services to be accurate, truthful and dignified, and not misleading, exaggerated or ostentatious, which rules out the hard-sell style common on other business sites.
Building the site: speed, images and who is responsible
Architecture sites are image-led, so speed matters. Resize photos to the display size, use WebP or AVIF, and lazy-load galleries. Our Core Web Vitals guide covers the fixes, and interior design portfolio guidance on labelling renders applies equally to architects.
Paragraph 5(7) to (9) makes each architect responsible for publicity done on their behalf, including by agencies, and that responsibility cannot be delegated. If you hire a web designer or marketing agency, give them this guide's checklist, review every page before launch, and fix any problem as soon as you find it.
Do it yourself or get help?
The content decisions here belong to the practice: titles, project roles, credits and client permissions. Get those right in a shared document first, then build. A typical budget for a custom portfolio site is in our website cost guide.
If you want it built, our Website Pro package (S$2,990) delivers a custom portfolio site with structured project pages that include role and credit fields, on accounts you own. For an existing site that loads slowly, Speed & SEO Fix (S$390) compresses images and cleans up scripts. We build the site; the publicity decisions and compliance review stay with the practice.
Frequently asked questions
Not unless it is a licensed architectural practice. BOA's circular cites section 10(3)(b) of the Architects Act: no individual or business may advertise or hold itself out as authorised to supply architectural services unless it is a registered architect with a practising certificate or a licensed practice. Use designer titles instead.
Yes. The Architects (Professional Conduct and Ethics) Rules allow architects to publicise their practice, including online. The publicity must uphold the dignity of the profession and must not be misleading, deceptive, inaccurate or unverifiable, compare fees or quality with other architects, or create unjustified expectations about results.
Yes. Paragraph 5(5) of the Schedule to the conduct rules requires that any publicity mentioning a building project states your specific involvement in it and gives due credit to any other architect involved. You must not show projects you did not render architectural services for.
You may describe work you personally did, but be precise: state the firm you worked for, your role and the lead architects, and do not imply your new practice delivered it. Check any confidentiality obligations to the former client or employer before you mention the project at all.
The architect. The conduct rules say every architect must ensure publicity about their practice complies, whether done by them or by someone on their behalf, and that this responsibility cannot be delegated. Review all content before launch and correct any problem as soon as you find it.