Listing a Business/Company Name with the Board - Section 141a Notices

1. Amendments apply to businesses only

Businesses wishing to use the terms "architect", "architects", "registered architect" "registered architects", or other prescribed title or name may elect to give the Board a notice in the approved form under section 141A of the Act (Section 141A Notice) detailing the name/s affected and the architects who are responsible for carrying out architectural services for the business. Only businesses may lodge a Section 141A Notice. The notice does not apply to sole practitioners.

To download the INITIAL NOTICE

2. The Section 141A Notice

The details required to be contained on the Section 141A Notice have been set out in the legislation and these have been incorporated into the notice form. All the details provided on the Section 141A Form 1 Notice may be available to the public. For the notice to have any effect, these details need to be "current" and this term is also defined in the legislation.

3. CHANGE OF PARTICULARS IN SECTION 141A NOTICE:

Businesses have 21 days in which to notify the Board of a change in any of the information previously provided to the Board in the Section 141A Notice or a notice will not be "current" and will not provide the intended protection to the company concerned. Changes must be made by the business notifying the Board, in the approved form, about the change. However, if the Board receives information that leads it to reasonably suspect that the information provided by a business has changed, the Board may note the received information on the record, e.g. if an architect advised the Board that she/he has left a business and gone overseas.

Download a CHANGE OF PARTICULARS NOTICE   

4. What does a Section 141A Notice do?

a) Sections 113(1) and 114(1)

It gives a business using the title or name "architect" or "architects" protection from thereby offending against sections 113(1) (offence for claiming or holding out to be an architect) and 114(1) (offence for using the title or name "architect" etc) when the business is providing architectural services but cannot be registered because registration applies only to individuals.

The protection will apply to the use of the words "architect", "architects", "registered architect" or "registered architects" or other subsequently regulated title or name. As yet, no other titles or names have been regulated pursuant to section 114(1).

To read full text of these sections Click here   

b) Section 140(1)

Also, a notice will give a business using a title or name referred to in section 114(1) (above) protection from automatically being caught by the provisions of 140(1). That is, a business cannot be said to be "claiming or holding itself out to be an architect" or "allowing itself to be held out as an architect", merely by the use of the words "architect", "architects", "registered architect" or "registered architects" or other subsequently regulated title, if it submits a Section 141A Notice and keeps that notice "current". This in turn means that the business cannot be disentitled under section 140(2) to payment for the performance of the architectural services it provides, simply by the use of those words. No other titles or names have at the date of this publication been prescribed.
To read the full text of section 140 Click here   

5. What the notice does NOT do!

A Section 141A Notice will not relieve a business from complying with the provisions of the Act and in particular the provisions in sections 115, 116, & 117.
For the full text of these sections: Click here  

A Section 141A Notice does not affect section 114(2). A business must not use the words "architectural services", "architectural design services" or "architectural design" to advertise or promote services provided by it unless the services are to be provided using an architect. (To read the full text of these sections Click here  )

6. Is there a fee for lodging a Notice? NO FEE UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE

The Government has indicated that at a future time there will be a fee associated with the lodgement of an initial Section 141A Notice with the Board but no fee has been regulated at the date of this publication. The Board will advise of details of any fee prescribed on this website when applicable.

Registration of Business/Companies in Queensland

The Architects Act 2002 (the Act) commenced on 1 January 2003. The Act abolished the approval of architectural companies in Queensland from 1 January 2003.