New RICS document categories
RICS continually reviews its standards portfolio to ensure that RICS standards and other documents are up-to-date and easy to use.
We have simplified our document structure so that all documents fit into two categories:
- Professional standards - These are the documents which set mandatory requirements
- Practice guidance - These documents provide information to support practice, knowledge and performance
These updated document definitions will be applied to RICS’ existing portfolio of standards and guidance over time – when new documents are created or existing documents are updated. This will take some time. Therefore, existing documents may continue to refer to different, previous, document categories including: standards, practice information, practice statements, professional statements and guidance notes. To avoid confusion all documents are clearly categorised on their front cover, and include a ‘document definitions’ section in their opening pages to explain their categorisation.
Always check the Conduct and Competence or Sector Standards pages to ensure use of the latest version of a document.
Document definitions
Document type |
Definition |
RICS professional standards |
RICS professional standards set mandatory requirements that govern the manner in which RICS members and regulated firms conduct their profession or business in order to protect clients and other stakeholders. They use the word “must” to indicate a requirement. Non-compliance with a requirement constitutes a breach of the standard. |
RICS practice guidance |
RICS practice guidance provides information to support the practice, knowledge and performance of RICS members and regulated firms. It supports consistency or improvements in professional practice. It uses the word “should” to describe expected practice. It is recognised that there may be acceptable alternatives to expected practice that achieve the same or a better outcome. |
An RICS document may include both mandatory requirements and expected practice, which will be differentiated by the use of the words “must” and “should” as defined above.
As well as developing its own standards, RICS works collaboratively with other bodies at a national and international level to develop documents to aid professional practice such as cross-sector codes, guidance and standards. The application of these collaborative documents by RICS members will be defined either within the document itself or in associated RICS-published documents.
RICS will take into account relevant professional standards and may take into account relevant practice guidance documents when deciding whether an RICS member or regulated firm acted appropriately and with reasonable competence, including in regulatory or disciplinary proceedings. It is also likely that during any legal proceedings a judge, adjudicator or equivalent will take RICS professional standards and practice guidance into account.