Everything you need to know about entering and participating in India Architecture Awards.
01
What the awards are and how they work.
Awards for architecture and interior design in India. The 2027 edition has 30 categories for built projects, unbuilt designs, interiors and firms, and every entry is evaluated only against firms of a similar size.
Nine in ten Indian practices have ten people or fewer, and they shouldn’t have to compete with a 300-person firm. So entries are evaluated in three tiers, Boutique Practice, Mid-sized Practice and Enterprise Practice, with a winner in each.
A few categories are open to two tiers only. Housing Low Rise and the two Emerging Firm of the Year awards are for Boutique and Mid-sized practices, and Housing High Rise is for Mid-sized and Enterprise practices.
No. The awards aren’t named after a cement, tile or paint company, so the honour is about your design alone. Partners support the 2027 edition, and entries are evaluated by an invited jury of recognised architects and design professors.
In the Terms of entry, Code of conduct, Privacy policy and Refund policy, linked at the foot of every page. You accept them when you register.
02
Who can enter, and which work counts.
Architects and interior designers, as practices or as individuals, entering work they designed in India. Firm of the Year is open to practices based in India.
When you register, you confirm that your firm size is accurate and that your firm designed the work you enter.
Yes. Built projects and interiors must be in India, and Architecture Future designs must be for sites in India.
Built architecture and interiors must be completed between 1 January 2024 and 31 March 2027. Firm of the Year entries draw on projects completed in the last five years.
A project or interior is complete once it has been handed over to the client. Architecture Future entries don’t need to be complete.
Yes, in Architecture Future. Designs for sites in India that are not yet complete count, including commissions, competition entries and buildings under construction. Once it’s complete, enter it under Architecture Built instead.
Yes, as long as it meets the completion dates.
Yes, if it still meets the completion dates and goes in a different category. A project can’t be entered in the same category twice.
No. The awards are for practising firms, so student work isn’t eligible.
No. The firm that designed the work enters it. You can credit the client when you submit the entry.
03
Choosing where your work goes.
There are 30, in four groups. Architecture Future has the Architecture Built categories except Project of the Year, for designs not yet complete.
Architecture Built 10
Architecture Future 9
Interior Design 7
Firm of the Year 4
The first category in Architecture Built and in Interior Design. It goes to the best project in that section, chosen from every type and size. Architecture Future has no Project of the Year.
A project can be entered in its own category and in Project of the Year, as two entries. When you pay, we’ll ask whether you’d like to put any of your projects forward for it.
Enter a mixed-use project under the category of its main architectural use. A tower with shops or offices below its homes goes in a Housing category when homes are its main use.
Pick the closest one. The jury may move an entry to a category that suits it better, and we will tell you if it does.
Yes, in these ways:
A building goes in one building category, chosen by its main use.
Yes. When you register, tap a category to add it, then tap it again or use + to add another project in it. There is no limit on how many entries a firm makes, and each pays the fee for your tier.
One in each Firm of the Year category. A firm can enter more than one of them, for example Architecture Firm of the Year and Emerging Architecture Firm of the Year.
There are two, Emerging Architecture Firm of the Year and Emerging Interior Design Firm of the Year. Both are open to Boutique and Mid-sized practices founded in 2017 or later. Enterprise practices can’t enter them, but a firm of any size or age can enter Architecture Firm of the Year or Interior Design Firm of the Year.
Registration asks for the year your firm was founded, and the entry needs proof of the founding date, such as a registration certificate.
A firm profile of up to 500 words, with photographs and drawings for each project.
Awards, press, research and community work are optional.
Private Residence and Apartment sizes are carpet area. Housing is split by the number of floors above the ground or stilt level: Low Rise up to G+4, Mid Rise from G+5 to G+14, and High Rise above G+14. Basements don’t count.
04
The three tiers you’re evaluated in.
| Tier | Firm size | Who it’s for |
|---|---|---|
| Boutique Practice | 10 or fewer people | Practices where the founders remain hands-on |
| Mid-sized Practice | 11 to 30 people | Practices with growing teams and expanding portfolios |
| Enterprise Practice | 31 or more people | Practices that can handle multiple projects across India |
Count every permanent role on your payroll, partners included. Interns are not counted.
No. You give your firm size once, when you register, and it sets your tier and the fee for every entry. It can’t be changed after payment.
We may ask shortlisted firms for proof, such as a staff list or a payroll summary. An entry in the wrong tier may be moved or disqualified.
No. Each tier has its own winner in every category open to it, so your entry is evaluated alongside practices of a similar size.
05
Deadlines, fees and payment.
| Milestone | Date |
|---|---|
| Submissions open | 1 December 2026 |
| Early-bird fees end | 31 December 2026 |
| Standard fees end | 31 January 2027 |
| Late fees end; extended fees after this | 28 February 2027 |
| Entries close | 31 March 2027 |
| Shortlist published | 30 April 2027 |
| Winners announced | 31 May 2027 |
One price per entry, set by your firm’s size. Enter early to pay less. Fees are in rupees, plus 18% GST.
| Tier | Early bird | Standard | Late | Extended |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boutique Practice | ₹4,999 | ₹5,999 | ₹6,999 | ₹7,999 |
| Mid-sized Practice | ₹6,999 | ₹8,999 | ₹10,999 | ₹12,999 |
| Enterprise Practice | ₹9,999 | ₹12,999 | ₹15,999 | ₹18,999 |
You pay the fee that applies on the day you pay.
No. Every entry pays the fee for your tier, however many you make.
No. They cost the same as any other entry for your tier.
Online, at the end of registration. Payment is secured by Razorpay and takes UPI, cards and net banking. Your GST invoice is emailed to you straight away.
No, it’s optional. Add it if your firm wants to claim the GST as input credit. If the legal name on your GST registration differs from your firm name, registration asks for it so the invoice is right.
Refunds follow our Refund policy.
06
Registering and paying for your entries.
In two visits. First you register and pay, which takes about three minutes. Then you submit your work whenever you’re ready, before entries close on 31 March 2027.
Registration has four steps:
Your firm’s name, size and address, the categories you’re entering, and your name, designation, email and mobile number. There’s no password: to sign in later, we email you a one-time code. The address is a 6-digit pincode, state, city and two lines (the second is optional), and it appears on your invoice. Website and GSTIN are optional.
No photographs or project details are asked for at this stage. They come later, when you submit.
One email, straight after payment, with:
The same items are on the confirmation screen.
One code for your registration, like 7K4M-Q9. Each entry gets a number under it, such as 7K4M-Q9-01, and that entry number is what the jury sees in place of your firm’s name.
To sign in and submit, enter your code or your email, then the one-time code we email you.
The entry guide, a one-page checklist and the image specifications.
Yes. Use “Add an entry” on your entries page. Your firm and contact details are already filled in, and you pay the fee that applies that day.
Yes, until entries close, as long as the entry hasn’t been submitted. Every category costs the same, so nothing more is charged. Your firm size can’t be changed.
Check your spam folder first. If it isn’t there, write to us at info@indiaarchitectureawards.com with your firm’s name.
07
Uploading your work.
Sign in with your submission code or your email, then the one-time code we email you. There’s no password to remember. Your entries page shows each entry and what’s left to add.
Each entry is one page that saves as you go, so you can build it over several sittings, on a phone or a laptop.
Yes. Entries are evaluated blind, and the jury sees your entry number, never your firm’s name. Keep your firm’s name and logo off the images and the description.
Drawings aren’t required for a project entry, but a plan or a section among your images helps the jury. Firm of the Year entries need photographs and drawings for each project.
The image specifications are in the entry kit, which is emailed to you when you register. Each image is checked as it uploads, and any problem is explained beside it.
Yes, as a YouTube or Vimeo link of up to 5 minutes.
Yes, all text must be in English.
Yes, as often as you like until entries close on 31 March 2027. It stays submitted as long as it’s complete.
We email you an “Entry received” message with its entry number for each entry you submit, and your entries page marks it as submitted.
An entry that isn’t submitted by 31 March 2027 isn’t evaluated. If any of your entries are unfinished, we’ll remind you by email before entries close.
Use “Forgot code?” on the sign-in page. Enter your email or mobile number, and we email every code registered to it. Or sign in with your email: the one-time code we send gets you in without your submission code.
If you no longer have access to the registered email, write to us at info@indiaarchitectureawards.com.
You keep the copyright. By entering, you let us publish your images and text, credited to you and your photographer, on our website, archive, social media and press materials.
Yes. You need the right to submit the images, and your client’s agreement to the project being published.
08
Who evaluates entries, and what they look for.
Entries are evaluated by an invited jury of recognised architects and design professors. The jurors are named on the Jury page.
Every entry, in every tier, is evaluated on four things.
| Criterion | What it means |
|---|---|
| Idea | One clear idea that shapes the project, from the plan down to the details |
| Response to place | How the design answers its site, climate, culture and budget |
| Craft | Care in materials, detailing and making, at any size of budget |
| Value to people who use it | How well it serves the people who live, work or gather in it |
No. Craft is evaluated at any size of budget, and response to place includes how the design answers its budget.
Blind: the jury sees the work, never the firm’s name. A shortlist for every category is published on 30 April 2027, and the winners are announced on 31 May 2027.
Each category has one winner in each tier it is open to, but the jury may withhold an award if no entry meets the standard.
No. The jury doesn’t give individual feedback on entries.
09
Results, and what winning brings.
Most categories have a Boutique Practice, a Mid-sized Practice and an Enterprise Practice winner. Housing Low Rise and the two Emerging Firm of the Year awards have Boutique and Mid-sized winners only, and Housing High Rise has Mid-sized and Enterprise winners only.
Shortlisted entries also receive a digital kit and are published in the online archive.
Yes. Shortlisted entries receive a digital kit and are published in our online archive alongside the winners.
We email every entrant when the shortlist is published on 30 April 2027, and again with the results on 31 May 2027. Both are also published on this website.
No. There is no ceremony or gala night, so its cost never ends up in your entry fee. The shortlist and winners are announced online, with nothing to attend and no ticket to buy.
No. The certificate, seal and badge kit are included.
As “Winner of the 2027 India Architecture Award for [Category]”. On a badge or a caption, the short form is “India Architecture Award 2027 · [Category] · Winner”.
Yes, if you’ve won. The badge kit is made for your website, proposals and presentations.
Email us at info@indiaarchitectureawards.com