# Submittal Review Stamps Explained: Approved, Approved as Noted, Revise and Resubmit, Rejected > Source: https://deviationcheck.com/guides/submittal-review-stamps/ Every reviewed submittal comes back with a stamp, and that one word tells the sub whether they can build, build with corrections, or start over. Get the stamp wrong and you either hold up work that was fine or release work that was not. This guide covers the four standard review actions, how the severity of the deviations you found decides which one applies, and the next step each one puts on the sub. ## The four standard stamps Contracts word them a little differently, but submittal review almost always lands in one of four actions: - **Approved.** The submittal meets the spec as submitted. The sub fabricates and installs with no corrections. - **Approved as Noted.** Accepted subject to the marked corrections. The sub proceeds as long as they incorporate the notes, and does not resubmit. - **Revise and Resubmit.** Not approved as submitted. The sub corrects the flagged items and sends the package again for another review before fabrication or installation. - **Rejected.** The submittal does not respond to the spec, or proposes the wrong product or scope. The sub starts over. The first two let the work proceed. The last two stop it. The line between them is what the review is really deciding. ## How severity picks the stamp The stamp is not a separate judgment call - it follows directly from the worst deviation in the package. [Classify each difference from the spec as a deviation](/guides/submittal-deviation-categories/) and grade it, then let the grades drive the action: - A deviation graded **Blocker** - a code violation, a life-safety conflict, a missed hard performance floor - forces Revise and Resubmit, every time. One blocker is enough. - A deviation graded **Fix and Resubmit** - a real miss that is correctable but not dangerous - also returns the package for correction. - A deviation graded **Note** - minor or cosmetic - can be carried as a marked correction and returned Approved as Noted. - No deviations at all is the only path to a clean Approved. So the rule of thumb is simple: take the most severe finding in the package and let it set the stamp. A submittal can have nine notes and one blocker and it is still Revise and Resubmit, because the blocker controls. ## Approved as Noted vs Revise and Resubmit This is the pair people mix up, and the cost of mixing them up is real. Approved as Noted is a shortcut: it skips the second review because the issues are small enough to trust the sub to fix on their own. Revise and Resubmit spends the extra review cycle because the issues are big enough that you need to see the corrected version before anything gets built. Use Approved as Noted only when every correction is minor and unambiguous - a label to update, a finish to confirm against the approved sample, a quantity to right. The moment a correction involves a performance value, a certification, or anything tied to code, it is no longer a note. It is a [revise and resubmit](/glossary/revise-and-resubmit/), because you need to verify the fix. When in doubt, return it for resubmittal. The cost of an extra review cycle is hours. The cost of approving a non-compliant product that gets fabricated is a [change order](/glossary/change-order/) and a schedule hit. ## Who applies the stamp, and the paper trail On most projects the design team holds final approval authority - the architect of record for architectural sections, the engineer of record for their disciplines - while the general contractor reviews first and routes the package. Whoever stamps it, the action belongs on the [transmittal](/glossary/transmittal/) and in the [submittal log](/glossary/submittal-log/) so the record shows what was decided and when. A [deviation report](/glossary/deviation-report/) backs up the stamp with the specifics: each deviation, its grade, the spec language it breaks, and the correction. That record matters later. When a question comes up about why a product was or was not accepted, the stamp plus the report is the answer, and a verbatim spec quote ends an argument that "does not comply" only starts. ## What happens on a resubmittal A [resubmittal](/glossary/resubmittal/) is the sub's answer to Revise and Resubmit. The trap is reviewing it as if only the flagged items changed. Subs sometimes fix the deviation you caught and introduce a new one while they are in the file - a different model number, an updated cut sheet with a new value. Re-review the changed sheets fresh against the spec, not just against your old markups, and grade the resubmittal on its own. Then stamp it like any other submittal. ## Frequently asked questions ### What does Approved as Noted mean on a submittal? Approved as Noted means the submittal is accepted subject to the corrections the reviewer marked. The sub can proceed as long as they incorporate the notes, and no resubmittal is required. It is used when the only issues are minor and do not need a second review. ### What is the difference between Approved as Noted and Revise and Resubmit? Approved as Noted lets the sub proceed with the marked corrections and needs no resubmittal, so it is reserved for minor issues. Revise and Resubmit stops the work: the sub must correct the flagged items and send the submittal again for another review, and it is triggered by any Blocker or Fix and Resubmit deviation. ### Does one minor deviation make a submittal Revise and Resubmit? Not necessarily. A single minor or cosmetic deviation can be handled as a note and the submittal returned Approved as Noted. The submittal moves to Revise and Resubmit when at least one deviation is serious enough to correct before fabrication, such as a code violation, a missed performance requirement, or a missing certification. ## Decide faster Not sure which stamp fits what you found? The [submittal review stamp guide](/tools/submittal-review-stamp-guide/) maps a situation to the right action in one click. To see how the grades behind the stamps are assigned, read [how to review a construction submittal](/guides/how-to-review-a-submittal/), or [run a review](/#pricing) and get a draft deviation report with a suggested verdict to confirm.