# Creating and editing registration authorities
{% hint style="info" %}
Registration authorities can only be created or edited by Stewardship Organisation Administrators, or Registry Administrators.
{% endhint %}
Registration authorities are created within a Stewardship Organisation, the metadata items of which it will generally be responsible for reviewing and endorsing. After creation, registration authorities' basic details, registration states and validation rules can be edited.
### How to create registration authorities
1. Select 'Browse' from the registry header.
2. Select 'Browse' from the 'Stewardship Organisations' field.
3. Select the Stewardship Organisation you wish to create a registration authority for from the list.
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4. Select the 'Registration Authorities' tab.
5. Select 'Add New Registration Authority'.
6. Populate the 'Name' and 'Definition' fields as desired.
7. Select 'Create new Registration Authroity'.
8. The new registration authority will appear in the relevant Stewardship Organisation's 'Registration Authorities' tab.
### How to edit registration authorities
1. Select 'Browse' from the registry header.
2. Select 'Browse' from the 'Stewardship Organisations' field.
3. Select the Stewardship Organisation you wish to edit a registration authority of from the list.
4. Select the 'Registration Authorities' tab.
5. Select the registration authority you wish to edit.
6. Select the 'Settings' tab.
7. **If you wish to make changes to the registration authority's name, visibility state or definition**, do so via the relevant fields of the 'General ' tab, then select 'Save changes'.
**Note:** The options presented in the 'State' dropdown are as follows:
* 'Active & Visible': The registration authority is able to be used to endorse content, and is visible to users with permission to see it
* 'Deactivated & Visible': The registration authority is unable to be used to endorse content, but is still visible to users with permission to see it
* 'Deactivated & Hidden': The registration authority is unable to be used to endorse content, and is only visible to Stewardship Organisation Administrators and Registry Administrators.
8. **If you wish to make changes to registration states for this authority**, select the 'States' tab. **If you do not wish to make changes to registration states for this authority**, proceed to step 11.
9. Adjust the visibility status, editing status and description of the registration authority's statuses as desired using the relevant fields.
**Note: Excluding Registry Administrator permissions**, the meaning of the registration state settings are as follows:
* Visibility statuses:
* Registration Authority Only: The endorsed item can be viewed by Registration Authority Managers and Registrars
* Workgroup: The endorsed item can be viewed by all members of the workgroup it belongs to
* Steward Organisation*:* The endorsed item can be viewed by all members of the Stewardship Organisation that it belongs to
* Authenticated users: The endorsed item can be viewed by all registry users that are logged in
* Public: The endorsed item can be viewed by anyone with access to the registry.
* Editing statuses:
* Locked. The endorsed item can be edited by stewards of the:
* Workgroup it belongs to
* Stewardship Organisation that it belongs to
* Unlocked: The endorsed item can be edited by all users that would normally have permission to edit the item.
10. Select 'Save'.
11. **If you wish to set validation rules for the registration authority**, select 'Validation Rules'.
12. [Write your desired validation rule(s)](/registration-authorities/creating-and-editing-registration-authorities/validation-rules/setting-validation-rules/writing-validation-rules.md) into the 'Rules' field, then select 'Submit'.
**Note:** For information regarding validation rules and how to write them, see [Validation Rules](/registration-authorities/creating-and-editing-registration-authorities/validation-rules.md) and its relevant procedures.
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