diff --git a/api/namex/utils/nr_query.py b/api/namex/utils/nr_query.py
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..ffb572d93
--- /dev/null
+++ b/api/namex/utils/nr_query.py
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+# match whole/start/end string  NR 1234567, NR1234567
+import re
+
+nr_num_regex = r'(^(NR( |)\d+)$)|(^(NR( |)\d+)\s)|(\s(NR( |)\d+)$)'
+nr_num_fallback_regex = r'(^\d+$)|(^\d+\s)|(\s\d+$)'  # 1234567
+
+
+def get_nr_num_from_query(value) -> str | None:
+    """Look for nr_num in value and return nr_num in NR XXXXXXXX format."""
+    nr_number = None
+    if result := re.search(nr_num_regex, value, re.IGNORECASE):
+        matching_nr = result.group()
+        nr_number = re.sub('NR', '', matching_nr, flags=re.IGNORECASE).strip()
+    elif result := re.search(nr_num_fallback_regex, value):
+        nr_number = result.group().strip()
+
+    if nr_number:
+        return f'NR {nr_number}'
+
+    return None
diff --git a/api/tests/python/utils/test_nr_query.py b/api/tests/python/utils/test_nr_query.py
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..f25fc80d0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/api/tests/python/utils/test_nr_query.py
@@ -0,0 +1,121 @@
+# api/tests/python/utils/test_nr_query.py
+# Copyright © 2026 Province of British Columbia
+#
+# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+# You may obtain a copy of the License at
+#
+#     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+#
+# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+# limitations under the License.
+"""Tests for get_nr_num_from_query function."""
+
+import pytest
+
+from namex.utils.nr_query import get_nr_num_from_query
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize('query,expected', [
+    ('NR 1234567', 'NR 1234567'),
+    ('nr 1234567', 'NR 1234567'),
+    ('Nr 1234567', 'NR 1234567'),
+    ('NR 9999999', 'NR 9999999'),
+])
+def test_nr_with_space_exact_match(query, expected):
+    """Test NR number with space as exact match."""
+    result = get_nr_num_from_query(query)
+
+    assert result == expected
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize('query,expected', [
+    ('NR1234567', 'NR 1234567'),
+    ('nr1234567', 'NR 1234567'),
+    ('Nr1234567', 'NR 1234567'),
+])
+def test_nr_without_space_exact_match(query, expected):
+    """Test NR number without space as exact match."""
+    result = get_nr_num_from_query(query)
+
+    assert result == expected
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize('query,expected', [
+    ('NR 1234567 some company', 'NR 1234567'),
+    ('NR1234567 some company', 'NR 1234567'),
+    ('nr 1234567 ACME Corp', 'NR 1234567'),
+])
+def test_nr_at_start_of_string(query, expected):
+    """Test NR number at the start of the query string."""
+    result = get_nr_num_from_query(query)
+
+    assert result == expected
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize('query,expected', [
+    ('some company NR 1234567', 'NR 1234567'),
+    ('some company NR1234567', 'NR 1234567'),
+    ('ACME Corp nr 9876543', 'NR 9876543'),
+])
+def test_nr_at_end_of_string(query, expected):
+    """Test NR number at the end of the query string."""
+    result = get_nr_num_from_query(query)
+
+    assert result == expected
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize('query,expected', [
+    ('1234567', 'NR 1234567'),
+    ('9876543', 'NR 9876543'),
+    ('1234567 some text', 'NR 1234567'),
+    ('some text 1234567', 'NR 1234567'),
+])
+def test_fallback_number_only(query, expected):
+    """Test fallback regex for number-only patterns."""
+    result = get_nr_num_from_query(query)
+
+    assert result == expected
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize('query', [
+    'some company name',
+    'ACME 123 Corp',
+    'NR in the middle 1234567 of text',
+    '',
+    'NR',
+    'Company NR Inc',
+])
+def test_no_match_returns_none(query):
+    """Test that non-matching queries return None."""
+    result = get_nr_num_from_query(query)
+
+    assert result is None
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize('query,expected', [
+    ('NR 1', 'NR 1'),
+    ('NR 12345678901234', 'NR 12345678901234'),
+])
+def test_edge_cases(query, expected):
+    """Test edge cases for NR number extraction."""
+    result = get_nr_num_from_query(query)
+
+    assert result == expected
+
+
+def test_nr_in_middle_not_matched():
+    """Test that NR number in the middle of text is not matched."""
+    result = get_nr_num_from_query('prefix NR 1234567 suffix')
+
+    assert result is None
+
+
+def test_multiple_nr_numbers_returns_first_valid():
+    """Test behavior when multiple NR patterns exist."""
+    result = get_nr_num_from_query('NR 1111111 NR 2222222')
+
+    assert result == 'NR 1111111'