[reaction: see text] 2,4-Dialkyl or aryl quinazolines have been prepared in three steps starting from easily available anilides. A photochemically induced Fries rearrangement of the anilides gave several ortho-aminoacylbenzene derivatives that were acylated at the NH2. These acylamides underwent rapid cyclization to 2,4-disubstituted quinazolines (and benzoquinazolines) in the presence of ammonium formate under microwave activation. This procedure is compatible with different functional groups and allowed also the preparation of new quinazolines derived from naturally occurring amino acids.