A New Hampshire professional engineer seal is two concentric circles, 1-9/16 inches across the outer ring and 15/16 of an inch across the inner, made as an impression seal or rubber stamp. State of New Hampshire runs along the top of the outer band and Professional Engineer along the bottom. Inside the smaller circle go the word Licensed, your license number and your full legal name. Covered below: layout, devices, signing, documents, electronic files and lapse.
Engineer Seal Stamps compliance desk. Verified against N.H. Code Admin. R. Eng 308.02(b) and against the Board of Professional Engineers / Board of Licensure for Land Surveyors. Sources read September 2026. Updated 8 November 2026.
| Requirement | What the rule says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Frame and diameters | A pair of circles sharing one center: 1-9/16 inches for the outer, 15/16 of an inch for the inner. | N.H. Code Admin. R. Eng 308.02(b) |
| Outer ring wording | "State of New Hampshire" along the top, "Professional Engineer" along the bottom. | N.H. Code Admin. R. Eng 308.02(b) |
| Name | Your complete legal name, set in the center. | N.H. Code Admin. R. Eng 308.02(b) |
| License number | Also in the inner circle, running horizontally. | N.H. Code Admin. R. Eng 308.02(b) |
| The word "Licensed" | Along the lower edge of the smaller circle. | N.H. Code Admin. R. Eng 308.02(b) |
| Devices | An impression seal or a rubber stamp built to the rule's design. No other format is named. | N.H. Code Admin. R. Eng 308.02(a) |
| Signing and dating | Anything for public record must be dated, then signed and sealed by the engineer who prepared it or who accepted responsibility for it and approved it. | N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§ 310-A:18, 310-A:18-a |
| Documents covered | Engineering papers and documents at the point they are issued or filed for public record. | N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§ 310-A:18, 310-A:20(II) |
| Expired, revoked, suspended or retired | Stamping or sealing is a violation in every one of these states, and so is sealing work you neither prepared nor directly supervised. | N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 310-A:18 |
| Electronic seals | The engineering rules say nothing on the subject. | N.H. Code Admin. R. Eng 100-500 (silent) |
For the same rule in the other 53 jurisdictions, read professional engineer seal requirements by state.
What does the New Hampshire engineer seal look like?
Two concentric circles make up the seal, with wording in the band between them and more wording inside the smaller circle. N.H. Code Admin. R. Eng 308.02(b) fixes where each element goes, not only which elements appear, so the layout is settled before you order.
- Outer band, top: State of New Hampshire.
- Outer band, bottom: Professional Engineer.
- Inner circle: the license number, running horizontally, plus your full legal name.
- Inner circle, bottom: the word Licensed.
Because the rule places every line, a design copied from another state will not match even if it carries similar words. Our guide to New Hampshire PE stamp requirements walks through the same layout from a different angle.
Which details on the seal are personal to you?
Just two items: your license number and your full legal name. The remaining face text, State of New Hampshire, Professional Engineer and Licensed, is fixed wording that reads the same on every engineer's seal in the state.
The name has to be the full legal version, so initials or a familiar short form will not match the rule. The license number runs horizontally inside the inner circle, which matters for long numbers: the typesetting has to fit a straight line within 15/16 of an inch.
How big are the two circles?
Fixed diameters come from N.H. Code Admin. R. Eng 308.02(b): the outer circle is 1-9/16 inches and the inner is 15/16 of an inch. Rounding to a neater size, such as an even inch and a half, produces a seal that does not match.
Both diameters also control how much text fits. The outer band has to carry State of New Hampshire and Professional Engineer, while the inner circle has to hold a full legal name, a horizontal number and the word Licensed. A proof is the easiest way to confirm a long name still reads clearly at these sizes.
Which devices can make the New Hampshire seal?
Two. N.H. Code Admin. R. Eng 308.02(a) requires each licensee to get a rubber stamp or an impression type seal (an embosser), built to the design in the rules. No third format is named.
Both devices carry the same design and the same diameters, so the choice turns on how you work. An inked rubber stamp leaves a printed impression, while an embosser presses the design into the paper. Our article on checking New Hampshire engineering seals and stamps against the rules covers device selection in more detail.
How are sealed New Hampshire documents signed and dated?
Under N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 310-A:18, a document issued or filed for public record carries a date, a signature and a seal. They belong to the engineer who prepared it, or who accepted responsibility for it and approved it.
Treat the three items as a set: seal, signature and date travel together on every public record document. The signing engineer is the one who prepared the work or took responsibility for approving it, not simply whoever holds a seal in the office.
Which documents need a New Hampshire engineer seal?
Every paper or document involving engineering practice, as soon as it is issued or filed for public record. From then on, N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§ 310-A:18, 310-A:20(II) require a date, signature and seal.
The trigger is public record. Once a set is issued or filed in that way, all three items must be on it. Our summary of New Hampshire PE stamp guidelines sets these duties alongside the seal design.
Does New Hampshire allow electronic engineer seals?
The rules are silent. N.H. Code Admin. R. Eng 100-500, the Board's engineering rules, are silent on digital and electronic seals alike and describe just two formats, the rubber stamp and the impression seal.
That silence means the rules give no electronic design, size or procedure to build to. The physical seal described above is the only version the rules define, so plan your paper workflow around it.
When is using the seal a violation in New Hampshire?
Eng 308.02(c), which cites RSA 310-A:25, treats stamping or sealing as a violation after your license lapses through expiration, revocation or suspension, and after you choose retired status (see N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 310-A:18).
A second prohibition sits beside the first: sealing documents you did not prepare yourself, or that were not prepared under your direct supervision, is equally a violation. A current license does not cure that problem, and a lapsed license bars sealing even your own work.
What should you supply when ordering a New Hampshire engineer seal?
We need three things: your full legal name, your license number and your choice of device. The rest, including the circles, both diameters and the fixed wording, comes from N.H. Code Admin. R. Eng 308.02(b) and requires no input.
- Full legal name: no initials in place of given names, no nicknames.
- License number: exactly as issued, to be set horizontally.
- Device: impression seal or rubber stamp.
For background on the regulator behind these rules, see our page on the New Hampshire engineering board.
How do you check a New Hampshire seal impression before use?
Measure the impression and read every line. The outer circle should come to 1-9/16 inches and the inner to 15/16 of an inch, with State of New Hampshire on top, Professional Engineer below and Licensed at the foot of the inner circle.
Then confirm your full legal name is spelled correctly and your license number runs straight across the inner circle. Finally, sign and date a test sheet beside the impression to see how the three items sit together on a title block.
Frequently asked questions
Does the New Hampshire seal show my engineering discipline?
N.H. Code Admin. R. Eng 308.02(b) does not list a discipline as a seal element. Only the fixed wording, your license number and your full legal name appear on the face.
Can I seal a drawing a colleague prepared?
Only if it was prepared under your direct supervision. Sealing work that you neither prepared yourself nor directly supervised is a violation, regardless of whether your license is current.
Can I keep sealing after I choose retired status?
No. Choosing retired status ends your right to stamp or seal documents, the same as expiration, revocation or suspension.
Is a seal cut at 1-1/2 inches close enough?
No. The rule states 1-9/16 inches for the outer circle and 15/16 of an inch for the inner, and a different diameter does not match either figure.
Would a digital image of my seal satisfy the rules?
The Board's engineering rules do not address electronic or digital seals, so they give no approval for one. They describe only the impression seal and the rubber stamp.
When your name and license number are ready, order from our New Hampshire engineer seals and stamps collection, where each seal follows the two-circle layout.
