An Oregon land surveyor seal must be at least 2 inches point to point and show your name exactly as the board holds it, your registration date and certificate number, and your professional title. You sign by hand in permanent ink through the center of the seal or at its marked signature spot. Rubber stamps and computer-generated seals both qualify. This page covers each rule and the impression check.
Engineer Seal Stamps compliance desk. Checked against Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0005(1), (2) and the State Board of Examiners for Engineering and Land Surveying. Sources read September 2026.
| Requirement | What the rule says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Name | Printed, and identical to the name the board has on file. | Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0005(1), (2) |
| Registration details | Your date of registration and your certificate of registration number. | Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0005(1), (2) |
| Professional title | Required on the face. | Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0005(1), (2) |
| Expiration or renewal date | Optional. Include it or leave it off. | Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0005(1), (2) |
| Size | No smaller than 2 inches, measured point to point. Shape is not stated. | Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0005(2) |
| Devices | Rubber stamp, or computer-generated directly onto the document. | Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0005(2), (3) |
| Signature | Handwritten in permanent ink, through the center of the seal or on its marked signature spot. Mandatory. | Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0005(4), (5) |
| Documents | Every final document, including maps, plans, drawings, designs, specifications, reports and narratives. | Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0015, 820-025-0025 |
| Electronic seal | Permitted. The rules name the technology and shut off the scan loophole. | Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0001, 820-025-0010 |
| Registration status | Registrants whose status is suspended, revoked, inactive, retired or delinquent cannot practice and, apart from a narrow exception, cannot present themselves as professional land surveyors. Seal use after a lapse is not separately addressed. | Or. Admin. R. 820-010-0505, 820-010-0520 |
To compare Oregon with every other jurisdiction, see our table of land surveyor seal requirements by state. Before any of this applies you need the Oregon license itself; how to become a licensed land surveyor covers the routes, the FS and PS exams and any state exam.
What must an Oregon land surveyor seal show?
Four required items, plus one you may add. Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0005(1), (2) require your professional title, the number on your certificate of registration, your registration date and your name printed exactly as the board has it. An expiration or renewal date is optional.
The name is the strictest element. It has to match the board's file exactly, so a nickname, a missing initial or a name change the board has not recorded will not match.
Should the expiration or renewal date go on the face?
That is your call, because the rule lists it as optional. Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0005(1), (2) make the expiration or renewal date an extra you may add, unlike the date of registration, which the face must carry. Leaving it off is fully consistent with the element list.
If you want it included, give us the date exactly as it should print. If not, simply leave it out of your order details.
How large must an Oregon seal be?
At least 2 inches, measured from point to point. Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0005(2) sets that minimum and does not state a shape, so the measurement to check on any seal you order is its point-to-point span.
A seal under 2 inches fails the rule however crisp its lettering. The figure is a floor, so measure a proof before you approve it.
Which devices may apply the seal?
A rubber stamp, or a seal generated by computer directly onto the document. Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0005(2), (3) allow either route, and for recorded survey work the safe choice is a 2 inch rubber stamp.
Measure a computer-generated seal on the printed page the same way you would measure a stamped impression, so the 2 inch minimum is checked on both routes. Check the printed output, not the size shown on screen.
How do you sign an Oregon seal?
By hand, in permanent ink, through the center of the seal or on the spot the seal marks for a signature. Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0005(4), (5) make signing across the seal mandatory, so a signature set beside the impression does not meet the rule.
Pick a pen with permanent ink before a signing session, and check that your signature stays readable where it crosses the printed elements. Test the pen on a spare impression first.
Which Oregon documents need the seal and signature?
Every final document. Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0015, 820-025-0025 tie that duty to the statutory list, which runs from maps and plans through drawings and designs to specifications, reports and narratives.
Narratives are on that list, so a written survey narrative is included along with the drawings. Treat each final issue as needing both the seal and your signature.
Can an Oregon land surveyor seal electronically?
Yes. Electronic seals are permitted under Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0001, 820-025-0010. Oregon names the technology to be used and shuts the scan loophole, so a scan of a paper seal is not a route to an electronic one.
The sources behind this page confirm that a technology is named but do not identify it, so we do not name it here. Read those two rules before setting up electronic delivery.
What if your Oregon registration is delinquent, inactive or revoked?
You are not authorized to practice. Or. Admin. R. 820-010-0505, 820-010-0520 cover registrants whose status is suspended, revoked, inactive, retired or delinquent, and apart from a narrow exception they cannot present themselves as professional land surveyors.
A specific rule on using the seal after a lapse is not addressed in the cited rules. The practice bar above is what applies to a registrant in any of those statuses.
What should you send when ordering an Oregon seal?
Your professional title, registration date and certificate number, plus your name exactly as the board's records show it. Add the expiration or renewal date only if you want it on the face, and ask for a size of at least 2 inches point to point.
Copy those details from your registration record rather than from memory, then confirm every one of them appears on the proof. The registration date is easy to confuse with a renewal date, so check which one you are sending.
How do you check an Oregon impression before first use?
Measure it and read it against your registration record. Confirm the impression spans at least 2 inches point to point, that the name matches the board's file exactly, and that the registration date, certificate number and title are present and correct.
Then sign through the middle of a test impression in permanent ink. If the signature and the printed elements obscure each other, adjust your pen before the first final document goes out.
Which board and rules cover Oregon land surveyor seals?
The State Board of Examiners for Engineering and Land Surveying. The provisions on this page run from Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0005(1), (2) on content to Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0001, 820-025-0010 on electronic seals, with Or. Admin. R. 820-010-0505, 820-010-0520 on status.
Keep those rules in mind together. The content, size, device and signature rules decide whether a seal is correct, and the status rules decide whether you may practice at all.
Frequently asked questions
Is the date of registration the same as the renewal date?
No. Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0005(1), (2) list them as separate items. The date of registration is a required element, while the expiration or renewal date is optional.
Can the seal be larger than 2 inches?
The size is stated as a minimum: at least 2 inches point to point. A seal at or above that figure meets the size rule in Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0005(2).
Can I sign with a signature stamp or a printed signature?
Not on a paper document. Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0005(4), (5) call for a handwritten signature in permanent ink, so a signature stamp or a printed signature does not meet it.
What wording does the professional title use?
The rule lists your professional title as an element, and the sources behind this page do not spell out its wording. Supply the title your registration carries so the face and the record agree.
Is an embosser one of the permitted devices?
The devices named in Or. Admin. R. 820-025-0005(2), (3) are a rubber stamp and a computer-generated seal. An embosser is not one of them.
With your registration details in hand, order a seal of 2 inches or more from our Oregon stamps and seals collection.
