Engineer Seal Stamps compliance desk. Updated 8 November 2026.
A Wisconsin professional engineer seal must show your city, your credential number and your name as credentialed, at an overall diameter from 1-5/8 to 2 inches. Every permitted pairing of seal and signature on a public document includes the date. The device paragraph, A-E 2.02(3), was rewritten effective June 1, 2025. This page covers the face, size, devices, signing, sheets and renewal.
From the Engineer Seal Stamps compliance desk. Reviewed against Wis. Admin. Code § A-E 2.02(1) and against the Examining Board of Architects, Landscape Architects, Professional Engineers, Designers and Land Surveyors. Sources were read in September 2026.
| Requirement | What the rule says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Name | Your name in the form on your credential. | Wis. Admin. Code § A-E 2.02(1) |
| Credential number | Printed on the seal face. | Wis. Admin. Code § A-E 2.02(1) |
| City | Your city is a required line. | Wis. Admin. Code § A-E 2.02(1) |
| Size | Overall diameter no smaller than 1-5/8 inches and no larger than 2 inches. No separate shape rule is stated. | Wis. Admin. Code § A-E 2.02(1) |
| Devices | The four common device types are all legal under the rewritten paragraph. | Wis. Admin. Code § A-E 2.02(3), as repealed and recreated by CR 24-028, Register May 2025 No. 833, eff. 6-1-25 |
| Seal and signature on public documents | Three allowed pairings: physical seal with a hand signature in permanent ink, digital seal with a hand signature in permanent ink, or digital seal with an electronic signature. | Wis. Admin. Code § A-E 2.02(7)(b), (c) |
| Date | Part of every one of the three pairings, along with your name. | Wis. Admin. Code § A-E 2.02(7)(b), (c) |
| Sheets sealed | Every sheet is the default. | Wis. Admin. Code § A-E 2.02(5), (6), (8) |
| Electronic technology | None is named. | Wis. Admin. Code § A-E 2.02(3), (7)(b)3, both as created or recreated by CR 24-028, eff. 6-1-25 |
| Late renewal | Allowed on payment of the renewal fee if you apply within five years of expiration. Seal use during a lapse is not addressed. | Wis. Admin. Code §§ A-E 2.045, A-E 2.05 |
Licensed in more than one place? Check each jurisdiction in professional engineer seal requirements by state.
What must a Wisconsin PE seal show?
Three items under Wis. Admin. Code § A-E 2.02(1): your city, your credential number, and your name as credentialed. The city line is the one to watch, because it ties the seal to a place as well as to you.
- Name: in the form your credential shows.
- Credential number: your Wisconsin number.
- City: your city.
Confirm which city you are listing before you order, and revisit the seal if that city changes. For a broader look at the rules, see our overview of Wisconsin PE stamp regulations.
What size is a Wisconsin PE seal?
An overall diameter from 1-5/8 to 2 inches. Wis. Admin. Code § A-E 2.02(1) gives a minimum and a maximum, so a seal within that range meets the size rule and one outside it fails.
The rule measures the seal by overall diameter and does not separately state a shape. A die in the middle of the band, such as 1-3/4 inches, leaves margin on both sides of the range.
Which devices does Wisconsin allow?
All four common device types are allowed under a recently revised paragraph, which now reads as Wis. Admin. Code § A-E 2.02(3), as repealed and recreated by CR 24-028, Register May 2025 No. 833, eff. 6-1-25.
The rule summary we checked states that permission as a group without naming the four, so they are not listed one by one here. What the signing rule does show is that a seal may be placed physically or digitally on public documents. Our page on Wisconsin PE embosser rules covers embossers specifically.
How do seal, signature and date combine on Wisconsin public documents?
In one of three ways under Wis. Admin. Code § A-E 2.02(7)(b), (c). Each pairs a seal with a signature carrying your name and the date. They differ in how the seal goes on, physically or digitally, and in how you sign, by hand or electronically.
- Physical seal, hand signature: the seal applied physically and signed by hand in permanent ink.
- Digital seal, hand signature: the seal placed digitally and signed by hand in permanent ink.
- Digital seal, electronic signature: the seal placed digitally with an electronic signature.
The date is part of all three, so no Wisconsin pairing lets you leave it off. Pick the pairing that matches how the document will be filed, and use it consistently across the set.
Which sheets must be sealed in Wisconsin?
By default, every individual sheet, since Wis. Admin. Code § A-E 2.02(5), (6), (8) begins with a sheet-by-sheet rule; every page of a multi-sheet set is sealed unless those provisions treat a given document differently.
For large sets, budget the time to seal, sign and date each sheet, or set up a digital workflow using one of the permitted pairings. More pointers are in our Wisconsin PE stamp guideline notes.
Can a Wisconsin PE seal digitally?
Yes. Digital placement of a seal appears in two of the three pairings in § A-E 2.02(7)(b), and the provisions recreated by CR 24-028 name no specific technology for it, so the method is left to you.
Keeping the digital image identical to your physical die avoids two versions of your seal in circulation. Build both from the same artwork, with the same name, credential number and city.
What happens if a Wisconsin credential lapses?
Wis. Admin. Code §§ A-E 2.045, A-E 2.05 keep renewal open for five years after expiration if you pay the renewal fee. The cited rules do not say whether the seal may be used while the license is lapsed.
Because the rules are silent on seal use in that gap, the cautious course is to renew before the date passes. For how the stamp relates to your standing as an engineer, see how the Wisconsin PE stamp connects to your authority to practice.
What should you send when ordering a Wisconsin PE seal?
Your name as credentialed, your credential number, the city to print, your chosen device, and a diameter between 1-5/8 and 2 inches. Those five answers cover everything § A-E 2.02(1) asks the face and size to carry.
- Name: copied from your credential.
- Credential number: checked digit by digit.
- City: spelled in full as you want it to appear.
- Device: a physical seal, a digital seal image, or both.
- Diameter: 1-5/8 to 2 inches.
How do you check a Wisconsin seal impression before use?
Measure the overall diameter and confirm it falls between 1-5/8 and 2 inches. Then read the three lines, name, credential number and city, against your credential, character by character.
Finish with a trial of the pairing you will use, including the date, so the seal and signature read together on the page. More on the stamp itself is in our page on the Wisconsin professional engineer stamp.
Frequently asked questions
Is a 1-1/2 inch seal acceptable in Wisconsin?
No. The smallest permitted overall diameter is 1-5/8 inches, so a 1-1/2 inch die is below the range.
Is a full 2-inch seal too large?
No. Two inches is the top of the permitted range, so a 2-inch seal is within it.
Is guidance written before June 2025 still reliable on devices?
Not on devices. CR 24-028 replaced the device paragraph with new text effective June 1, 2025, so older material describes wording that no longer applies.
Do all three pairings require permanent ink?
No. The two hand-signed pairings call for permanent ink. The third uses an electronic signature.
Which board regulates Wisconsin PE seals?
The Examining Board of Architects, Landscape Architects, Professional Engineers, Designers and Land Surveyors.
Have your credential number and city ready, then order from our Wisconsin stamps and seals collection.
