A Georgia engineer's seal is circular and dimensioned exactly, with the outer circle measuring 1 1/2 inches across and the inner circle 1 inch. Inside it go your name as Board records carry it and the full license number, prefix included. Nothing else is listed. This page covers the elements, the size, the devices the rule allows, and what a sealed Georgia document has to carry beyond the impression.
Engineer Seal Stamps compliance desk. Checked against Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. r. 180-12-.01 and the State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors. Sources read September 2026. Updated 7 November 2026.
| Requirement | What the rule says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| When the seal is used | Each original final document issued to a public agency or a client carries the seal, the signature, the date and the COA block. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. rule 180-12-.02(1), (4), (6), (7) |
| Name on the face | Your name, matching Board records. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. rule 180-12-.01 |
| License number | The complete license number, prefix included, not the bare digits. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. rule 180-12-.01 |
| Shape | Circular, set as two rings: an outer circle with a second circle inside it. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. rule 180-12-.01 |
| Diameter | Outer circle 1 1/2 inches, inner circle 1 inch. A single figure each, with no range and no tolerance. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. rule 180-12-.01 |
| Devices allowed | Three: a crimp type seal, a rubber stamp facsimile, or a computer generated impression. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. rule 180-12-.01 |
| Signature and date | Seal, signature and date together, with the COA block alongside them. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. rule 180-12-.02(3), (5) |
| Work that counts | Engineering and land surveying work issued as plans and drawings, maps and surveys, reports and specifications, design information and calculations, including work issued in digital form. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. rule 180-12-.02(1), (4), (6), (7) |
| Electronic seals | Permitted, under the strictest provision in the chapter at rule 180-12-.02(8). | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. rule 180-12-.02(8), (9) |
| Use once a license lapses | Not addressed. Chapter 180-8 handles reinstatement of an expired license and inactive status, and refers to a renewal fee charged every two years. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. rule 180-8-.01, 180-8-.02 |
To compare Georgia with every other jurisdiction, see our table of professional engineer seal requirements by state.
When does a Georgia document need the seal?
At the point it becomes an original final document going to a client or to a public agency. At that moment it carries four things together: the impression, your signature, the date and the COA block.
The trigger is issuance rather than completion, so work that stays inside the office has not reached it yet. The requirement list for a Georgia PE stamp sets out the same duty from the ordering side.
What has to appear inside the seal?
Two pieces of text and one piece of geometry. The rule is short, and the shortness is the point: anything else you add to the face is decoration rather than compliance.
- Your name, spelled as Board records carry it
- Your complete license number, prefix included
- A circular design drawn with an outer and an inner circle
The number is the one people get wrong, because the prefix is part of it rather than a label in front of it. The Georgia professional engineer stamp explained element by element goes further into how the two lines are set.
What size and shape does the rule set?
Circular, with the outer circle at 1 1/2 inches and the inner circle at 1 inch. Both are stated as single figures. There is no range, no tolerance wording and no allowance for a reduced version.
That makes the Georgia specification one of the tighter ones nationally. A blank sized for a neighboring state is the usual source of an out of specification die, since a 1 5/8 inch outer circle is simply the wrong dimension here rather than a near miss.
Which devices may apply the seal?
Three are lawful under rule 180-12-.01: a computer generated impression, a rubber stamp facsimile, or a crimp type seal. The rule names them as alternatives, so the choice is yours.
Reproduction is what should decide it. A crimped impression carries no ink and fades out of a photocopy or a scan, while an inked stamp and a computer generated image both survive the trip. Most Georgia engineers keep an inked stamp for paper and a matching image for issued files.
Do I sign and date as well as seal?
Yes. All three go on the document, and the COA block goes with them. A sealed sheet that is unsigned or undated is incomplete under rule 180-12-.02(3) and (5), however clean the impression looks.
Plan the space before the title block is locked down, because four items have to sit together legibly. How to place a Georgia engineer seal on a drawing covers the layout side of that.
Which documents count as sealed work?
Rule 180-12-.02(1) defines documents broadly, and the breadth is deliberate. Engineering and land surveying work is covered when it is issued in any of these forms.
- Plans and drawings
- Maps and surveys
- Reports and specifications
- Design information and calculations
Work issued in digital form is named in the definition, so a file is treated the same way a printed sheet is. The format of the deliverable does not decide whether the duty applies.
Does firm information belong on the seal?
The three required elements are your name, your license number and the circular design. The COA block sits on the document alongside the seal, the signature and the date rather than being part of the impression.
That split is worth respecting when you order. A die engraved with firm data is fixed at the moment it is cut, while a title block entry can be edited as the firm's record changes.
Are electronic seals allowed in Georgia?
Yes, and the governing provision is the strictest in the chapter. Rule 180-12-.02(8) is the one to read before any sealed file leaves your hands, with rule 180-12-.02(9) alongside it.
Treat the electronic route as a separate procedure rather than as a printed seal moved onto a screen. The requirements attach to the file and its handling, not to the artwork.
Can the seal be used once a license lapses?
The cited rules do not address it. Chapter 180-8 covers inactive status at rule 180-8-.02 and reinstating an expired license at rule 180-8-.01, and refers to a renewal fee charged every two years.
Silence here should not be read as permission. Sealing certifies work under a current license, so the sound course is to keep the credential in good standing and to read chapter 180-8 before sealing anything during a gap. Background on the Georgia PE stamp covers what the impression represents.
What should I supply when ordering a Georgia seal?
Two lines of text, taken from Board records rather than from an old drawing. The geometry is fixed by rule and does not need specifying.
- Your name as Board records show it, including any middle initial carried there
- Your license number with its prefix
Check both against your record before the die is cut, since a nickname or a dropped prefix leaves the seal out of step with the register. More on the PE stamp in Georgia is worth a read if this is a first order.
How do I check an impression before it goes on a drawing?
Stamp a scrap sheet, then photocopy and scan it and read the reproduction rather than the original. Copies are what a reviewing agency holds, and a weak impression shows up there first.
Measure both circles on the printed sheet, confirm the inner ring is clean and unbroken, and read the license number back against Board records digit by digit including the prefix.
Frequently asked questions
Is a 1 5/8 inch blank close enough to the Georgia size?
No. The rule states 1 1/2 inches for the outer circle as a single figure, with nothing permitting a larger or smaller version. A blank at another dimension is out of specification even when the artwork inside it is right.
Should my license number be shown with or without the prefix?
With it. The rule calls for the complete license number, and the prefix is part of that number rather than a category label placed beside it.
Can I use a crimp seal for a submittal that will be scanned?
The device is lawful, but a crimped impression puts no ink on the page and tends to disappear in a scan or a photocopy. For anything that will be reproduced, an inked stamp or a computer generated seal is the safer choice.
Does every sheet of a drawing set need the impression?
The duty attaches to each original final document you issue to a public agency or a client, so plan on sealing what you issue rather than on sealing a cover sheet. Rule 180-12-.02(4), (6) and (7) are the provisions to read for a multiple sheet set.
Does a name change mean a new seal?
The face has to carry your name as Board records show it, so once that record changes the old die no longer matches. Update the record first, then order from what it says.
Is a draft that carries the seal treated as issued?
Sealing is tied to original final documents bound for a public agency or a client, so anything carrying the seal, signature, date and COA block reads as issued work. Keep in progress sheets clear of all four.
Order from your Board record rather than from an old drawing, and see the Georgia engineer stamps and seals built to the 1 1/2 inch specification.
