Kentucky sets the architect seal as two concentric circles, an outer ring 1 9/16 inches across and an inner ring 1 inch across, and gives every line of text a fixed position. Each document you prepare or supervise gets your signature, a date and the seal. The regulation says nothing about devices, electronic seals or lapse. This page covers the layout, those silences and ordering.
Engineer Seal Stamps compliance desk. Checked against 201 Ky. Admin. Regs. 19:265 Section 1. Sources read September 2026.
| Requirement | What the rule says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Ring sizes | Outer circle 1 9/16 inches in diameter, inner circle 1 inch, sharing one center. | 201 Ky. Admin. Regs. 19:265 Section 1 |
| Upper band | Your name, placed in the top section of the ring formed between the two circles. | 201 Ky. Admin. Regs. 19:265 Section 1 |
| Lower band | The word Architect, placed in the bottom section of that ring. | 201 Ky. Admin. Regs. 19:265 Section 1 |
| Inner circle, top half | Registered, then the abbreviation No., then your certificate number. | 201 Ky. Admin. Regs. 19:265 Section 1 |
| Inner circle, bottom half | Commonwealth of Kentucky. | 201 Ky. Admin. Regs. 19:265 Section 1 |
| Signing and dating | Sign, date and seal each document. Where the signature and date go is not stated. | 201 Ky. Admin. Regs. 19:265 Section 1 |
| Documents covered | Everything you prepare yourself or supervise. | 201 Ky. Admin. Regs. 19:265 Sections 1, 2 |
| Device type | The rule sets out geometry only. No stamp, embosser or other device is named. | 201 Ky. Admin. Regs. 19:265 Section 1 |
| Electronic sealing | No provision at all: no technology, certificate authority, verification method or notice for uncertified electronic copies. | 201 Ky. Admin. Regs. 19:265 (no electronic seal provision) |
| Lapse and reinstatement | The seal regulation is silent on both. | 201 Ky. Admin. Regs. 19:087, 19:245 |
Kentucky is one row in our architect seal requirements by state table, which sets each jurisdiction's rule side by side. The seal assumes you already hold the Kentucky license; how to become a licensed architect covers the degree, AXP and ARE routes.
Where does each line of text sit on a Kentucky architect seal?
Section 1 assigns a position to everything. Your name runs across the top of the ring between the two circles, the word Architect runs across the bottom of that ring, and the inner circle splits into a top half and a bottom half, each with its own text.
The top half of the inner circle reads Registered, then the abbreviation No., then your certificate number. The bottom half reads Commonwealth of Kentucky, word for word. Watch that line if a supplier starts from a generic template built for another state.
Because every element has an assigned place, the face cannot be rearranged to suit a long name or a long number. Our article on complying with Kentucky architect stamp regulations looks at compliance in more detail.
What are the exact ring dimensions?
The outer circle measures 1 9/16 inches in diameter and the inner circle measures 1 inch. Both figures appear in Section 1, so a supplier works to exact numbers rather than to a range or a minimum.
Those two numbers set the room for text. The diameters differ by 9/16 inch, which leaves a band about 9/32 inch wide around the inner circle for your name above and the word Architect below. Inside, the 1 inch circle has to hold four more items across its two halves, so lettering size is set by geometry, not by preference.
Our note on choosing the right size for a Kentucky architect stamp covers the sizing question.
Does Kentucky say which device to use?
No. Section 1 prescribes the geometry of the seal, meaning the two rings and where each line sits, but it does not list or name any device. Nothing in the regulation calls for a stamp over an embosser or excludes either one.
What the regulation does fix is the output: an impression showing two concentric circles at 1 9/16 and 1 inch with every text element in place. Choose a device that reproduces that geometry cleanly at full size, and judge it by a test impression rather than by a catalog description.
What has to go on each document besides the seal?
Your signature and a date. Section 1 treats signing, dating and sealing as a single obligation that applies to every document, so the seal on its own does not finish a sheet.
The regulation is silent as to placement. It does not say whether the signature crosses the seal, sits beside it or goes elsewhere on the sheet, and it gives no position for the date. That leaves the layout to you, so pick one arrangement for your title block and use it consistently.
Which documents does the Kentucky duty cover?
All documents prepared by you or under your supervision. Sections 1 and 2 of 201 Ky. Admin. Regs. 19:265 set that reach, which ties the duty to your role in producing a document rather than to its type or where it is sent.
Supervision brings in work drafted by others in your office under your direction, so the duty follows your supervision and not just your own drafting. Our piece on Kentucky architect stamps in building design covers the practice side.
Can a Kentucky architect use an electronic seal?
The regulation is silent. Nothing in 201 Ky. Admin. Regs. 19:265 authorizes or describes an electronic seal. It identifies no software, certificate authority or verification method, and it prescribes no notice for electronic transmissions sent without certification.
Silence is neither permission nor a ban. The seal regulation leaves electronic sealing unaddressed, so an architect who wants to seal files electronically finds no Section 1 standard to meet and no Section 1 standard to point to either.
What happens to the seal after a lapse or suspension?
The seal regulation does not say. It does not address whether you may seal after the certificate expires, is suspended or is revoked, whether a reinstated architect keeps the same certificate number, or whether the device has to be given up.
The provisions cited for renewal and lapse are 201 Ky. Admin. Regs. 19:087, 19:245. Read those alongside any question about your status, because the seal regulation itself gives no answer. Our note on the stamp that goes with a Kentucky architect license covers the credential side.
What should you send when ordering a Kentucky architect seal?
Your name as it should read in the upper band, your certificate number for the inner circle, and a note that the seal follows 201 Ky. Admin. Regs. 19:265 Section 1, with a 1 9/16 inch outer ring and a 1 inch inner ring.
- Your name, for the upper band
- The word Architect, for the lower band
- Registered and No. followed by your certificate number, for the top half of the inner circle
- Commonwealth of Kentucky, for the bottom half of the inner circle
- Outer ring 1 9/16 inches, inner ring 1 inch
Ask for a proof drawn to those dimensions and check the position of each line before you approve it.
How do you check the first impression?
Measure both rings with a fine ruler: the outer circle should read 1 9/16 inches and the inner circle 1 inch. Then confirm each of the text elements sits in its assigned place, with Commonwealth of Kentucky in the bottom half of the inner circle.
Look closely at the upper band, where a long name can crowd the ring, and confirm the No. abbreviation is present before your certificate number. Finally, copy or scan the test sheet and make sure every line stays legible.
Which Kentucky seal questions does the regulation leave open?
Four. The regulation names no device, sets no electronic seal standard, does not say where the signature and date go, and does not address use of the seal after expiration, suspension or revocation. The face itself is fixed in detail.
That split is useful when you order. Only the face and the ring sizes are settled by rule, and those are settled precisely, so spend your checking effort there and make the other choices deliberately rather than leaving them to a supplier's defaults.
If you also hold a Kentucky geologist license, the Kentucky geologist seal rules set out what that seal must carry.
Frequently asked questions
Can the certificate number go in the outer band next to my name?
No. Section 1 puts the certificate number in the top half of the inner circle, after the word Registered and the abbreviation No. The upper band is where your name goes.
Will a seal that reads State of Kentucky pass?
It does not match the regulation. The bottom half of the inner circle carries the words Commonwealth of Kentucky, so a die with other wording there departs from Section 1.
Is a standard 1 1/2 inch or 2 inch stamp close enough?
No. Kentucky states exact figures, 1 9/16 inches for the outer circle and 1 inch for the inner, so a stock size that differs from those figures does not follow Section 1.
Can I use a self-inking stamp?
Section 1 names no device, so it neither calls for nor excludes a self-inking stamp. What matters is that the impression shows both rings at the stated sizes with every line where the regulation puts it.
What if my name is too long for the upper band?
The regulation gives the name no other location, so it stays in the upper band and is set in smaller or condensed type to fit. Moving it into the inner circle would crowd elements Section 1 assigns there.
With your certificate number and the Section 1 dimensions in hand, choose a device from our Kentucky stamps and seals collection.
