A Maryland professional engineer seal must show the Great Seal of Maryland as a pictorial device at its center, plus the phrases State of Maryland and Professional Engineer, along with your name and license number. Each plan, specification or report you issue carries your original signature and the date you signed. This page covers the face, devices, size, signing, documents, electronic files, license status and ordering.
Engineer Seal Stamps compliance desk. Checked against COMAR 09.23.01.03B and the State Board for Professional Engineers. Sources read September 2026.
| Requirement | What the rule says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Center of the seal | The Great Seal of Maryland, drawn as a pictorial device, fills the middle. | COMAR 09.23.01.03B |
| Fixed phrases | Two phrases: State of Maryland and Professional Engineer. | COMAR 09.23.01.03B |
| Name and license number | Both appear on the face. | COMAR 09.23.01.03B |
| Size and shape | Neither is published in the rules. Seals made for Maryland engineers are cut at 1-5/8 inches as a production standard, not a legal figure. | Not addressed in the cited rules |
| Devices | The regulation names two physical forms of seal and treats either one as lawful. | COMAR 09.23.01.03A |
| Signature | An original signature, a term Maryland defines in its own regulation. | COMAR 09.23.03.09E, 09.23.03.10E |
| Date | The date on which you signed. | COMAR 09.23.03.09E, 09.23.03.10E |
| Documents to seal | Plans, specifications and reports headed to a client or a public authority, endorsed by whichever engineer prepared or approved them. | Md. Code Ann., Bus. Occ. & Prof. § 14-4A-02(a) |
| Electronic seal | No stand-alone electronic seal rule exists. | COMAR 09.23.03.09E |
| License status | Policed at two points on a single sheet. Sealing after a lapse is not separately addressed. | Md. Code Ann., Bus. Occ. & Prof. §§ 14-501, 14-4A-02 |
To compare Maryland with every other jurisdiction, see our table of professional engineer seal requirements by state.
What must a Maryland PE seal show?
Five elements under COMAR 09.23.01.03B. The first is the Great Seal of Maryland as a pictorial device in the center, followed by the phrases State of Maryland and Professional Engineer, then your name and license number.
The center image is a required element, not decoration. A die has to include the Great Seal in the middle, so it cannot be treated as an optional graphic that a maker may leave out.
Check your name and license number against your license before approving a proof. Our article on Maryland PE stamp requirements has more background on the seal face.
Which documents must be sealed?
The trigger is issuing or submitting a document. Under Md. Code Ann., Bus. Occ. & Prof. § 14-4A-02(a), a plan, specification or report that goes to a client or to a public authority carries the endorsement of the engineer who prepared it or approved it.
The duty follows the act of release. A document that stays in the office has not triggered it yet; the moment it goes to a client or an authority, it needs the endorsement. The endorsing engineer is the one who prepared or approved the work, so the seal on the sheet identifies who stands behind it.
Which devices does Maryland allow?
COMAR 09.23.01.03A names two physical forms of seal, and both are legal. Because the regulation names them itself, read that paragraph for their exact terms and pick the one that suits how your documents are produced.
The device choice is about production, not content. The five elements from COMAR 09.23.01.03B stay the same on either form. For related reading, see our note on Maryland PE stamp regulations.
What size is a Maryland PE seal?
No size appears in the cited rules, and no shape is stated. Seals made for Maryland engineers are cut at 1-5/8 inches, but that figure is a production standard, not a number any published rule sets.
Use 1-5/8 inches as a sensible default, but do not cite it as a legal requirement. If a reviewer asks for the regulatory size, the accurate answer is that the cited rules give none.
A size choice still has to leave the Great Seal image and all four other elements readable. Test the impression at your chosen size before relying on it.
How do you sign and date a sealed document?
With an original signature, plus the date you signed. COMAR 09.23.03.09E, 09.23.03.10E set both requirements, and Maryland writes its own definition of an original signature into the regulation.
The date is the day you sign, not your license expiration date or a project milestone. Read the definition in COMAR 09.23.03.09E before choosing how you will sign, since it decides which signatures count as original.
Does Maryland have an electronic seal rule?
Not a separate one. Maryland has no stand-alone electronic seal rule. The citation for that point is COMAR 09.23.03.09E, which is also the paragraph cited for the definition of an original signature.
So there is no dedicated electronic seal provision to follow. Before sending a sealed file, work from the signature definition in that paragraph rather than looking for a separate electronic seal standard.
How does license status affect your seal?
Maryland checks license status at two points on the same sheet, through Md. Code Ann., Bus. Occ. & Prof. §§ 14-501, 14-4A-02. A separate rule on using the seal after a lapse is not addressed in the provisions cited here.
Keep your renewal current before issuing sealed work. For renewal timing, read our note on renewing a Maryland PE stamp.
Who oversees Maryland PE seals?
The State Board for Professional Engineers. The seal face is set in COMAR 09.23.01.03B, the sealing duty sits in Md. Code Ann., Bus. Occ. & Prof. § 14-4A-02(a), and signing is set out in COMAR 09.23.03.09E, 09.23.03.10E.
Between them, those three sources set what the face shows, when the seal is used, and how the signature and date go with it. None of them sets a diameter.
What should you send with your order?
Your name and license number, checked against your license, and confirmation that the Great Seal of Maryland goes in the center. Add your choice between the two device forms COMAR 09.23.01.03A names, and say whether the standard 1-5/8 inch size suits you.
- Your name, checked against your license
- Your license number
- Great Seal of Maryland as the center image
- The phrases State of Maryland and Professional Engineer
- Device form, chosen from the two the regulation names
- Size: 1-5/8 inches is the production standard
Proofread the name and number on the proof before approving it. For a wider view before ordering, see our Maryland PE stamp guidelines.
How do you check the impression before first use?
Stamp a spare sheet and confirm all five elements from COMAR 09.23.01.03B: the Great Seal image in the center, both phrases, your name and your license number. Then sign and date the test sheet the way you will on issued work.
Copy or scan the test and look at the center first, because a detailed image is the part most likely to blur. More on the device is in our piece on the Maryland professional engineer stamp.
Frequently asked questions
Can the center hold a star, a state outline or nothing at all?
No. COMAR 09.23.01.03B puts the Great Seal of Maryland, as a pictorial device, at the center. A star, an outline or a blank field is not that device, so a template built that way is missing a required element.
Does the seal show a license expiration date?
The five elements in COMAR 09.23.01.03B are the Great Seal image, the two phrases, your name and your license number. An expiration date is not one of them.
Can you seal a document another engineer drew?
Under Md. Code Ann., Bus. Occ. & Prof. § 14-4A-02(a), the endorsement comes from the engineer who prepared or approved the document. If you approved it, the endorsement is yours to apply.
Do reports need the seal, or only drawings?
Reports are included. Md. Code Ann., Bus. Occ. & Prof. § 14-4A-02(a) names plans, specifications and reports together, so a report you send to a client or file with a public authority carries the endorsement just as a plan does.
Does the device form change what goes on the face?
No. COMAR 09.23.01.03A deals with the physical form, while COMAR 09.23.01.03B sets the face. The same five elements appear whichever of the two named forms you choose.
With your license details confirmed, choose a seal from our Maryland stamps and seals collection and ask for the Great Seal of Maryland in the middle of the face.
