Georgia's land surveyor seal is round, made of an outer circle 1 1/2 inches across and an inner circle of 1 inch, and it shows your name as recorded by the Board plus your full license number with the LS prefix. Embossed, inked and computer-generated seals all qualify. Final documents also carry your signature, the date and the COA block. Covered here: the face, devices, documents, digital work and license status.
Engineer Seal Stamps compliance desk. Sources: Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. r. 180-12-.01, plus Georgia's State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors. Read September 2026. Updated 8 November 2026.
| Requirement | What the rule says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Name | Your name in the form the Board holds on record. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. r. 180-12-.01 |
| License number | The whole number, with the LS prefix in front of the digits. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. r. 180-12-.01 |
| Design | Circular, with two rings, one set inside the other. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. r. 180-12-.01 |
| Dimensions | Outer circle 1 1/2 inches across; inner circle 1 inch across. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. r. 180-12-.01 |
| Devices | Any of three is lawful: a computer-generated seal, a crimp (embossing) seal, or a facsimile made with a rubber stamp. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. r. 180-12-.01 |
| Alongside the seal | Your signature, the date and the COA block go on the document with the seal. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. r. 180-12-.02(3), (5) |
| Documents covered | Land surveying and engineering work issued as surveys and maps, plans and drawings, reports and specifications, or calculations and design information, digital versions included. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. r. 180-12-.02(1), (4), (6), (7) |
| When the duty applies | Whenever a final original goes out to a client or to a public agency. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. r. 180-12-.02(1), (4), (6), (7) |
| Digital transmission | Governed by rule 180-12-.02(8) and (9), and subsection (8) sets strict terms that this page does not restate. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. r. 180-12-.02(8), (9) |
| Expired or inactive license | Rule 180-8-.01 covers reinstatement after expiration and rule 180-8-.02 covers inactive status, with a renewal fee every two years. Seal use during a lapse is not addressed. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. r. 180-8-.01, 180-8-.02 |
To compare Georgia with every other jurisdiction, see our table of land surveyor seal requirements by state. Before any of this applies you need the Georgia license itself; how to become a licensed land surveyor covers the routes, the FS and PS exams and any state exam.
What does a Georgia land surveyor seal have to show?
Three things: your name in the form Board records show it, the full license number with LS in front, and a round design of two circles, one inside the other. Nothing else is listed for the face of a Georgia surveyor seal.
Give the number exactly as issued. The rule asks for the complete number, so the LS stays in front of the digits rather than being dropped to save space. The name follows the Board's record, which means the version on file controls even if you sign letters differently. For a shorter summary, see our rundown of Georgia land surveyor seal requirements.
How big is the Georgia surveyor seal?
The outer circle measures 1 1/2 inches across and the inner one measures 1 inch. Rule 180-12-.01 states both figures, so Georgia sets an exact size rather than a range you pick from.
A fixed size removes one decision from your order, and it rules out a seal cut to any other pair of measurements, however close it looks on a sheet. For layout ideas that work inside those two circles, browse our Georgia land surveyor stamp designs.
Which devices does rule 180-12-.01 allow?
Three kinds: a crimp seal, meaning an embosser; a rubber stamp facsimile; or a computer-generated seal. The rule permits all of them, so Georgia surveyors are not tied to one device.
Match the device to how you issue work: an inked stamp for printed sheets, a crimp seal where you want a raised impression, and a computer-generated seal for drawings produced and issued digitally. Each one carries the same face at the same two diameters. Our Georgia surveyor stamp dos and don'ts add practical pointers.
What goes on the document along with the seal?
Your signature, the date and the COA block, meaning the certificate of authorization block. The seal alone does not complete a Georgia document; all four items go on each final original you send out.
Plan your title block around those four pieces. Leave room for the impression, a clear signature line, the date and the COA block together, so nothing has to be squeezed into a margin at the last minute.
Which surveying documents need the Georgia seal?
Any final original you send to a client or to a public agency. The rule defines documents broadly: surveys and maps, plans and drawings, reports and specifications, calculations and design information, whether issued on paper or in digital form.
Because surveys and maps are named in the definition, a survey you deliver to a client is squarely a sealed document, and so is a digital file of that survey. The trigger is issuing final work to a client or agency, which is the moment to confirm that all four items, seal through COA block, are in place.
How does the rule treat digital and electronic work?
Digital work is inside the rule. The document definition expressly reaches work issued in digital form, and rule 180-12-.01 permits a computer-generated seal. Electronic handling is then governed separately by rule 180-12-.02(8) and (9).
The terms in rule 180-12-.02(8) are strict, and this page does not restate them. Read subsections (8) and (9) in full before you issue a sealed file electronically, and build your computer-generated seal to the same 1 1/2 inch and 1 inch figures as a physical one.
What happens to sealing when a Georgia license expires or goes inactive?
Chapter 180-8 deals with both situations. Rule 180-8-.01 covers reinstating an expired license, rule 180-8-.02 covers inactive status, and the chapter refers to a renewal fee that falls due every two years.
What the cited rules do not address is whether a seal may be used while a license is expired or inactive. Because the text is silent, keep renewal current rather than rely on an answer the rules do not give.
What should you have ready to order a Georgia seal?
Your full license number with the LS prefix, and your name precisely as the Board records it. Because the rule fixes the design and both diameters, your only remaining choice is the device: crimp, inked stamp or computer generated.
Copy the name and number from your Board record rather than from memory, and check the proof against that record before approving it. For background on how these stamps are put together, read how Georgia professional land surveyor stamps are built.
How should you test a new Georgia impression?
Make a test impression, stamped or embossed, and measure it: 1 1/2 inches across the outer circle and 1 inch across the inner. Compare the name with your Board record and check the number and prefix one digit at a time.
Next, lay out a full sign-off on the test sheet with signature, date and COA block beside the impression. If the four items do not sit cleanly in your title block, fix the block before the first issued document rather than after it.
Frequently asked questions
Should my firm's COA details be engraved on the seal?
No. The COA block is not one of the elements the rule lists for the seal face. It goes on the document next to the seal, signature and date, so keep it in your title block rather than in the die.
What if the name I use day to day differs from Board records?
Use the Board's version. The rule ties the name on the seal to Board records, so a preferred or shortened name belongs on the face only if the Board record shows it that way.
Can I use both an embosser and an inked stamp?
Yes. Rule 180-12-.01 lets the crimp type and the rubber stamp facsimile be used together or apart, so owning both is within the rule. Each device needs the same face and the same two diameters.
Is an embossed impression enough on its own?
Yes. The crimp type is one of the three forms the rule authorizes, so an embossed seal satisfies the seal requirement without ink. The signature, date and COA block still go on the document with it.
Does renewal require a new seal?
Nothing on the face refers to a renewal date. It holds your name, your number and two circles, and renewal changes none of those, so a seal that matches your Board record carries over into the next period.
Have your Board record open, then choose your device in our Georgia stamps and seals collection; we cut it to the 1 1/2 inch and 1 inch figures the rule sets.
