New Mexico · Architect seal requirements
New Mexico Architect seal requirements: size, wording, and the rule that sets them
As of
Architects in New Mexico seal under 16.30.3.18 NMAC (Individual Seal and Document Identification); NMSA 1978 § 61-15-7(A), administered by the New Mexico Board of Examiners for Architects. The seal reads “REGISTERED ARCHITECT”. Two concentric circles, the outer 1¾ inches in diameter and the inner 1¼ inches. The rule states one design and offers no alternative.
The engineering and surveying board's legal name is the "state board of licensure for professional engineers and professional surveyors" (NMSA 1978 § 61-23-5(A); 16.39.1.8(A) NMAC); its own website styles it "New Mexico Board of Licensure for Professional Engineers & Professional Surveyors". NMAC prints the engineer and surveyor legends in lower case — "professional engineer", "professional surveyor" — while capitalizing "New Mexico" in the same sentence; the rule prescribes the words and does not address letter case. Do not copy 16.39.1.8(B) NMAC, which describes an embossed 1¾-inch seal of two concentric circles reading "state of New Mexico": that is the board's own official seal, not a licensee's. For architects, NMSA 1978 § 61-15-7(A) states the legend as "Registered Architect--State of New Mexico" on one line while 16.30.3.18(A) NMAC splits the same words across the upper and lower arcs; the rule governs the layout. Engineers and surveyors licensed before the current rules who have kept the license without lapse may retain a previously approved seal (16.39.3.12(D), 16.39.5.11(D) NMAC). Both seal sections were last amended 12/16/2022 and remain the current text; the statute behind them has since moved ahead of the rule, in that NMSA 1978 §§ 61-23-19(B) and 61-23-27.8(B) now let the board "approve alternative authentications to physical or electronic seals", wording that 16.39.3.3 NMAC still quotes in its older, shorter form.
New Mexico Architect seal
- Legend
- “REGISTERED ARCHITECT”
- Diameter
- Two concentric circles, the outer 1¾ inches in diameter and the inner 1¼ inches. The rule states one design and offers no alternative.
- Expiration date
- The seal bears "STATE OF NEW MEXICO" on the upper arc, "REGISTERED ARCHITECT" on the lower, and the architect's name and registration number inside the inner circle. No date.(16.30.3.18(A) NMAC)
- Signature date
- Sealed sheets "must bear the imprint of the seal with the signature of that architect and the date of the signature closely aligned to the seal."(16.30.3.18(B)(1) NMAC)
- City on seal
- The architect's name and address must appear on the sealed page, but that is a page requirement; the seal face carries only the two legends, the name and the registration number.(16.30.3.18(A) NMAC; cf. 16.30.3.18(B)(1) NMAC)
- The upper portion of the annular space between the two circles shall bear the words "STATE OF NEW MEXICO" and the lower portion shall bear the words "REGISTERED ARCHITECT".(16.30.3.18(A) NMAC)
- The space enclosed by the inner circle shall bear the name of the architect and his or her registration number. In no event shall the seal contain more than one name of an architect.(16.30.3.18(A) NMAC)
- Each original sheet of construction drawings, each cover sheet of specifications submitted for permitting, and reports prepared by or under the responsible charge of the architect must bear the imprint of the seal with that architect's signature and the date of the signature closely aligned to the seal.(16.30.3.18(B)(1) NMAC; NMSA 1978 § 61-15-7(A))
- The name and address of the architect must also appear on the sealed page — a requirement separate from the name inside the seal.(16.30.3.18(B)(1) NMAC)
- A registrant may apply the seal, signature and date by hand or affix them electronically. An electronic signature may be used provided the registrant uses a secure method of affixation, does not authorize any other person to affix it, and the registrant and client have agreed to conduct transactions by electronic means; documents so signed shall employ an authentication procedure to ensure the signature's validity.(16.30.3.18(B)(1) NMAC)
- An electronic signature must be unique to the person using it, under the sole control of the registrant, and linked to the document so that it is invalidated if any data in the document is changed.(16.30.1.7(P)(2) NMAC)
- Placing multiple architectural seals on plans, specifications or reports shall not be permitted. The architect-of-record must seal, sign and date all construction drawings, specifications and reports prepared by or under that architect's supervision.(16.30.3.18(B)(3) NMAC)
- A successor architect must use his or her own title block, seal and signature and must remove the original architect's title block, seal and signature before sealing, signing and dating the drawings, after notifying the original architect by certified letter.(16.30.3.18(C)(1) NMAC)
New Mexico architect seal questions
Which New Mexico board sets the architect's seal?▾
The New Mexico Board of Examiners for Architects, under 16.30.3.18 NMAC — not the State Board of Licensure for Professional Engineers and Professional Surveyors. The engineering board's seal rule, 16.39.3.12 NMAC, does not reach architects and prescribes a different object entirely: three concentric circles of 1½, 1 and ½ inches carrying "professional engineer" and "New Mexico," against the architect's two circles of 1¾ and 1¼ inches carrying "STATE OF NEW MEXICO" and "REGISTERED ARCHITECT." Nothing about the two designs is interchangeable. (16.30.3.18(A) NMAC; 16.30.3.1 NMAC; cf. 16.39.3.12(C)(1) NMAC)
Where do the words go on a New Mexico architect's seal?▾
The statute and the rule state the same legend in two different arrangements, and the rule governs the face. NMSA 1978 § 61-15-7(A) gives the legend on one line as "Registered Architect--State of New Mexico," while 16.30.3.18(A) NMAC splits those words across the annular space between the two circles: the upper portion bears "STATE OF NEW MEXICO" and the lower portion bears "REGISTERED ARCHITECT." A seal set from the statutory wording puts the two phrases in the wrong order and on the wrong arc. (16.30.3.18(A) NMAC; NMSA 1978 § 61-15-7(A))
Can two New Mexico architects seal the same drawing?▾
No, and the prohibition runs twice. 16.30.3.18(A) NMAC provides that in no event shall the seal contain more than one name of an architect, and 16.30.3.18(B)(3) NMAC provides that placing multiple architectural seals on plans, specifications or reports shall not be permitted — the architect-of-record must seal, sign and date all construction drawings, specifications and reports prepared by or under that architect's supervision. The engineering board's rule runs the other way for engineers, who may seal one document two or more at a time provided a note under the seal designates the subject matter each is responsible for. (16.30.3.18(A) and (B)(3) NMAC; cf. 16.39.3.12(G) NMAC)
What else goes on a page a New Mexico architect seals?▾
The architect's name and address — a page element separate from the name inside the seal, and one an engineer's sealed page does not carry. 16.30.3.18(B)(1) NMAC requires each original sheet of construction drawings, each cover sheet of specifications submitted for permitting, and reports to bear the imprint of the seal with that architect's signature and the date of the signature closely aligned to the seal, and then requires the name and address of the architect to appear on the sealed page as well. The engineers' and surveyors' rule asks only for the original signature and its date adjacent to the seal. (16.30.3.18(B)(1) NMAC; cf. 16.39.3.12(A) NMAC)
What must a successor architect in New Mexico do before sealing another's drawings?▾
Clear the previous architect off the sheets and give written notice first. 16.30.3.18(C)(1) NMAC requires the successor architect to use his or her own title block, seal and signature, and to remove the original architect's title block, seal and signature before sealing, signing and dating the drawings, after notifying the original architect by certified letter. Sealing over or beside the first architect's block is not an option the rule allows. (16.30.3.18(C)(1) NMAC)
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