North Carolina · Landscape Architect seal requirements
North Carolina Landscape Architect seal requirements: proper sizing, signing and sealing of documents
As of
G.S. 89A-2(c) does not draw the seal itself — it requires a seal “of the design authorized by the Board” bearing the registrant’s name, certificate number and the legend “N.C. Registered Landscape Architect,” and the Board publishes that design in its Seal Bulletin: a double circle with “North Carolina” across the top of the outer ring between two stars, the registrant’s name across its bottom, “Registered Landscape Architect” (or “Registered Landscape Architectural Corporation”) around the inner ring, and the certificate number alone in the centre. No diameter is stated anywhere — the bulletin fixes size by telling registrants to conform to its printed sample impression, which reproduces at roughly 1.6 inches across — and 21 NCAC 26 .0207 governs only where the seal is applied and requires an original signature across its face.
The seal design rule for engineers and land surveyors is 21 NCAC 56.1102;.1103 governs how the seal is used, and summaries that cite.1103 for the seal's appearance are citing the wrong rule. 21 NCAC 56.0104 describes the Board's own official seal — the Great Seal of the State with the Board name on the perimeter — and is not the licensee's seal. The Code and the statutes name the engineering and surveying board the "North Carolina State Board of Examiners for Engineers and Surveyors" (21 NCAC 56.0101; G.S. 47-30(d)), while the Board itself uses the shorter "North Carolina Board of Examiners for Engineers and Surveyors" on its own site; the Code form is used here. The North Carolina Administrative Code is published by the Office of Administrative Hearings on a server that answers over HTTP only, which is why the rule links here are http:// rather than https://. Three documents govern here and only one of them sits on a legislature site. G.S. 89A-2(c) was read at the linked ncleg.gov page. 21 NCAC 26 .0207 was read in the Office of Administrative Hearings’ published Chapter 26 rules (readopted effective April 1, 2018), which OAH serves only over http, at http://reports.oah.state.nc.us/ncac/title%2021%20-%20occupational%20licensing%20boards%20and%20commissions/chapter%2026%20-%20landscape%20architects/chapter%2026%20rules.html — port 443 refuses connections, so it cannot be linked over https. The design itself is the Board’s Seal Bulletin at https://www.ncbola.org/images/uploads/files/NCBLA_Seal_bulletin.pdf, which the Board’s FAQ links as the answer to “What are the requirements for my stamp or seal?”; it was fetched successfully on 2026-08-20 (HTTP 200, 110,019 bytes, Last-Modified 2023-07-13, byte-identical on repeated fetches). The bulletin’s PDF was produced in 2005 and its letterhead still shows a bellsouth.net contact address the Board has since replaced, but it remains the document the Board points licensees to for a copy of the seal. Its sample impression is a scan of a real impression rather than a dimensioned drawing, which is why this entry reports the size as unstated and gives the measured reproduction only as an approximation.
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Your North Carolina Landscape Architect seal from pedigitalstamps.com meets every requirement on this page — the required wording and the layout set out in N.C. Gen. Stat. § 89A-2(c); 21 NCAC 26 .0207; NCBLA Seal Bulletin (the design authorized by the Board). Fill in your details and download it in seconds.
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North Carolina Landscape Architect seal
- Seal requirements
- N.C. Gen. Stat. § 89A-2(c); 21 NCAC 26 .0207; NCBLA Seal Bulletin (the design authorized by the Board)
- Legend (any one)
- “North Carolina Registered Landscape Architect” · “North Carolina Registered Landscape Architectural Corporation”
- Diameter
- No dimension is stated in figures. G.S. 89A-2(c) delegates the design to the Board without a measurement, and the words “inch,” “diameter” and “size” appear nowhere in 21 NCAC 26 — all 74 sections were searched. The Board does constrain size, but by reference rather than by number: the Seal Bulletin states that “the seal will conform in size and format to the sample impression at the end of this bulletin.” That impression is scanned artwork, not a dimensioned drawing; measured on the Board’s own PDF it is about 1.66 in wide by 1.60 in tall, i.e. roughly 1 5/8 in across. Treat that as the target the bulletin points at, not as a figure the Board has published.
- Expiration date
- Positively forbidden, not merely absent: the Board’s Seal Bulletin states that the Board “has ruled that the date of registration shall not be placed on the seal,” and Section D bars any information beyond the components listed in Section B — certificate number, inner-ring title, “North Carolina” with stars, and the registrant’s name. 21 NCAC 26 .0207(c) requires an effective date on the document, not inside the seal.(NCBLA Seal Bulletin §§ B–D; 21 NCAC 26 .0207(c))
- Signature date
- The seal must carry the landscape architect’s original signature across its face, and the effective date must be indicated below the seal or elsewhere on the document.(21 NCAC 26 .0207(c))
- City on seal
- No place of business appears among the seal’s components. The statute lists name, certificate number and legend, the bulletin’s Section B lists the four elements of the artwork, and Section D forbids adding anything else.(N.C. Gen. Stat. § 89A-2(c); NCBLA Seal Bulletin §§ B, D)
- Each landscape architect shall, upon registration, obtain a seal of the design authorized by the Board, bearing the name of the registrant, number of certificate and the legend “N.C. Registered Landscape Architect”. Such seal may be used only while the registrant’s certificate is in full force and effect. Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed as authorizing the use or acceptance of the seal of a landscape architect instead of or as a substitute for the seal of an architect, engineer, or land surveyor.(N.C. Gen. Stat. § 89A-2(c))
- The design authorized by the Board is set out in its Seal Bulletin, which the Board’s own FAQ gives as the answer to “What are the requirements for my stamp or seal?”: “The seal will conform in size and format to the sample impression at the end of this bulletin, and shall have all of these components: 1. (a) The certificate number shall be placed in the inner circle of the seal. Numbers for individual registered landscape architects consist only of digits. (Example: 15) (b) Numbers for registered landscape architectural corporations must be preceded by the letter ‘C’ followed by a dash. (Example: C-006) 2. The inner circle shall contain around the periphery of the circle the words ‘Registered Landscape Architect’ for individuals or the words ‘Registered Landscape Architectural Corporation’ for corporations. 3. The outer circle shall have the words ‘North Carolina’ at the top of the circle. The words ‘North Carolina’ shall be both preceded by and followed with a star. 4. The outer circle shall have the name of the registered individual or the name of the registered landscape architectural corporation listed at the bottom of the circle.” The sample impression at the foot of the bulletin shows exactly that: a serrated outer ring reading “NORTH CAROLINA” at the top with a star at each side and the registrant’s name at the bottom, a dotted inner ring reading “REGISTERED LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT,” and the certificate number alone in the centre.(NCBLA Seal Bulletin §§ A–B)
- The Board has ruled that the date of registration shall not be placed on the seal.(NCBLA Seal Bulletin § C)
- No information other than that described in Section B shall be placed on the seal.(NCBLA Seal Bulletin § D)
- The method of application of the seal to plans and specifications may be at the option of the registrant. A stamp, a metal impression or digitized seal may be used.(NCBLA Seal Bulletin § E)
- Each Landscape Architect or each Landscape Architectural Corporation shall file immediately with the Board on letterhead, a sample impression of the seal which the individual or corporation proposes to use. The Board shall be notified of any changes made in the seal.(NCBLA Seal Bulletin § F)
- The seal(s) of the landscape architect(s) responsible for the work and the landscape architectural corporation seal, if appropriate, shall be applied to the following documents: (1) Drawings and specifications prepared for public agency approval; (2) Drawings and specifications issued for the purpose of bidding, negotiation or construction; (3) Reports of technical nature; and (4) Letters and certificates of professional opinion.(21 NCAC 26 .0207(a))
- The seal(s) shall be applied only to documents prepared personally or under the immediate supervision of the landscape architect whose seal is affixed, except in two circumstances. (1) Plans initially sealed by a landscape architect licensed in the state of origin may be reviewed by a North Carolina landscape architect for code conformance, design adequacy and site adaptation and then sealed by the North Carolina landscape architect assuming responsibility, with the statement: “These plans have been examined by the undersigned. I have determined that they comply with existing local North Carolina codes, and have been properly site adapted for use in this area.” (2) Documents prepared by another licensed professional and obtained by the landscape architect may be used to prepare landscape architectural design documents provided the origin of those documents and of the information prepared by the other licensed professional appears on each drawing or sheet sealed by the landscape architect.(21 NCAC 26 .0207(b))
- The individual’s seal or facsimile thereof shall have the landscape architect’s original signature across its face and the effective date shall be indicated below or elsewhere on the document.(21 NCAC 26 .0207(c))
- When a document requiring seals has been co-authored by the landscape architect and another licensed design professional of another discipline, the landscape architect shall indicate by notation each portion for which he or she is responsible.(21 NCAC 26 .0207(d))
- Failure to use the professional seal according to this Rule may be deemed by the Board to be “gross malpractice” within the meaning of G.S. 89A-7.(21 NCAC 26 .0207(e))
- Electronically transmitted documents and electronic seals shall be allowed. Documents transmitted electronically to a client or governmental agency shall have the computer-generated seal removed from the original file unless signed with a digital signature as defined in Paragraph (g), and shall instead carry: “This document originally issued and sealed by (name of sealer), (license number), on (Date of sealing). This medium shall not be considered a certified document. Hardcopy documents containing the original seal, signature, and date may be obtained from (name of sealer).” Scanned digital files of certified documents that cannot be altered electronically are exempt; CAD, vector or other similar files subject to easy editing are not.(21 NCAC 26 .0207(f), (g))
- Documents electronically transmitted and signed with a digital signature shall contain the authentication procedure in a secure mode and a list of the hardware, software and parameters used. The digital signature shall be unique to the licensee using it, capable of verification, under the sole control of the licensee, and linked to the document so that the signature is invalidated if any data in the document is changed.(21 NCAC 26 .0207(h))
North Carolina landscape architect seal questions
Does the outer ring read “North Carolina” in full, between two stars?▾
“North Carolina” is spelled out on the seal, not abbreviated. The statute’s legend phrase is “N.C. Registered Landscape Architect,” but the statute delegates the artwork to the Board, and the design the Board authorized puts the words “North Carolina” in full across the top of the outer ring, with a star before and after them. A seal stamped “N.C. Registered Landscape Architect” on a single ring does not match the authorized design. (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 89A-2(c); NCBLA Seal Bulletin § B.3)
Is the certificate number alone in the centre, with the name on the outer ring?▾
The wording is split across two rings and the centre is reserved. The certificate number goes alone in the inner circle, “Registered Landscape Architect” runs around the inner ring, and the registrant’s name sits at the bottom of the outer ring — a single-ring layout, or a name in the centre, is the wrong design. (NCBLA Seal Bulletin § B)
Is the seal free of any date or extra wording?▾
Do not put a date in the seal, and do not add anything else. The Board has expressly ruled that the date of registration shall not appear on the seal, and no information beyond the listed components may be added — no expiration date, no city, no firm name on an individual’s seal. (NCBLA Seal Bulletin §§ C, D)
Does the signature cross the face of the seal?▾
The signature must run across the face of the seal, and the effective date must appear below the seal or elsewhere on the document; a signature set beside the seal does not meet the rule. (21 NCAC 26 .0207(c))
Has a sample impression of this seal been filed with the Board?▾
A new or changed seal must be filed with the Board. Each landscape architect and each landscape architectural corporation must send the Board, on letterhead, a sample impression of the seal it proposes to use, and must notify the Board of any change to it — a step easily missed after ordering a replacement stamp. (NCBLA Seal Bulletin § F)
Is the seal removed from easily edited electronic files?▾
Sending sealed CAD or vector files? The computer-generated seal must be removed from the transmitted file unless a conforming digital signature is used, and the rule’s replacement wording inserted in lieu of the signature and date. Only scanned files that cannot be altered are exempt. (21 NCAC 26 .0207(f), (g))
Does the work actually fall within landscape architecture?▾
A landscape architect’s seal is never a substitute for an architect’s, engineer’s or land surveyor’s seal, and the Board may treat misuse of the seal as gross malpractice under G.S. 89A-7. (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 89A-2(c); 21 NCAC 26 .0207(e))