Virginia · Engineer seal requirements
Virginia PE seal requirements: size, wording, and the rule that sets them
As of
Virginia's seal rule is 18VAC10-20-760, amended effective May 1, 2026. The original seal must conform in detail and size to the design illustrated in subsection F and must be two inches in diameter — one fixed size, with no range. One board licenses all of the Commonwealth's design professions, and the illustrated designs share a single layout: "COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA" on the top arc, the professional's name over "Lic. No." and the last six digits of the license number in the center, and the profession — "PROFESSIONAL ENGINEER", "ARCHITECT", "LAND SURVEYOR" — on the bottom arc. Seal, signature and date are treated as one act and go on every sheet of plans, plats or drawings.
18VAC10-20-740 is "Professional responsibility", not the seal rule, and 18VAC10-20-750 is repealed; the seal provision is 18VAC10-20-760. The APELSCIDLA board's general review of 18VAC10-20 took effect May 1, 2026 (Virginia Register Vol. 42, Issue 16), which also repealed 18VAC10-20-780 and added 18VAC10-20-785. Any copy of the chapter dated before that is stale.
Virginia Engineer seal
- Seal rule
- 18VAC10-20-760 (Use of seal)
- Legend
- “PROFESSIONAL ENGINEER”
- Diameter
- Two inches in diameter. The rule fixes one size and states no minimum or maximum.
- Expiration date
- The illustrated design is "COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA" on the top arc, the name over "Lic. No." and the last six digits in the center, and "PROFESSIONAL ENGINEER" on the bottom arc. No date appears in any of the seven illustrated designs.(18VAC10-20-760 F)
- Signature date
- Every sheet of plans, plats or drawings — not only the cover sheet — must be sealed, signed and dated.(18VAC10-20-760 A, B 1)
- City on seal
- Final documents must bear the professional's name or firm name, address and project name, but that is a document requirement; the seal itself carries no address.(18VAC10-20-760 B 1, F)
- The original seal must conform in detail and size to the design illustrated in the rule. The designs as printed may not be shown to scale.(18VAC10-20-760 F)
- The illustrated professional engineer design is a circle with a beaded outer border: "COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA" on the top arc, the professional's name and "Lic. No." with the number in the center, and "PROFESSIONAL ENGINEER" on the bottom arc.(18VAC10-20-760 F)
- The number on the seal is the last six-digit number as shown on the license or certificate. The number is permanent, and leading zeros contained in the six-digit number may be omitted from the seal.(18VAC10-20-760 F)
- Affixing a professional seal, signature, and date indicates that the professional has exercised direct control and personal supervision over the work to which it is affixed and accepts responsibility for the work shown.(18VAC10-20-760 A)
- All final documents, including cover sheet of plans, plats, documents, drawings, technical reports, and specifications, and each sheet of plans or plats or drawings, must be sealed, signed, and dated.(18VAC10-20-760 B 1)
- All final documents must also bear the professional's name or firm name, address, and project name.(18VAC10-20-760 B 1)
- An electronic seal, signature, and date may be used in lieu of an original if it is a unique identification of the professional, is verifiable, and is under the professional's direct control.(18VAC10-20-760 C)
- Incomplete plans, plats, documents, and drawings, whether advance or preliminary copies, must be so identified on the document and need not be sealed, signed, or dated.(18VAC10-20-760 D)
- The rule speaks of "the original seal" and of an electronic seal. It does not address the medium of a physical impression, so it neither authorizes nor forbids a rubber stamp.(18VAC10-20-760 C, F)
Virginia engineer seal questions
Can a Virginia PE seal be 1½ inches instead of 2 inches?▾
Two inches is the required diameter, not a ceiling. The "minimum 1½ inches, maximum 2 inches" range quoted for Virginia is in no part of 18VAC10-20-760, and a 1½-inch Virginia seal does not conform to the illustrated design. (18VAC10-20-760 F)
Can a Virginia PE seal use "P.E." instead of "Professional Engineer"?▾
The legend is the full words "PROFESSIONAL ENGINEER". "P.E." appears in none of the seven illustrated designs and is not an authorized substitute. (18VAC10-20-760 F)
Which license number goes on a Virginia PE seal?▾
The number goes on the seal as "Lic. No." followed by the last six digits shown on the license, not the whole number printed on the license. Leading zeros within those six digits may be omitted. (18VAC10-20-760 F)
Does every sheet of a Virginia plan set have to be sealed, signed and dated?▾
The date is part of what is affixed, not a title-block entry. Every sheet of plans, plats or drawings must be sealed, signed, and dated, not only the cover sheet. (18VAC10-20-760 A, B 1)
Generate a Virginia Engineer seal to this specification
Board approved
Your Virginia Professional Engineer seal from pedigitalstamps.com meets every requirement on this page — the required wording, the layout and the diameter set out in 18VAC10-20-760 (Use of seal). Fill in your details and download it in seconds.
Every format you need is included — PNG, PDF, SVG and CAD — ready to place in Bluebeam, Acrobat or AutoCAD.