Rhode Island · Land Surveyor seal requirements
Rhode Island Land Surveyor seal requirements: size, wording, and the rule that sets them
As of
Land surveyors in Rhode Island seal under 435-RICR-00-00-1 § 1.6(A) (Professional Land Surveyor's Seal & Stamp), administered by the Rhode Island Board of Registration for Professional Land Surveyors. The seal reads “Professional Land Surveyor”. Approximately one and one half inches (1-½") square. The land surveyor's seal is square, not circular.
The seal statute is R.I. Gen. Laws § 5-8-14, "Certificates of registration — Enrollment cards — Seals." § 5-8-11 (qualifications for registration) and § 5-8-12 are frequently cited in its place and govern nothing about the stamp. The engineering rule was amended effective 03/07/2024; the architect and land surveyor rules were last refiled 01/04/2022.
Rhode Island Land Surveyor seal
- Legend
- “Professional Land Surveyor”
- Diameter
- Approximately one and one half inches (1-½") square. The land surveyor's seal is square, not circular.
- Expiration date
- The square seal carries the State emblem, the registration number, the surveyor's name and the words "Professional Land Surveyor".(435-RICR-00-00-1 § 1.6(A)(1))
- Signature date
- After the seal is applied the name is hand signed in ink across the imprinted seal and dated below it. Electronic signature and dating are not permitted, even though a digital facsimile of the seal is.(435-RICR-00-00-1 § 1.6(A)(3))
- City on seal
- The square device is fully enumerated: State emblem, registration number, the surveyor's name above and "Professional Land Surveyor" below. The town or city does have to appear on a Rhode Island survey — § 1.9.7(A)(1) puts it in the title block, along with the name and address of the firm or surveyor — but that is a plan requirement, not a seal element.(435-RICR-00-00-1 § 1.6(A)(1); § 1.9.7(A)(1))
- The State emblem and the Professional Land Surveyor's registration number appear in the center, the surveyor's name above them and the words "Professional Land Surveyor" below them.(435-RICR-00-00-1 § 1.6(A)(1))
- After the seal is applied, the surveyor's name shall be hand signed in ink across the imprinted seal and dated below the seal. Electronic signature and dating are not permitted.(435-RICR-00-00-1 § 1.6(A)(3))
- A digital facsimile of the seal may be used in lieu of the hand stamp, even though the signature and date may not be applied electronically.(435-RICR-00-00-1 § 1.6(A)(2))
Rhode Island land surveyor seal questions
Can a Rhode Island land surveyor sign and date a survey electronically?▾
A digitally signed land survey is non-compliant here. The surveyor's rule permits a digital facsimile of the seal but forbids electronic signature and dating; the name must be hand signed in ink across the imprinted seal. (435-RICR-00-00-1 § 1.6(A)(3))
Is the Rhode Island land surveyor's seal round?▾
It is square — approximately one and one half inches (1½") square. The State emblem and the surveyor's registration number appear in the center, the surveyor's name above them, and the words "Professional Land Surveyor" below them. The legend is worth reading twice: the engineers' stamp reads "Registered Professional Engineer" and the architects' seal carries the word "Registered" below the State emblem, but the surveyor's legend has no "Registered" in it at all. Surveyors also answer to their own board and their own regulation rather than to the engineers'. (435-RICR-00-00-1 § 1.6(A)(1); cf. 430-RICR-00-00-1 § 1.3.1(E)(1); 415-RICR-00-00-1 § 1.7(A)(1))
Is a sealed, signed plan enough for a Rhode Island land survey?▾
No — the seal is one of three things the rule requires, and the second is a certification in a prescribed form. Section 1.9.7(A) requires the seal, certification and signature of the PLS in responsible charge to appear on every plan. Section 1.9.7(C) then supplies the form: it recites that the survey was conducted and the plan prepared pursuant to 435-RICR-00-00-1.9, states the type of boundary survey and measurement specification (or "Not a Boundary Survey"), any other type of survey with its class, and a detailed statement of purpose, and is subscribed with the PLS signature, the printed PLS name and license number, the COA number, and the approved seal. A plan carrying only a seal and a signature is missing the certification and the firm's COA number. (435-RICR-00-00-1 § 1.9.7(A), (C))
Generate a Rhode Island Land Surveyor seal to this specification
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