Written by Acorn Sales Company, manufacturing stamps and seals since 1964 · Reviewed by Holly R, VP of Sales and Marketing at Acorn Sales, against the Florida Board of Landscape Architecture and Fla. Stat. § 481.321(1) on 21 September 2026 · Updated 21 September 2026
Two words, not three: the legend is LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT. Rule 61G10-11.010(1) requires a seal including “the words ‘STATE OF FLORIDA,’ ‘LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT,’ and the licensee’s name as it appears on his or her certificate of registration, as well as the certificate number.” Not registered landscape architect, which is the Texas and Pennsylvania wording, and not licensed landscape architect, which is California’s. Your name has to match the certificate of registration rather than a preferred form.
No size is prescribed anywhere. Rule 61G10-11.010 sets content and capability and states no diameter, no shape and no minimum, and Florida Statutes section 481.321 is silent too. The Florida architect and interior designer seals are fixed at approximately two inches by rule 61G1-16.002, but that is a different board and a different rule chapter, and that figure does not govern you.
What the rule does specify is performance. The seal must be “capable of leaving a permanent ink representation or other form of embossing or opaque and permanent impression, which also may be computer-generated impressions, on the surface of prints or other duplications of drawings and, as appropriate, upon specification pages and other articles of service.” An inked stamp is the safe buy, since the test is what shows on a duplicate.
Florida landscape architect seal requirements at a glance
| Requirement | Florida rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Seal required | Yes | Fla. Stat. § 481.321(1) |
| Required elements | The words STATE OF FLORIDA, The words LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT, Your name as it appears on your certificate of registration and Your certificate number | Fla. Admin. Code r. 61G10-11.010(1) |
| Size and shape | Not addressed. Rule 61G10-11.010 prescribes content and capability and states no diameter, no shape and no minimum. Checked the whole of rule 61G10-11.010, the electronic transmission rule 61G10-11.011 and Florida. | Fla. Admin. Code r. 61G10-11.010 (silent) |
| Device allowed | Ink, embossing or a computer generated impression, tested by what shows on a duplicate. | Fla. Admin. Code r. 61G10-11.010(1) |
| Signature and date | Signature, date and seal, all three. | Fla. Stat. § 481.321(1) |
| What must be sealed | All plans, specifications or reports prepared or issued by the registered landscape architect and filed for public record, and by rule all permit documents as well. | Fla. Stat. § 481.321(3), (4) |
| Electronic seal | Permitted, under a dedicated rule. | Fla. Stat. § 481.321(1) |
| Renewal and lapse | Florida takes this seal back too, and cancels the electronic signature with it. | Fla. Stat. § 481.321(2) |
| Firm requirements | No certificate of authorization for the entity, but an advertising number duty. | Fla. Stat. §§ 481.319, 481.321(5) |
| Regulator | The Florida Board of Landscape Architecture | Fla. Stat. ch. 481, pt. II, principally §§ 481.319 and 481.321, 2024 edition |
Is a seal required in Florida?
Florida Statutes section 481.321(1) has the board prescribe the seal forms and then requires each registered landscape architect to obtain one in an approved form, with the option to register the seal electronically under sections 668.001 to 668.006. The duty follows: “All final plans, specifications, or reports prepared or issued by the registered landscape architect and filed for public record shall be signed by the registered landscape architect, dated, and stamped or sealed electronically with her or his seal. The signature, date, and seal constitute evidence of the authenticity of that to which they are affixed.” The seal content is set by Florida Administrative Code rule 61G10-11.010(1).
What must appear on the seal
- The words STATE OF FLORIDA
- The words LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT
- Your name as it appears on your certificate of registration
- Your certificate number
The legend is shorter than buyers expect. Rule 61G10-11.010(1) requires a seal including “the words ‘STATE OF FLORIDA,’ ‘LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT,’ and the licensee’s name as it appears on his or her certificate of registration, as well as the certificate number.” Not registered landscape architect, and not licensed landscape architect. The name has to match the certificate of registration rather than a preferred form. The rule prescribes no shape and no dimension, so the layout is open in a way the Florida architect and interior designer seals are not.
Size and shape
Not addressed. Rule 61G10-11.010 prescribes content and capability and states no diameter, no shape and no minimum. Checked the whole of rule 61G10-11.010, the electronic transmission rule 61G10-11.011 and Florida Statutes section 481.321. Florida’s architect and interior designer seals do carry a stated size of approximately two inches under a different board’s rule, 61G1-16.002, and that figure does not govern landscape architects.
Embosser, rubber stamp or digital
Ink, embossing or a computer generated impression, tested by what shows on a duplicate. Rule 61G10-11.010(1) requires a seal “capable of leaving a permanent ink representation or other form of embossing or opaque and permanent impression, which also may be computer-generated impressions, on the surface of prints or other duplications of drawings and, as appropriate, upon specification pages and other articles of service.” The safe buy is an inked stamp. Electronic files are sealed under rule 61G10-11.011.
Signing and dating
Signature, date and seal, all three. Section 481.321(1) names them together and makes them evidence of authenticity. Rule 61G10-11.010(2) repeats the trio for all plans, specifications or reports, “including all permit documents,” and then gives a practical shortcut: a registered landscape architect “may sign and seal an index sheet or sheets which identify each individual work for which the signature and seal of a registered landscape architect is required, rather than signing and sealing each individual work.” No placement rule requires the signature to cross the seal.
Two words, not three, and one index sheet can carry the set
Rule 61G10-11.010(1) spells the legend out in capitals: STATE OF FLORIDA and LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT. Not registered landscape architect, which is the wording Texas and Pennsylvania use, and not licensed landscape architect, which is California’s. Florida’s landscape architect seal says only what the profession is.
Which documents must be sealed
All plans, specifications or reports prepared or issued by the registered landscape architect and filed for public record, and by rule all permit documents as well. Rule 61G10-11.010(2) bars affixing the seal or signature to any work the registrant is not competent to perform, and section 481.321(3) bars affixing the seal or name to any plan, specification, drawing or other document not prepared by the landscape architect or under the landscape architect’s responsible supervising control, or not reviewed, approved or modified and adopted as the landscape architect’s own work with full responsibility. Section 481.321(4) preserves the right of a registered landscape architect to file plans of work defined under part II.
Electronic and digital seals
Permitted, under a dedicated rule. Section 481.321(1) allows a registered landscape architect to register the seal electronically in accordance with sections 668.001 to 668.006 and to transmit final plans, specifications or reports electronically, signed, dated and sealed electronically with the seal. Rule 61G10-11.010(1) closes with the direction that “Where required, electronic files shall be sealed in accordance with rule 61G10-11.011, F.A.C.,” which is the board’s Electronic Transmission of Plans, Specifications, Reports, and Seals rule, effective 22 September 2022.
Renewal, lapse and retirement
Florida takes this seal back too, and cancels the electronic signature with it. Section 481.321(2) provides that “It is unlawful for any person to sign and seal by any means any final plan, specification, or report after her or his certificate of registration is expired, suspended, or revoked,” and requires a landscape architect whose certificate is suspended or revoked to surrender the seal to the executive director of the board within thirty days after the effective date and to “confirm in writing to the executive director the cancellation of the landscape architect’s electronic signature.” Where the suspension is for a period of time the seal is returned at its expiration. Rule 61G10-11.010(3) adds that the registrant must hold a valid certificate of registration at the time the seal is affixed. The certificate number does not change on renewal and no date is engraved on the seal.
Firm requirements
No certificate of authorization for the entity, but an advertising number duty. Section 481.319, Corporate and partnership practice of landscape architecture, permits practice through a corporation or partnership subject to personnel conditions rather than by issuing the entity its own certificate. Section 481.321(5) then requires each registered landscape architect to include the certificate number in any newspaper, telephone directory or other advertising medium, and requires a corporation or partnership to display the certificate number of at least one officer, director, owner or partner who is a registered landscape architect employed by or practicing with it. None of that belongs on the seal.
What to check before you order
Order a seal carrying the words STATE OF FLORIDA and LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT, your name exactly as it appears on your certificate of registration, and your certificate number. Those two legends are the whole of the wording; do not add registered or licensed. No diameter or shape is prescribed, so choose a size that keeps the name and number legible on a print. Choose ink over a dry embosser, because the rule asks for an opaque and permanent impression on prints and duplications. If your registration is ever suspended or revoked you must surrender the seal within thirty days and confirm cancellation of your electronic signature in writing.
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Frequently asked questions
Is a seal required for landscape architects in Florida?
Yes. Florida Statutes section 481.321(1) has the board prescribe the seal forms and requires each registered landscape architect to obtain one in an approved form. The duty follows: “All final plans, specifications, or reports prepared or issued by the registered landscape architect and filed for public record shall be signed by the registered landscape architect, dated, and stamped or sealed electronically with her or his seal. The signature, date, and seal constitute evidence of the authenticity of that to which they are affixed.”
What has to appear on a Florida landscape architect seal?
Four items under rule 61G10-11.010(1): the words STATE OF FLORIDA, the words LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT, your name as it appears on your certificate of registration, and your certificate number. Those two legends are the whole of the wording, so do not add registered or licensed. The rule prescribes no shape and no dimension, so the layout is open in a way the Florida architect and interior designer seals are not.
What size is a Florida landscape architect seal?
Florida does not state one for this board. Rule 61G10-11.010 prescribes content and capability and gives no diameter, no shape and no minimum, and section 481.321 adds nothing. Choose a size that keeps the name and certificate number legible on a print. A supplier who applies the approximately two inch figure from rule 61G1-16.002 is applying the architect and interior designer board’s rule, which does not reach you.
Ink or embosser for a Florida landscape architect seal?
Either, plus a computer-generated impression, with the test being what survives duplication. Rule 61G10-11.010(1) requires a seal capable of leaving a permanent ink representation or other form of embossing or opaque and permanent impression on the surface of prints or other duplications of drawings and, as appropriate, on specification pages and other articles of service. An inked stamp is the practical choice because a dry emboss does not meet an opaque and permanent test on a print.
Can one index sheet carry the seal for a whole Florida set?
Yes, and few states allow it. Rule 61G10-11.010(2) lets a registered landscape architect “sign and seal an index sheet or sheets which identify each individual work for which the signature and seal of a registered landscape architect is required, rather than signing and sealing each individual work.” Compare Texas, where the architect, landscape architect and interior designer rules require a seal on each sheet of drawings.
Which Florida documents have to be signed, dated and sealed?
All final plans, specifications or reports prepared or issued by you and filed for public record, and by rule 61G10-11.010(2) all permit documents as well. The same rule bars affixing the seal or signature to any work you are not competent to perform. Section 481.321(3) bars affixing the seal or your name to any plan, specification, drawing or other document not prepared by you or under your responsible supervising control, or not reviewed, approved or modified and adopted as your own work with full responsibility. Section 481.321(4) preserves your right to file plans of work defined under part II.
Can I seal electronically in Florida?
Yes, under a dedicated rule. Section 481.321(1) lets you register the seal electronically in accordance with sections 668.001 to 668.006 and transmit final plans, specifications or reports electronically, signed, dated and sealed electronically. Rule 61G10-11.010(1) closes with the direction that “Where required, electronic files shall be sealed in accordance with rule 61G10-11.011, F.A.C.,” the board’s Electronic Transmission of Plans, Specifications, Reports, and Seals rule, effective 22 September 2022.
What happens to a Florida seal if the certificate is suspended or revoked?
Florida takes it back, and cancels the electronic signature with it. Section 481.321(2) provides that “It is unlawful for any person to sign and seal by any means any final plan, specification, or report after her or his certificate of registration is expired, suspended, or revoked,” and requires a landscape architect whose certificate is suspended or revoked to surrender the seal to the executive director of the board within thirty days after the effective date and to “confirm in writing to the executive director the cancellation of the landscape architect’s electronic signature.” Where the suspension runs for a period of time, the seal comes back at its expiration. Rule 61G10-11.010(3) adds that you must hold a valid certificate at the time the seal is affixed.
Does renewal change a Florida landscape architect seal?
No. The certificate number does not change on renewal and no date is engraved on the seal, so the device stays good through renewal cycles. What matters is that the certificate is valid at the moment you affix the seal.
Does a Florida landscape architecture firm need a certificate on the seal?
No. Section 481.319, Corporate and partnership practice of landscape architecture, permits practice through a corporation or partnership subject to personnel conditions rather than by issuing the entity its own certificate. Section 481.321(5) then requires each registered landscape architect to include the certificate number in any newspaper, telephone directory or other advertising medium, and requires a corporation or partnership to display the certificate number of at least one officer, director, owner or partner who is a registered landscape architect employed by or practicing with it. None of that belongs on the seal.
