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 Board of Professional Engineers, Architects, Surveyors, and Landscape Architects and Haw. Rev. Stat. ch. 464 (four licensed professions) on 21 September 2026 · Updated 21 September 2026
Hawaii does not license, register or certify geologists, so no Hawaii authority prescribes a geologist seal. HRS chapter 464 creates licenses for professional engineers, architects, land surveyors and landscape architects and reaches no further, and the Professional and Vocational Licensing Division of the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs lists no board or program for geology. The center legends the rules prescribe, at HAR § 16-115-8(a), are Licensed Professional Engineer, Licensed Professional Architect, Licensed Professional Land Surveyor and Licensed Professional Landscape Architect. There is no fifth.
What fills the gap in Hawaii is the engineering branch system. Hawaii licenses engineers by branch and requires the branch abbreviation after the license number on the seal, with HAR § 16-115-8(b) adding that “An engineer who is licensed in more than one branch shall have a seal or rubber stamp for each branch.” Geotechnical and geologic questions on a Hawaii project therefore reach paper under a professional engineer’s seal in the relevant branch, with your geologic report carried as supporting material.
Nothing prescribed also means nothing restricted for your own device. There is no required diameter, no required legend and no filing step, so the stamp is a design decision, and Acorn will cut it to whatever you want on it. Put your own name, your firm name, and any credential you actually hold, named with the state that issued it. Leave off “Licensed” and “Registered” and any state-issued title unless the state issued you one, because that is the part some states do restrict.
Hawaii geologist seal requirements at a glance
| Requirement | Hawaii rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Seal required | Not licensed here | Haw. Rev. Stat. ch. 464 (four licensed professions) |
| Required elements | No Hawaii geologist credential exists and No seal is prescribed | Haw. Admin. R. § 16-115-8(a) (center legends limited to engineer, architect, land surveyor and landscape architect) |
| Size and shape | No size is prescribed, because no seal is prescribed. | Haw. Admin. R. § 16-115-8(a)(1) (applies to the four licensed professions) |
| Device allowed | Not applicable. | Haw. Rev. Stat. § 464-11 |
| Signature and date | Not applicable. | Haw. Admin. R. § 16-115-9 |
| What must be sealed | No Hawaii document requires a geologist’s seal. | Haw. Rev. Stat. § 464-11 |
| Electronic seal | Not applicable. | Haw. Admin. R. §§ 16-115-2, 16-115-9(e) |
| Renewal and lapse | Not applicable. | Haw. Rev. Stat. § 464-9(c) |
| Firm requirements | Not applicable. | Haw. Rev. Stat. § 464-12 |
| Regulator | The Board of Professional Engineers, Architects, Surveyors, and Landscape Architects | Haw. Rev. Stat. ch. 464 (Professional Engineers, Architects, Surveyors and Landscape Architects), read on the Hawaii State Legislature site |
Is a seal required in Hawaii?
Hawaii does not license, register or certify geologists, so no Hawaii geologist seal exists and no Hawaii authority prescribes one. HRS chapter 464 creates licenses for professional engineers, architects, land surveyors and landscape architects and reaches no further, and the Professional and Vocational Licensing Division of the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs lists no board or program for geology. Geologic work in Hawaii is done under the general engineering and architectural licensing scheme where a sealed document is needed, or unsealed where it is not.
What must appear on the seal
- No Hawaii geologist credential exists
- No seal is prescribed
There is nothing to make optional. The center legends prescribed by HAR § 16-115-8(a) are Licensed Professional Engineer, Licensed Professional Architect, Licensed Professional Land Surveyor and Licensed Professional Landscape Architect. Hawaii does recognize a geological engineering credential only in the sense that engineers are licensed by branch, so a geotechnical or geological problem in Hawaii is usually sealed by a professional engineer in the appropriate branch, who adds the branch abbreviation after the license number under HAR § 16-115-8(a). That is an engineer’s seal, not a geologist’s.
Size and shape
No size is prescribed, because no seal is prescribed. The 1-1/8 inch inner and 1-1/2 inch outer circles in HAR § 16-115-8(a)(1) belong to the four licensed professions. Checked HRS chapter 464 section by section, HAR chapter 16-115, and the DCCA list of boards and programs, with no geology credential found.
Embosser, rubber stamp or digital
Not applicable. No device is authorized because no credential exists. A geologist practicing in Hawaii should not order anything resembling the board design, and in particular should avoid the two-circle construction, the words Licensed Professional and the legend Hawaii, U.S.A.
Signing and dating
Not applicable. The authentication block in HAR § 16-115-9, including the attestation sentence and the license expiration date line, attaches to a licensee under HRS chapter 464.
No geologist license in Hawaii, so the branch engineer seals the work
Hawaii is one of the states that never adopted geologist licensure. HRS chapter 464 creates four licenses, the board is named for those four, and HAR § 16-115-8(a) prescribes four center legends. The Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs list of boards and programs covers acupuncture, elevator mechanics, pest control, port pilots and dozens more, and has no geology entry at all.
What fills the gap is the engineering branch system. Hawaii licenses engineers by branch and requires the branch abbreviation after the license number on the seal, with HAR § 16-115-8(b) adding that “An engineer who is licensed in more than one branch shall have a seal or rubber stamp for each branch.” Geotechnical and geologic questions on a Hawaii project therefore reach paper through a professional engineer in the relevant branch, under that engineer’s seal.
For anyone ordering a stamp, the practical consequence is simple. There is no Hawaii geologist seal, no prescribed diameter and no prescribed legend, and a die built to look like the board design while naming geology would state a credential the state does not grant.
If you hold a geologist license from another state and work in Hawaii, that license does not carry a Hawaii sealing right with it. Use your home state seal only on documents governed by that state.
Which documents must be sealed
No Hawaii document requires a geologist’s seal. Where a geologic report supports a permit application, the sealing professional is the licensed engineer or architect responsible for the submittal under HRS § 464-11, and a geologist’s report is carried as supporting material rather than as a sealed instrument.
Electronic and digital seals
Not applicable. The digital signature definition in HAR § 16-115-2 and the signature rule in § 16-115-9(e) apply to licensees under HRS chapter 464.
Renewal, lapse and retirement
Not applicable. There is no Hawaii geologist license to expire, restore or revoke.
Firm requirements
Not applicable. HRS § 464-12 governs entities practicing engineering, architecture, surveying or landscape architecture. Geology is not in that list, and Hawaii issues no certificate of authorization for any of these professions.
What to check before you order
There is nothing compliant to order. Hawaii issues no geologist credential, so no Hawaii board has prescribed a design, a size or a legend for one. Keep any business stamp to a plain name and block, and avoid the two-circle construction, the words Licensed Professional and the legend Hawaii, U.S.A. Where a Hawaii submittal needs a seal, it comes from a licensed professional engineer in the relevant branch or from the architect of record.
Browse geologist stamps and seals.
Frequently asked questions
Does Hawaii require a geologist to have a seal?
No, and it could not, because it issues no geologist credential. HRS chapter 464 creates four licenses, the board is named for those four, and HAR § 16-115-8(a) prescribes four center legends. The Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs list of boards and programs covers everything from acupuncture and elevator mechanics to pest control and port pilots, and has no geology entry at all.
Is there a Hawaii geologist license?
There is not. Hawaii is one of the states that never adopted geologist licensure, so there is no board, no registration number, no authorized seal design and no legend. A geologist license held in another state does not carry a Hawaii sealing right with it, and should be used on documents governed by the state that issued it.
What can I put on a geologist stamp for Hawaii work?
Whatever is true of you. Your name as you use it professionally, your firm name, contact details, a monogram or logo, and the exact name of any geologist credential you hold with its issuing state named alongside. A rectangular text block often reads better here than a circle, precisely because it does not imitate a licensing device.
What should I keep off it?
Anything that mimics the board design. Keep off the two-circle construction, keep off the words Licensed Professional, and keep off the legend Hawaii, U.S.A. A die built to look like the prescribed artwork while naming geology would state a credential the state does not grant, which is the one sensitive part of an otherwise free choice.
What size and shape should it be?
Any size and any shape. The 1-1/8 inch inner and 1-1/2 inch outer circles in HAR § 16-115-8(a)(1) belong to the four licensed professions and are not a target for you. Because nothing is prescribed, the size is yours. The round dies Acorn makes most often for unregulated devices fall between 1-1/2 and 2 inches, and rectangular blocks around 2-1/2 by 1 inch, which is a legibility judgment from our own production rather than any rule.
Who seals geologic work on a Hawaii permit application?
The licensed engineer or architect responsible for the submittal, under HRS § 464-11. Your geologic report travels as supporting material rather than as a sealed instrument, and the engineer sealing it does so in the branch relevant to the work.
Why does the Hawaii engineer’s seal carry a branch abbreviation?
Because Hawaii licenses engineers by branch. HAR § 16-115-8(a) requires the branch abbreviation after the license number, and § 16-115-8(b) requires a separate seal or rubber stamp for each branch an engineer holds. If you work alongside a Hawaii engineer on geotechnical questions, that is why their stamp names a branch and why they may own more than one.
Does Hawaii set a digital signature standard I have to meet?
Not for you. The digital signature definition at HAR § 16-115-2 and the signature rule at § 16-115-9(e) apply to licensees under HRS chapter 464, as does the authentication block in § 16-115-9 with its attestation sentence and license expiration date line. Hawaii sets no electronic standard for geologists because it sets no standard for them at all.
Does a Hawaii geology firm need a certificate of authorization?
No. HRS § 464-12 governs entities practicing engineering, architecture, surveying or landscape architecture, and geology is not in that list. Hawaii issues no certificate of authorization for any of these professions in any event, so there is no firm credential to display.
Rubber stamp or embosser?
Your call, since neither is required and neither is forbidden for you. An inked rubber stamp is usually more useful on a geologic report, because it survives copying and scanning while a blind emboss disappears in a PDF. An embosser suits a bound cover or a presentation set where you want something that feels finished.
