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 Nevada State Board of Architecture, Interior Design and Residential Design and Nev. Rev. Stat. § 623.185(1), (2) on 21 September 2026 · Updated 21 September 2026
In Nevada the shape carries the credential. One board registers architects, registered interior designers and residential designers, and NRS 623.185(1) writes all three into a single sentence with three legends. A buyer could reasonably assume one design with the wording swapped. Nevada does not work that way. NAC 623.750 gives the architect a seal of approximately 1-7/8 inches overall diameter conforming to the design printed in the regulation, NAC 623.760 gives the residential designer the same approximate diameter, and NAC 623.755 gives the registered interior designer an equilateral triangle with each side 2-1/2 inches.
The face carries your name as registered, the number of your certificate of registration and the legend Registered Architect. Nevada does not use Licensed Architect. The arrangement is not a matter of taste either, because NAC 623.750 reproduces the design as an image inside the regulation rather than describing it in words. Copy the published layout rather than inferring it from the statutory element list.
No expiration date is required on a Nevada architect seal, which is worth saying plainly because the engineering and surveying board next door does require the expiration date on the document under NAC 625.610. The architect die does not go stale at renewal.
Nevada architect seal requirements at a glance
| Requirement | Nevada rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Seal required | Yes | Nev. Rev. Stat. § 623.185(1), (2) |
| Required elements | Your name as registered, The number of your certificate of registration, The legend Registered Architect and The board design shown in NAC 623.750 | Nev. Rev. Stat. § 623.185(1) |
| Size and shape | Approximately 1-7/8 inches in overall diameter. | Nev. Admin. Code § 623.750 |
| Device allowed | NAC 623.750 requires each architect to “obtain and possess an embossed seal, a seal designed as a rubber stamp or a seal in electronic format”, so all three are lawful. | Nev. Admin. Code §§ 623.750, 623.763 |
| Signature and date | NRS 623.185(2) requires a plan, specification, report or other document issued for official use to be “signed, sealed and dated”. | Nev. Rev. Stat. § 623.185(2) |
| What must be sealed | Any plan, specification, report or other document issued for official use, stamped before submission to a public authority under NAC 623.763(4). | Nev. Admin. Code §§ 623.763(4), (5), 623.766(1) |
| Electronic seal | NAC 623.750 authorizes a seal in electronic format on the same footing as an embossed seal or a rubber stamp, and NAC 623.766 contemplates an original or electronic seal and signature on the document. | Nev. Admin. Code §§ 623.750, 623.763, 623.766 |
| Renewal and lapse | NRS 623.185(3) provides that “It is unlawful for a person to stamp or seal any plan, specification, report or other document with the seal after the certificate of registration of the architect, registered interior designer or residential designer, named therein, has expired or has been suspended or revoked, unless the certificate has been renewed or reissued.” The bar reaches any person, not only the registrant, so an employer or a drafter using a departed architect’s seal is inside it. | Nev. Rev. Stat. § 623.185(3) |
| Firm requirements | No firm seal and no firm number on the sheet. | Nev. Rev. Stat. § 623.349 |
| Regulator | The Nevada State Board of Architecture, Interior Design and Residential Design | Nev. Rev. Stat. ch. 623 (Architects, Interior Designers and Residential Designers), chiefly §§ 623.050, 623.185 and 623.349, and Nev. Admin. Code ch. 623, chiefly §§ 623.750, 623.755, 623.760, 623.763 and 623.766, read from the Nevada Legislature published text. One board registers architects, registered interior designers and residential designers, and NRS 623.185 states one element list for all three, but NAC 623 prescribes different devices: a circle of approximately 1-7/8 inches for architects and residential designers, and an equilateral triangle with 2-1/2 inch sides for registered interior designers. Nevada landscape architects answer to the separate State Board of Landscape Architecture under NRS ch. 623A, and professional engineers and professional land surveyors to the State Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors under NRS ch. 625. Nevada does not license geologists. |
Is a seal required in Nevada?
Nevada puts the duty to hold a seal in the statute and the duty to use it in the same section. NRS 623.185(1) provides that “Upon being issued a certificate of registration, each registered architect, registered interior designer or residential designer shall obtain a seal of the design authorized by the Board, bearing the architect’s, registered interior designer’s or residential designer’s name, the number of the certificate of registration, and the legend ‘Registered Architect,’ ‘Registered Interior Designer’ or ‘Residential Designer.’” NRS 623.185(2) then requires that “A plan, specification, report or other document issued by a registered architect, registered interior designer or residential designer for official use must be signed, sealed and dated by him or her.” NAC 623.750 supplies the architect design and NAC 623.763 governs validation and timing.
What must appear on the seal
- Your name as registered
- The number of your certificate of registration
- The legend Registered Architect
- The board design shown in NAC 623.750
The statute fixes three items and the regulation fixes the layout by printing a diagram. NRS 623.185(1) names the registrant’s name, the certificate of registration number and the legend “Registered Architect”, and Nevada does not use Licensed Architect. NAC 623.750 then requires the seal to conform to the design shown in the regulation, so the arrangement of those items is not a matter of taste. The expiration date is not required on an architect seal here, which is worth saying plainly because the Nevada engineering and surveying board next door does require the expiration date on the document under NAC 625.610. A separate requirement applies to registered interior designers under NRS 623.185(4) and does not reach architects.
Size and shape
Approximately 1-7/8 inches in overall diameter. NAC 623.750 provides that the overall diameter of the seal must be approximately 1-7/8 inches and that the seal must conform to the design shown in the regulation. The word approximately gives a little latitude on the circle, but it gives none on the design, which is reproduced as an image inside the regulation rather than described in words. Copy the layout from the published design rather than inferring it from the statutory element list.
Embosser, rubber stamp or digital
NAC 623.750 requires each architect to “obtain and possess an embossed seal, a seal designed as a rubber stamp or a seal in electronic format”, so all three are lawful. The rubber stamp is the safe buy because NAC 623.763 tests the result rather than the device, requiring the seal, signature and date to produce a clearly visible and legible image on any copy or reproduction, and a dry embossed impression struggles with that. The electronic format is expressly permitted, which matters for the electronic submittals NAC 623.766 contemplates.
Signing and dating
NRS 623.185(2) requires a plan, specification, report or other document issued for official use to be “signed, sealed and dated”. NAC 623.763 adds the quality test, requiring the seal, signature and date to produce a clearly visible and legible image on any copy or reproduction, and NAC 623.763(4) fixes the timing: plans must be stamped with the seal of the registrant before they are submitted to any public authority. The same section makes the registrant who signs a document containing the work of others responsible for the whole of it, and exposes a registrant to disciplinary proceedings for errors in documents the registrant sealed but did not personally prepare.
One Nevada board, three credentials, and only one of them uses a circle
NRS chapter 623 is titled Architects, Interior Designers and Residential Designers, and NRS 623.185(1) writes all three into a single sentence with three legends: “Registered Architect,” “Registered Interior Designer” or “Residential Designer.” A buyer could reasonably assume one design with the wording swapped, as Missouri and Arizona do it. Nevada does not.
NAC 623.750 gives the architect a seal of approximately 1-7/8 inches overall diameter conforming to the design printed in the regulation. NAC 623.760 gives the residential designer the same approximate diameter. NAC 623.755 gives the registered interior designer an equilateral triangle with each side 2-1/2 inches. So the shape itself carries the credential in Nevada, and an interior designer who orders a circle has bought the wrong thing outright.
Two more Nevada points belong on an architect’s order. The legend is Registered Architect, not Licensed Architect. And the expiration date, which Nevada engineers and land surveyors have to put on the document under NAC 625.610, is not required here, so the architect die does not go stale at renewal.
Finally, NAC 623.763(4) fixes the moment: plans must be stamped before they are submitted to any public authority. NAC 623.763(5) excuses only three things, being an as-built plan, record plan or bid document, a construction progress observation report, and an estimate of project costs.
Which documents must be sealed
Any plan, specification, report or other document issued for official use, stamped before submission to a public authority under NAC 623.763(4). Three categories are excused by NAC 623.763(5): an as-built plan, record plan or bid document; a report including observations on construction progress; and an estimate of project costs. NAC 623.766(1) then requires information that has nothing to do with the die but everything to do with a compliant sheet: the name, address and telephone number of the person or firm submitting the document, the project name and location, the date issued, and an indication of whether the document is preliminary or final.
Electronic and digital seals
NAC 623.750 authorizes a seal in electronic format on the same footing as an embossed seal or a rubber stamp, and NAC 623.766 contemplates an original or electronic seal and signature on the document. The regulation names no certificate authority, no file format and no cryptographic standard, testing instead the visibility and legibility of the resulting image under NAC 623.763. Note that this is a different and lighter standard than the secure encryption requirement the engineering and surveying board applies under NAC 625.610(10).
Renewal, lapse and retirement
NRS 623.185(3) provides that “It is unlawful for a person to stamp or seal any plan, specification, report or other document with the seal after the certificate of registration of the architect, registered interior designer or residential designer, named therein, has expired or has been suspended or revoked, unless the certificate has been renewed or reissued.” The bar reaches any person, not only the registrant, so an employer or a drafter using a departed architect’s seal is inside it. Nothing in NRS 623 or NAC 623 requires the seal to be surrendered or destroyed, and nothing says the certificate of registration number changes on renewal or reinstatement. Because the architect seal carries no expiration date, a renewal does not obsolete the die.
Firm requirements
No firm seal and no firm number on the sheet. NRS 623.349 governs practice by a partnership, corporation, limited-liability company or other form of business organization or association and requires such an organization to demonstrate to the Board that it is in compliance with that section before practicing. Neither NRS 623 nor NAC 623 creates a firm seal or requires a firm registration number on a document. What NAC 623.766(1) does require is the name, address and telephone number of the person or firm submitting the document, which is an identification block rather than a credential.
What to check before you order
Order a seal of approximately 1-7/8 inches overall diameter laid out to the design printed in NAC 623.750. Three items go on it: your name as registered, your certificate of registration number, and the legend Registered Architect. Do not accept Licensed Architect and do not ask for an expiration date, which Nevada does not require on this seal. An embossed seal, a rubber stamp and a seal in electronic format are all lawful, and the rubber stamp is the practical choice because the seal, signature and date have to produce a clearly visible and legible image on any copy. If you also hold a Nevada interior design registration, that seal is a different shape entirely and has to be ordered separately.
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Frequently asked questions
Is an architect seal required in Nevada?
Yes. NRS 623.185(1) requires each registered architect, on being issued a certificate of registration, to obtain a seal of the design authorized by the Board bearing the name, the number of the certificate of registration and the legend Registered Architect. NRS 623.185(2) supplies the trigger: “A plan, specification, report or other document issued by a registered architect, registered interior designer or residential designer for official use must be signed, sealed and dated by him or her.”
What has to appear on a Nevada architect seal?
Four things: your name as registered, the number of your certificate of registration, the legend Registered Architect, and the board design shown in NAC 623.750. Nevada does not use Licensed Architect, and the expiration date is not a required element here.
What size is a Nevada architect seal?
Approximately 1-7/8 inches in overall diameter, under NAC 623.750, which also requires the seal to conform to the design shown in the regulation. The word approximately gives a little latitude on the circle and none on the design.
Can I use an embosser in Nevada?
Yes. NAC 623.750 requires each architect to “obtain and possess an embossed seal, a seal designed as a rubber stamp or a seal in electronic format,” so all three are lawful. The rubber stamp is the practical buy because NAC 623.763 tests the result rather than the device, requiring the seal, signature and date to produce a clearly visible and legible image on any copy or reproduction, and a dry embossed impression struggles with that.
When does the seal have to be applied in Nevada?
Before submission. NAC 623.763(4) requires plans to be stamped with the seal of the registrant before they are submitted to any public authority, and NRS 623.185(2) requires the document to be signed, sealed and dated. NAC 623.763 adds the quality test that the seal, signature and date produce a clearly visible and legible image on any copy or reproduction.
What am I responsible for when I seal in Nevada?
The whole document. NAC 623.763 makes the registrant who signs a document containing the work of others responsible for all of it, and exposes a registrant to disciplinary proceedings for errors in documents the registrant sealed but did not personally prepare.
Which Nevada documents do not need a seal?
Three categories are excused by NAC 623.763(5): an as-built plan, record plan or bid document; a report including observations on construction progress; and an estimate of project costs.
What else has to appear on a Nevada document?
NAC 623.766(1) requires information that has nothing to do with the die but everything to do with a compliant sheet: the name, address and telephone number of the person or firm submitting the document, the project name and location, the date issued, and an indication of whether the document is preliminary or final.
Can I seal electronically in Nevada?
Yes. NAC 623.750 authorizes a seal in electronic format on the same footing as an embossed seal or a rubber stamp, and NAC 623.766 contemplates an original or electronic seal and signature on the document. The regulation names no certificate authority, no file format and no cryptographic standard, testing instead the visibility and legibility of the resulting image under NAC 623.763. That is a lighter standard than the secure encryption requirement the engineering and surveying board applies under NAC 625.610(10).
Who can be prosecuted for misusing a Nevada seal?
Any person. NRS 623.185(3) provides that “It is unlawful for a person to stamp or seal any plan, specification, report or other document with the seal after the certificate of registration of the architect, registered interior designer or residential designer, named therein, has expired or has been suspended or revoked, unless the certificate has been renewed or reissued.” The bar reaches any person, not only the registrant, so an employer or a drafter using a departed architect’s seal is inside it. Nothing in NRS 623 or NAC 623 requires the seal to be surrendered or destroyed, and nothing says the certificate number changes on renewal or reinstatement.
Does a Nevada architecture firm get its own seal?
No. NRS 623.349 governs practice by a partnership, corporation, limited-liability company or other form of business organization or association and requires such an organization to demonstrate compliance to the Board before practicing, but neither NRS 623 nor NAC 623 creates a firm seal or requires a firm registration number on a document. What NAC 623.766(1) does require is the name, address and telephone number of the person or firm submitting the document, which is an identification block rather than a credential.
