Written by Acorn Sales Company, manufacturing stamps and seals since 1964 · Reviewed by Holly R, VP of Sales and Marketing at Acorn Sales, against la Junta Examinadora de Arquitectos y Arquitectos Paisajistas de Puerto Rico (the Board of Examiners of Architects and Landscape Architects of Puerto Rico), within the Departamento de Estado and Ley Núm. 173 de 12 de agosto de 1988, Art. 16 on 21 September 2026 · Updated 21 September 2026
The expiration date is cut into the face, so the die is replaced each renewal cycle. Reglamento Núm. 7717, Art. XIII lists “la fecha de expiración” among the required contents of the licensed professional’s seal. A mainland landscape architect buys one device for a career. Here the device carries a date that passes, and a stamp bearing a lapsed date on a current project is an obvious defect on the sheet.
The seal is circular and exactly two inches in diameter, carrying your own name, the profession written as Arquitecto Paisajista, your license serial number, the words Puerto Rico and that expiration date. Nothing else may appear: “El sello no contendrá ninguna otra información, ni contenido, emblema o escudo alguno.” No firm name, no CLARB number, no college emblem and no Commonwealth shield, which belongs to the Junta’s own official seal described in the same article.
Landscape architecture sits with architecture here under one Act and one seal article. Ley Núm. 173 de 1988 created a single examining board for engineers, architects, surveyors and landscape architects, and the professions have since split between two boards and two compulsory colleges while the seal article did not split with them. Your die is an architect’s die with one word changed.
Puerto Rico landscape architect seal requirements at a glance
| Requirement | Puerto Rico rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Seal required | Yes | Ley Núm. 173 de 12 de agosto de 1988, Art. 16 |
| Required elements | Your own name (nombre propio); The profession you practice, written as Arquitecto Paisajista; Your license serial number (número de serie de su licencia); The words Puerto Rico; The expiration date (la fecha de expiración) | Reglamento Núm. 7717, Art. XIII |
| Size and shape | Circular, two inches in diameter. | Reglamento Núm. 7717, Art. XIII |
| Device allowed | The regulation does not specify a device type. | Reglamento Núm. 7717, Art. XIII |
| Signature and date | Sign in your own hand. | Ley Núm. 173 de 1988, Art. 16 |
| What must be sealed | All professional work, graphic or written, that the licensee makes or authorizes, including specifications, surveys, reports, designs, plans and analogous documents, prepared for the Government or for private enterprise. | Ley Núm. 173 de 1988, Art. 16 |
| Electronic seal | Delegated and not verified. | Ley Núm. 173 de 1988, Art. 16 (delegated to the Junta |
| Renewal and lapse | Art. 16 prohibits signing or stamping during suspension, during inactivity and after expiry. | Ley Núm. 173 de 1988, Art. 16 |
| Firm requirements | The mainland certificate of authorization model does not apply. | Ley Núm. 173 de 1988, Arts. 2, 16 |
| Regulator | La Junta Examinadora de Arquitectos y Arquitectos Paisajistas de Puerto Rico (the Board of Examiners of Architects and Landscape Architects of Puerto Rico), within the Departamento de Estado | Ley Núm. 173 de 12 de agosto de 1988, Arts. 2, 13 and 16, read in Spanish from the official PDF hosted at docs.pr.gov by the Departamento de Estado |
Is a seal required in Puerto Rico?
Puerto Rico licenses the arquitecto paisajista licenciado under the same Act and the same Junta as architects, and seals both under one article. Art. 16 of Ley Núm. 173 de 12 de agosto de 1988 requires every professional licensed by the Junta to keep and stamp, where required, on all professional work, graphic or written, that the professional makes or authorizes, including specifications, surveys, reports, designs, plans and analogous documents, “un sello o timbre de diseño especial autorizado por la Junta.” Reglamento Núm. 7717, Art. XIII supplies the dimension and the contents.
What must appear on the seal
- Your own name (nombre propio)
- The profession you practice, written as Arquitecto Paisajista
- Your license serial number (número de serie de su licencia)
- The words Puerto Rico
- The expiration date (la fecha de expiración)
Art. XIII names both professions in one sentence and the profession line is the only element that changes, so take “Arquitecto Paisajista.” Everything else is closed off: “El sello no contendrá ninguna otra información, ni contenido, emblema o escudo alguno.” No firm name, no CLARB number, no college emblem and no Commonwealth shield, which belongs to the Junta’s own official seal described in the same article. A professional in training may use no seal at all.
Size and shape
Circular, two inches in diameter. Reglamento Núm. 7717, Art. XIII prescribes “un sello o timbre circular de dos (2) pulgadas de diámetro” for the licensed professional, architects and landscape architects alike. The Junta’s own official seal, described separately in the same article, carries the Commonwealth seal at its center and is not the practitioner’s device.
Embosser, rubber stamp or digital
The regulation does not specify a device type. Art. XIII prescribes the dimension and the contents and says nothing about inked, embossed or electronic devices. Nothing permits and nothing forbids any of them. Art. 16 of the Act leaves the electronic question to the Junta: “La Junta determinará las maneras en que se aceptarán las firmas y sellos cibernéticos o digitalizados.” An inked stamp at exactly two inches is the safe buy, because plans are stamped sheet by sheet and signed by hand.
Signing and dating
Sign in your own hand. Art. 16 requires the professional to sign the document “con su puño y letra,” and provides that stamping the seal and signing certifies the work was done by the professional or under the professional’s control and supervision. Each sheet of plans is sealed and signed; in a partnership or corporation the participating professionals seal and sign and the responsible person signs and seals the first page. Signing or stamping during suspension, during inactivity or after expiry is prohibited. Not addressed: Art. 16 does not require a date beside the signature; the expiration date is an element of the seal.
Landscape architecture sits with architecture here, under one Act and one seal article
Ley Núm. 173 de 1988 was enacted to create a single examining board for engineers, architects, surveyors and landscape architects, and Art. 16 is one shared seal article for all of them. The professions have since split between two boards and two compulsory colleges, with architects and landscape architects at the Junta Examinadora de Arquitectos y Arquitectos Paisajistas and the Colegio de Arquitectos y Arquitectos Paisajistas, and engineers and agrimensores at their own Junta and at the CIAPR. The seal article did not split with them.
Which documents must be sealed
All professional work, graphic or written, that the licensee makes or authorizes, including specifications, surveys, reports, designs, plans and analogous documents, prepared for the Government or for private enterprise. That is a general professional-output duty rather than a permit-set list, and it is wider than a mainland construction-documents formulation. Plans are sealed and signed sheet by sheet.
Electronic and digital seals
Delegated and not verified. Art. 16 provides that the Junta will determine the ways in which cyber or digitized signatures and seals are accepted, and Reglamento Núm. 7717, Art. XIII sets the dimension and contents without supplying an electronic standard in the article we read. Not verified: whether the Junta has issued such a determination and what it requires. Ask the Junta before relying on an electronic seal, and remember that the Act separately requires the signature to be in the professional’s own hand.
Renewal, lapse and retirement
Art. 16 prohibits signing or stamping during suspension, during inactivity and after expiry. Because Reglamento Núm. 7717, Art. XIII puts “la fecha de expiración” on the face of the seal, the device dates itself and has to be replaced at each renewal cycle. Not addressed: whether the license serial number is reissued, and whether the superseded device must be surrendered or destroyed.
Firm requirements
The mainland certificate of authorization model does not apply. No firm seal, no firm number on the document. Art. 2 of Ley Núm. 173 instead conditions practice on active membership in a compulsory professional college, for this profession the Colegio de Arquitectos y Arquitectos Paisajistas de Puerto Rico, which has no US-state analogue. Within a firm, Art. 16 allocates responsibility by signature rather than by an entity credential: participating professionals seal and sign their work, and the responsible person signs and seals the first page.
What to check before you order
Order a circular device exactly two inches in diameter carrying your own name, the profession written as Arquitecto Paisajista, your license serial number, the words Puerto Rico and the expiration date of your license. Nothing else may appear: the regulation forbids any other information, content, emblem or shield, so keep the Commonwealth seal and any college emblem off. The regulation does not say whether the device is inked or embossed; an inked stamp is the practical choice because plans are stamped sheet by sheet and signed by hand. Expect to replace the die at each renewal, because the expiration date is cut into the face. Sign in your own hand, and ask the Junta before relying on any digitized seal or signature.
Browse landscape architect stamps and seals.
Frequently asked questions
Is a seal required for landscape architects in Puerto Rico?
Yes. Art. 16 of Ley Núm. 173 de 12 de agosto de 1988 requires every professional licensed by the Junta to keep and stamp, where required, on all professional work, graphic or written, that the professional makes or authorizes, including specifications, surveys, reports, designs, plans and analogous documents, “un sello o timbre de diseño especial autorizado por la Junta.” Reglamento Núm. 7717, Art. XIII supplies the dimension and the contents.
What has to appear on a Puerto Rico landscape architect seal?
Five items: your own name, the profession written as Arquitecto Paisajista, your license serial number, the words Puerto Rico, and the expiration date. Art. XIII names both professions in one sentence and the profession line is the only element that changes. Everything else is closed off, since the article forbids any other information, content, emblem or shield. A professional in training may use no seal at all.
What size is a Puerto Rico landscape architect seal?
Circular and two inches in diameter. Reglamento Núm. 7717, Art. XIII prescribes “un sello o timbre circular de dos (2) pulgadas de diámetro” for the licensed professional, architects and landscape architects alike. The Junta’s own official seal, described separately in the same article, carries the Commonwealth seal at its center and is not the practitioner’s device.
Embosser or inked stamp in Puerto Rico?
The regulation does not specify a device type. Art. XIII prescribes the dimension and the contents and says nothing about inked, embossed or electronic devices, so nothing permits and nothing forbids any of them. An inked stamp at exactly two inches is the practical choice, because plans are stamped sheet by sheet and signed by hand.
How do I sign a Puerto Rico sealed document?
In your own hand. Art. 16 requires the professional to sign “con su puño y letra,” and provides that stamping the seal and signing certifies the work was done by the professional or under the professional’s control and supervision. The article does not require a date beside the signature, because the expiration date is an element of the seal itself.
Which Puerto Rico documents have to be sealed?
All professional work, graphic or written, that you make or authorize, including specifications, surveys, reports, designs, plans and analogous documents, prepared for the Government or for private enterprise. That is a general professional-output duty rather than a permit-set list, and it is wider than a mainland construction-documents formulation. Plans are sealed and signed sheet by sheet.
How does a Puerto Rico firm handle sealing?
By signature rather than by an entity credential. In a partnership or corporation the participating professionals seal and sign their work, and the responsible person signs and seals the first page. There is no firm seal and no firm number on the document. Art. 2 of Ley Núm. 173 instead conditions practice on active membership in a compulsory professional college, for this profession the Colegio de Arquitectos y Arquitectos Paisajistas de Puerto Rico, which has no US-state analogue.
Can I use a digital seal in Puerto Rico?
That is delegated and unverified. Art. 16 provides that the Junta will determine the ways in which cyber or digitized signatures and seals are accepted, and Reglamento Núm. 7717, Art. XIII sets the dimension and contents without supplying an electronic standard. Whether the Junta has issued such a determination, and what it requires, could not be confirmed. Ask the Junta before relying on an electronic seal, and remember that the Act separately requires the signature to be in your own hand.
Can I seal in Puerto Rico while inactive or suspended?
No. Art. 16 prohibits signing or stamping during suspension, during inactivity and after expiry. Because the expiration date sits on the face of the seal, the device dates itself. Whether the license serial number is reissued, and whether a superseded device must be surrendered or destroyed, are not addressed.
Why does my Puerto Rico seal look like an architect seal?
Because one article governs both. Ley Núm. 173 de 1988 was enacted to create a single examining board for engineers, architects, surveyors and landscape architects, with Art. 16 as one shared seal article. The professions have since split between two boards and two compulsory colleges, architects and landscape architects at the Junta Examinadora de Arquitectos y Arquitectos Paisajistas and the Colegio de Arquitectos y Arquitectos Paisajistas, and engineers and agrimensores at their own Junta and at the CIAPR. The seal article did not split with them.
