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 Junta Examinadora de Ingenieros y Agrimensores de Puerto Rico (Board of Examiners of Engineers and Land Surveyors of Puerto Rico), within the Departamento de Estado and Ley Num. 173 de 12 de agosto de 1988, Art. 16 (20 L.P.R.A. § 711k) on 21 September 2026 · Updated 21 September 2026
Puerto Rico does not fit the mainland format, and this page does not pretend otherwise. There is no “PE” in Puerto Rico law. The statute regulates an ingeniero licenciado, and the seal it requires is a “sello o timbre de diseño especial autorizado por la Junta,” a special design held by the Junta Examinadora rather than described in the law. Art. 16 of Ley Núm. 173 of 12 August 1988 then gives the device a status no US state seal has: for all legal purposes it “será considerado como un sello público autorizado” by the Act.
A license is also not authority to practice. Art. 2 requires every person practicing or offering to practice engineering, architecture, surveying or landscape architecture in Puerto Rico, in the public sector or in private business, to show that they are authorized under the Act, that they appear in the Board’s registry, and “que es miembro activo del Colegio de Ingenieros y Agrimensores de Puerto Rico.” Compulsory membership in a professional college is a civil law institution with no US state analogue, and an engineer whose CIAPR membership lapses is not authorized to practice however valid the Junta license looks.
A second formality sits with CIAPR. Its published register of regulations includes Reglamento Núm. 7360, Comisión Fiscalizadora Pago del Arancel y Cancelación de Estampillas, the commission overseeing payment of the tariff and cancellation of revenue stamps. The existence and title of that regulation are verified. Its contents could not be read, because the posted PDF has no text layer, so this page states that the obligation exists and does not state how it works. The same gap affects the Junta’s own operating regulation, Reglamento Núm. 7749 of 23 September 2009, which is also a scanned image. Ask the Junta and CIAPR for the artwork and the arancel mechanics rather than buying against a mainland template. Acorn cuts this seal to 2 inches. That is our production record rather than a Puerto Rico rule; Reglamento Num. 7749 is a scanned image with no machine-readable text.
Puerto Rico PE seal requirements at a glance
| Requirement | Puerto Rico rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Seal required | Yes | Ley Num. 173 de 12 de agosto de 1988, Art. 16 (20 L.P.R.A. § 711k) |
| Required elements | Your own name (su nombre propio); The profession you practice (la profesión que ejerza); Your status as licensed (su condición de licenciado); Your license number (el número de su licencia); The inscription “Puerto Rico” | Ley Num. 173 de 1988, Art. 16 (20 L.P.R.A. § 711k) |
| Size and shape | Acorn cuts this seal to 2 inches, and that is a production record rather than a published rule. | Acorn Sales production record, Puerto Rico professional engineer seal |
| Device allowed | The statute says “un sello o timbre,” a seal or stamp, and uses the verbs “firmar, timbrar o estampar,” without naming a device type. | Ley Num. 173 de 1988, Art. 16 |
| Signature and date | A handwritten signature is required in addition to the seal: “El profesional deberá en adición, firmar con su puño y letra el documento en cuestión.” Sealing and signing are a certification that the work was done by the professional or under the professional’s control and supervision of the technical phase. | Ley Num. 173 de 1988, Art. 16 (20 L.P.R.A. § 711k) |
| What must be sealed | Every professional work, graphic or written, that the professional makes or authorizes, “incluyendo especificaciones, mensuras, informes, diseños, planos y otros documentos análogos,” whether prepared for government or for private business. | Ley Num. 173 de 1988, Art. 16 |
| Electronic seal | Art. 16 does not itself authorize digital seals; it delegates: “La Junta determinará las maneras en que se aceptarán las firmas y sellos cibernéticos o digitalizados para efectos de cumplir con esta sección.” The Board determines how cybernetic or digitized signatures and seals are accepted. | Ley Num. 173 de 1988, Art. 16 (delegation) |
| Renewal and lapse | Art. 16 makes it unlawful to sign, stamp or seal any document with that seal and signature “durante el término de suspensión o inactividad de una licencia y después de la fecha de expiración o cancelación permanente de la misma.” Because the seal is deemed a public seal under the Act, misuse carries more weight than a private misrepresentation would. | Ley Num. 173 de 1988, Art. 16 |
| Firm number on documents | Different from a mainland certificate of authorization. | Ley Num. 173 de 1988, Art. 16 |
| Licensing board | The Junta Examinadora de Ingenieros y Agrimensores de Puerto Rico (Board of Examiners of Engineers and Land Surveyors of Puerto Rico), within the Departamento de Estado | Ley Num. 173 de 12 de agosto de 1988, Ley para Crear la Junta Examinadora de Ingenieros, Arquitectos, Agrimensores y Arquitectos Paisajistas de Puerto Rico, Arts. 2 |
Rules for other states are on PE stamp requirements by state.
Is a seal required in Puerto Rico?
Puerto Rico requires a seal Read this page differently from the others. Puerto Rico does not regulate engineering the way a mainland state board does, and a standard US “PE stamp requirements” page does not fit it. Two bodies stand between an engineer and a sealed drawing: the Junta Examinadora, which licenses and authorizes the seal design, and the Colegio de Ingenieros y Agrimensores de Puerto Rico (CIAPR), membership in which is compulsory to practice at all. There is also no “PE” title in Puerto Rico law; the statute speaks of an Ingeniero Licenciado. The seal duty is statutory. Art. 16 of Ley Num. 173 of 12 August 1988 provides that every licensed professional “mantendrá y estampará, de ser requerido, en todo trabajo profesional, gráfico o escrito que hiciere o autorizare, incluyendo especificaciones, mensuras, informes, diseños, planos y otros documentos análogos, sean éstos preparados para el Gobierno o para la empresa privada, un sello o timbre de diseño especial autorizado por la Junta.” The same article makes the seal a public seal for all legal purposes: “A todos los efectos legales este sello será considerado como un sello público autorizado” by the Act.
What must appear on the seal
- Your own name (su nombre propio)
- The profession you practice (la profesión que ejerza)
- Your status as licensed (su condición de licenciado)
- Your license number (el número de su licencia)
- The inscription “Puerto Rico”
The five elements come straight from the statute and are the only design content Puerto Rico law states. The design itself is “de diseño especial autorizado por la Junta,” a special design authorized by the Board, so the Board holds the artwork. The Junta’s operating regulation, Reglamento Num. 7749 of 23 September 2009, would be the place any further design detail lives; that regulation is published only as a scanned image PDF with no text layer and could not be read. Treat any specific Puerto Rico seal artwork, border or wording beyond the five statutory elements as unverified until the Board supplies it. Note the second element: the seal names the profession, so an ingeniero and an agrimensor carry different devices.
Size and shape
Acorn cuts this seal to 2 inches, and that is a production record rather than a published rule. The state publishes no dimension, so the figure below is what we make and ship for Puerto Rico licensees rather than something you can point a reviewer at. Ley 173 states no diameter and no text height, and Reglamento Num. 7749, where one would sit, is a scanned image with no machine-readable text. What the state publishes: Ley 173 states no diameter and no text height; this was checked against the full text of Art. 16. Reglamento Num. 7749, where a dimension would normally sit, is a scanned image with no machine-readable text and could not be read. Any inch figure circulating online for a Puerto Rico engineer’s seal is unverified here.
Embosser, rubber stamp or digital
The statute says “un sello o timbre,” a seal or stamp, and uses the verbs “firmar, timbrar o estampar,” without naming a device type. It does not distinguish embossed from inked, and it does not mention facsimiles. The only technology provision is the delegation at the end of Art. 16, quoted under the electronic slot. Because the Board authorizes the design and the implementing regulation could not be read, the safe buy is the device the Junta itself authorizes, ordered against the Board’s own specification rather than against a mainland template.
Signing and dating
A handwritten signature is required in addition to the seal: “El profesional deberá en adición, firmar con su puño y letra el documento en cuestión.” Sealing and signing are a certification that the work was done by the professional or under the professional’s control and supervision of the technical phase. The statute states no date requirement and no requirement that the signature cross the seal. Sealing or signing during suspension or inactivity of a license, or after expiration or permanent cancellation, is expressly unlawful.
The Junta licenses you, but the Colegio lets you practice, and the standard US stamp page does not fit Puerto Rico
The honest answer is that Puerto Rico does not map onto a mainland “PE stamp” page. Art. 2 of Ley 173 requires every person practicing or offering to practice engineering, architecture, surveying or landscape architecture in Puerto Rico, in the public sector or in private business, to show that they are authorized under the Act, that they appear in the Board’s registry, and “que es miembro activo del Colegio de Ingenieros y Agrimensores de Puerto Rico.” Compulsory membership in a professional college is a civil-law institution with no US state analogue. A licensed engineer who is not an active CIAPR member is not authorized to practice, however valid the Junta license looks.
Which documents must be sealed
Every professional work, graphic or written, that the professional makes or authorizes, “incluyendo especificaciones, mensuras, informes, diseños, planos y otros documentos análogos,” whether prepared for government or for private business. Plan sets are governed sheet by sheet: “En caso de la presentación de planos cada hoja en particular deberá ser sellada y firmada por el profesional o profesionales que participaron en su elaboración.” Art. 16 also anticipates that the work may build on other people’s details, libraries or databases and says that does not restrict the certification. There is no draft or preliminary carve-out in the statute.
Electronic and digital seals
Art. 16 does not itself authorize digital seals; it delegates: “La Junta determinará las maneras en que se aceptarán las firmas y sellos cibernéticos o digitalizados para efectos de cumplir con esta sección.” The Board determines how cybernetic or digitized signatures and seals are accepted. Whether the Junta has issued such a determination, and what it requires, could not be verified. The Board’s own regulation, Reglamento Num. 7749, is a scanned image PDF with no text layer, and the Department of State’s board page publishes no separate electronic seal guidance. No technology, certificate authority or standard is named anywhere in the statute.
Renewal, lapse and retirement
Art. 16 makes it unlawful to sign, stamp or seal any document with that seal and signature “durante el término de suspensión o inactividad de una licencia y después de la fecha de expiración o cancelación permanente de la misma.” Because the seal is deemed a public seal under the Act, misuse carries more weight than a private misrepresentation would. Not addressed: the statute does not require surrender or destruction of the device and does not say whether the license number changes. Continuing education is governed by Reglamento Num. 6575 of 28 January 2003 as amended by Reglamento Num. 7814 of 22 February 2010; those were not read. Separately, an engineer who lets CIAPR membership lapse is no longer authorized to practice, independent of the license.
Firm registration
Different from a mainland certificate of authorization. Puerto Rico has no firm seal and Ley 173 requires no firm registration number on the document. What it regulates instead is who signs inside a firm: “En el caso de aquellos profesionales que presten sus servicios mediante una sociedad, o mediante una corporación profesional, cada hoja será sellada y firmada por los profesionales que participaron en su elaboración y en adición, la persona responsable del caso, firmará, sellará la primera página o página de título del mismo.” Every participating professional seals and signs the sheets they worked on, and the person responsible for the case seals and signs the first or title page.
What to check before you order
Do not order a Puerto Rico device off a mainland template. The five statutory elements are your own name, the profession you practice, your status of being licensed, your license number and the inscription “Puerto Rico,” in Spanish, with the profession spelled out (Ingeniero, Agrimensor) rather than an English abbreviation, and there is no “PE” designation in Puerto Rico law. The design is a special design authorized by the Junta, and because the implementing regulation could not be read, obtain the Board-authorized artwork or specification and work from that; no size is prescribed by statute. Leave space for a handwritten signature, since the law requires you to sign “con su puño y letra” in addition to sealing, and it states no date requirement; on digital seals there is no guidance to give you, because the statute leaves acceptance of cybernetic or digitized signatures and seals to the Junta and no published determination was located. A valid seal is not by itself sufficient authority to practice in Puerto Rico, because active CIAPR membership is a separate statutory condition.
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Frequently asked questions
Is there a PE license in Puerto Rico?
No. Puerto Rico law uses no “PE” title. Ley Núm. 173 of 1988 speaks of an ingeniero licenciado, a licensed engineer, and the Junta Examinadora de Ingenieros y Agrimensores within the Departamento de Estado issues the license. A device engraved with the letters PE does not match anything in the statute.
Is a seal required in Puerto Rico?
Yes, by statute. Art. 16 of Ley Núm. 173 requires every licensed professional to “mantendrá y estampará, de ser requerido, en todo trabajo profesional, gráfico o escrito que hiciere o autorizare, incluyendo especificaciones, mensuras, informes, diseños, planos y otros documentos análogos, sean éstos preparados para el Gobierno o para la empresa privada, un sello o timbre de diseño especial autorizado por la Junta.” The duty covers work prepared for government and for private business alike, and there is no draft or preliminary carve-out in the statute.
What has to appear on a Puerto Rico engineer seal?
Five items, and they are the only design content Puerto Rico law states: your own name (su nombre propio), the profession you practice (la profesión que ejerza), your status as licensed (su condición de licenciado), your license number (el número de su licencia) and the inscription “Puerto Rico.” Note the second element: the seal names the profession, so an ingeniero and an agrimensor carry different devices. Everything beyond those five sits in the Junta’s authorized design.
What size is a Puerto Rico engineer seal?
Not addressed, and not verifiable from published sources. Ley 173 states no diameter and no text height; this was checked against the full text of Art. 16. Reglamento Núm. 7749, the Junta’s operating regulation and the place a dimension would normally sit, is published only as a scanned image PDF with no text layer and could not be read. Any inch figure circulating online for a Puerto Rico engineer’s seal is unverified. Ask the Junta for the authorized design and quote from that. Acorn cuts this seal to 2 inches. That is our production record rather than a Puerto Rico rule; Reglamento Num. 7749 is a scanned image with no machine-readable text.
Is a Puerto Rico license enough to practice?
No. Art. 2 of Ley 173 conditions practice on three things together: authorization under the Act, appearance in the Board’s registry, and active membership in the Colegio de Ingenieros y Agrimensores de Puerto Rico. An engineer who lets CIAPR membership lapse is no longer authorized to practice, independent of the license. This is the single largest difference from any US state and it has no mainland equivalent.
What are the arancel and the estampillas?
A separate obligation attaching to professional work in Puerto Rico, administered through CIAPR rather than through the seal. CIAPR’s own published register of regulations lists Reglamento Núm. 7360, Comisión Fiscalizadora Pago del Arancel y Cancelación de Estampillas. The mechanics could not be read: the posted PDF has no text layer. This page therefore states that a fee and revenue stamp regime exists and declines to describe how it operates. Treat the professional seal and the CIAPR arancel and estampillas as two separate obligations, and get the second from CIAPR.
Can I use a digital seal in Puerto Rico?
Unverified. Art. 16 does not authorize digital seals itself; it delegates: “La Junta determinará las maneras en que se aceptarán las firmas y sellos cibernéticos o digitalizados para efectos de cumplir con esta sección.” Whether the Junta has issued such a determination, and what it requires, could not be verified. Reglamento Núm. 7749 is a scanned image with no text layer, and the Department of State’s board page publishes no separate electronic seal guidance. No technology, certificate authority or standard is named anywhere in the statute.
Do I sign as well as seal in Puerto Rico?
Yes, by hand. Art. 16 requires that “El profesional deberá en adición, firmar con su puño y letra el documento en cuestión.” Sealing and signing together certify that the work was done by the professional or under the professional’s control and supervision of the technical phase. The statute states no date requirement and does not require the signature to cross the seal, so leave space beside the imprint for a handwritten signature.
How are plan sets sealed in Puerto Rico?
Sheet by sheet. Art. 16: “En caso de la presentación de planos cada hoja en particular deberá ser sellada y firmada por el profesional o profesionales que participaron en su elaboración.” The article also anticipates that work may build on other people’s details, libraries or databases and says that does not restrict the certification.
How does sealing work inside a Puerto Rico firm?
There is no firm seal and no firm registration number on the document. What Art. 16 regulates is who signs: “En el caso de aquellos profesionales que presten sus servicios mediante una sociedad, o mediante una corporación profesional, cada hoja será sellada y firmada por los profesionales que participaron en su elaboración y en adición, la persona responsable del caso, firmará, sellará la primera página o página de título del mismo.” Every participating professional seals and signs the sheets they worked on, and the person responsible for the case seals and signs the first or title page.
What happens if my Puerto Rico license is suspended or expires?
Sealing becomes unlawful. Art. 16 bars signing, stamping or sealing any document with that seal and signature “durante el término de suspensión o inactividad de una licencia y después de la fecha de expiración o cancelación permanente de la misma.” Because the seal is deemed a public seal under the Act, misuse is framed as illegality rather than as a rule violation. Not addressed: the statute does not require surrender or destruction of the device and does not say whether the license number changes. Continuing education is governed by Reglamento Núm. 6575 of 28 January 2003 as amended by Reglamento Núm. 7814 of 22 February 2010, which were not read. Separately, a lapse in CIAPR membership ends the authority to practice on its own.
Can I order a Puerto Rico seal from a mainland template?
No, and it should not be sold that way. The five statutory elements are in Spanish, with the profession spelled out, Ingeniero or Agrimensor, rather than an English abbreviation, and there is no PE designation to engrave. The design is a special design authorized by the Junta, the implementing regulation could not be read, and no size is prescribed by statute. The correct route is to obtain the Board-authorized artwork or specification and build to that.
