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 Washington State Board of Licensure for Landscape Architects and RCW 18.96.150(2) on 21 September 2026 · Updated 21 September 2026
Your license expiration date is on the stamp, so the stamp expires too. WAC 308-13-055(1) is short and consequential: your seal or stamp “must include your signature and your license expiration date.” Washington architects, engineers and land surveyors all carry a number and no date, so their devices outlive every renewal. A Washington landscape architect’s does not. At each renewal the printed expiration date becomes wrong and the device has to be refreshed, which is a good reason to choose an inexpensive inked die rather than an embosser.
You sign adjacent to the seal, not across it. WAC 308-13-055(4)(a) requires a handwritten identification, or a digital representation of it, that is original and written by hand or a scanned image of an original, permanently affixed to the documents being certified, applied to the document by the identified licensee, and placed adjacent to the seal or stamp. That is deliberately different from the architect chapter one door down, WAC 308-12-081(4)(a), which places the architect’s identification across the seal.
There is also a grandfather date. A landscape architect first licensed before January 1, 2017 may keep using an existing registration stamp, while one licensed on or after that date must use the current board authorized seal reading Licensed landscape architect, state of Washington. Two lawful faces circulate in Washington at once, which is why copying a colleague’s artwork is a poor way to order.
Washington landscape architect seal requirements at a glance
| Requirement | Washington rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Seal required | Yes | RCW 18.96.150(2) |
| Required elements | Your name as licensed, Your license number, Licensed landscape architect, State of Washington, Your signature and Your license expiration date | RCW 18.96.150(2) |
| Size and shape | Adjustable, with readability as the only limit. | Wash. Admin. Code 308-13-055 |
| Device allowed | The rule speaks of a seal or stamp of the board authorized design and permits a digital identification, so an inked stamp, an embosser and an electronic image are all workable. | Wash. Admin. Code 308-13-055 |
| Signature and date | The signature is part of the seal itself under WAC 308-13-055(1), and the same rule then defines what a signature is. | Wash. Admin. Code 308-13-055(1), (4) |
| What must be sealed | WAC 308-13-055(2) lists three: all technical submissions required for building permits, regulatory approvals or construction drawings filed with authorities having jurisdiction; drawings prepared by you, on each sheet; and specifications and other technical submissions, which need only be sealed or stamped on the cover, the title page and all pages of the table of contents. | Wash. Admin. Code 308-13-055(2), (3) |
| Electronic seal | Permitted, with the criteria stated in the rule rather than a named technology. | Wash. Admin. Code 308-13-055(4)(b) |
| Renewal and lapse | This is the profession where renewal does touch the device. | RCW 18.96.110, 18.96.150(2) |
| Firm requirements | Applicable by reference. | RCW 18.96.020, 18.96.150(2) |
| Regulator | The Washington State Board of Licensure for Landscape Architects | RCW 18.96.020, 18.96.110 and 18.96.150, Washington landscape architects, read from the Washington State Legislature |
Is a seal required in Washington?
RCW 18.96.150(2) creates the device: “Each licensee shall obtain a seal of the design authorized by the board bearing the landscape architect’s name, license number, the legend ‘Licensed Landscape Architect,’ and the name of this state. Drawings prepared by the licensee shall be sealed and signed by the licensee when filed with public authorities.” WAC 308-13-055 then adds the modern content, and it draws a line at a date: a licensee first licensed on or after January 1, 2017 must use the board authorized seal or stamp bearing name, license number and the legend “Licensed landscape architect, state of Washington,” while a licensee licensed before that date may continue to use an existing registration stamp.
What must appear on the seal
- Your name as licensed
- Your license number
- Licensed landscape architect
- State of Washington
- Your signature
- Your license expiration date
Two items make this seal unlike every other Washington design seal, and both are mandatory rather than optional. WAC 308-13-055(1) provides that your seal or stamp “must include your signature and your license expiration date.” The rule also says the size may be adjusted provided the stamp remains readable, and that other deviations are not allowed. So the only latitude the board gives you is scale. No firm name, no discipline line, no decorative variant.
Size and shape
Adjustable, with readability as the only limit. WAC 308-13-055 states that “The size of the seal/stamp may be adjusted provided it remains readable. Other deviations are not allowed.” No diameter is given in the rule or in RCW 18.96.150. That is an express permission to scale, which the architect chapter, WAC 308-12-081, does not give.
Embosser, rubber stamp or digital
The rule speaks of a seal or stamp of the board authorized design and permits a digital identification, so an inked stamp, an embosser and an electronic image are all workable. An inked stamp is the safe buy here for a practical reason specific to this profession: the seal has to carry your signature and your license expiration date, which means the artwork changes at renewal, and a low cost inked die is the device you will actually replace on schedule.
Signing and dating
The signature is part of the seal itself under WAC 308-13-055(1), and the same rule then defines what a signature is. Subsection (4)(a) requires a handwritten identification, or a digital representation of it, that is original and written by hand or a scanned image of an original, permanently affixed to the documents being certified, applied to the document by the identified licensee, and placed adjacent to the seal or stamp. Subsection (4)(b) allows a digital identification that is unique to the licensee, capable of independent verification, under the licensee’s exclusive control, and linked so it is invalidated if any data in the document changes. Note the placement: adjacent for landscape architects, across the seal for architects.
Your expiration date is on the stamp, so the stamp expires too
WAC 308-13-055(1) is short and consequential: your seal or stamp “must include your signature and your license expiration date.” Washington architects, engineers and land surveyors all carry a number and no date, so their devices outlive every renewal. A Washington landscape architect’s does not. At each renewal the printed expiration date on the die becomes wrong, and the device has to be refreshed to stay compliant.
Which documents must be sealed
WAC 308-13-055(2) lists three: all technical submissions required for building permits, regulatory approvals or construction drawings filed with authorities having jurisdiction; drawings prepared by you, on each sheet; and specifications and other technical submissions, which need only be sealed or stamped on the cover, the title page and all pages of the table of contents. The rule closes with the statement that without exception these sealing and stamping requirements apply to all work prepared or supervised by the landscape architect. WAC 308-13-055(3) bars affixing the seal to drawings not prepared by you or your regularly employed subordinates, or not reviewed by you, and makes you responsible to the same extent for anything you seal after review.
Electronic and digital seals
Permitted, with the criteria stated in the rule rather than a named technology. WAC 308-13-055(4)(b) requires a digital identification that is an electronic authentication process attached to or logically associated with an electronic document, which may include a scanned or digitized signature, and which must be unique to the licensee, capable of independent verification, under the licensee’s exclusive control, and linked to the document so that it is invalidated if any data changes. No certificate authority, hash standard or vendor is named.
Renewal, lapse and retirement
This is the profession where renewal does touch the device. Because WAC 308-13-055(1) requires the license expiration date on the seal or stamp, the face goes out of date at each renewal and the device has to be refreshed. RCW 18.96.150(2) makes it unlawful to seal and sign after a certificate of licensure or authorization has expired, been revoked or is suspended, and also bars sealing technical submissions not prepared by the licensee or regularly employed subordinates or individuals under the licensee’s direct control. Renewal is at RCW 18.96.110 and WAC 308-13-160, reactivation at 308-13-165 and retired status at 308-13-225.
Firm requirements
Applicable by reference. RCW 18.96.020 requires a license or authorization to use the title or offer the services, and RCW 18.96.150(2) extends the unlawful sealing bar to a certificate of authorization that has expired, been revoked or is suspended. The authorization number is not one of the elements WAC 308-13-055 puts on the individual seal, so nothing about the firm belongs on the face.
What to check before you order
Order the current board authorized design from WAC 308-13-055 if you were first licensed on or after January 1, 2017: your name, your license number, and the legend Licensed landscape architect, state of Washington. The board allows you to scale it provided it stays readable and permits no other deviation. Two elements you must not leave off are your signature and your license expiration date, both required on the face by 308-13-055(1). Because the expiration date is printed on the device, plan to reorder at each renewal, and choose an inexpensive inked die rather than an embosser for that reason. On the sheet, place your handwritten identification adjacent to the seal, not across it.
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Frequently asked questions
Is a seal required for landscape architects in Washington?
Yes. RCW 18.96.150(2): “Each licensee shall obtain a seal of the design authorized by the board bearing the landscape architect’s name, license number, the legend ‘Licensed Landscape Architect,’ and the name of this state. Drawings prepared by the licensee shall be sealed and signed by the licensee when filed with public authorities.” WAC 308-13-055 adds the modern content.
What has to appear on a Washington landscape architect seal?
Your name as licensed, your license number, the words Licensed landscape architect, State of Washington, your signature and your license expiration date. The last two are mandatory rather than optional, and they are what make this device unlike every other Washington design seal. No firm name, no discipline line and no decorative variant.
What size is a Washington landscape architect seal?
Adjustable, with readability as the only limit: “The size of the seal/stamp may be adjusted provided it remains readable. Other deviations are not allowed.” No diameter is given in the rule or in RCW 18.96.150. That express permission to scale is something the architect chapter, WAC 308-12-081, does not give.
Which device should a Washington landscape architect buy?
An inked stamp, for a reason specific to this profession. The rule speaks of a seal or stamp of the board authorized design and permits a digital identification, so a stamp, an embosser and an electronic image are all workable, but the seal carries your license expiration date, which means the artwork changes at renewal. A low cost inked die is the device you will actually replace on schedule.
Do I sign across or beside a Washington seal?
Adjacent. WAC 308-13-055(4)(a) requires the handwritten identification to be original and written by hand or a scanned image of an original, permanently affixed to the documents being certified, applied to the document by the identified licensee, and placed adjacent to the seal or stamp. Washington architects sign across the seal under WAC 308-12-081(4)(a); landscape architects do not.
What is the Washington grandfather date?
January 1, 2017. A licensee first licensed on or after that date must use the board authorized seal or stamp bearing name, license number and the legend “Licensed landscape architect, state of Washington,” while a licensee licensed before that date may continue to use an existing registration stamp. Two lawful faces are in circulation at once.
Which Washington documents have to be sealed?
WAC 308-13-055(2) lists three: all technical submissions required for building permits, regulatory approvals or construction drawings filed with authorities having jurisdiction; drawings prepared by you, on each sheet; and specifications and other technical submissions, which need only be sealed or stamped on the cover, the title page and all pages of the table of contents. The rule closes with the statement that without exception these sealing and stamping requirements apply to all work prepared or supervised by the landscape architect.
Whose drawings can I seal in Washington?
WAC 308-13-055(3) bars affixing the seal to drawings not prepared by you or your regularly employed subordinates, or not reviewed by you, and makes you responsible to the same extent for anything you seal after review.
Can I use a digital identification in Washington?
Yes. WAC 308-13-055(4)(b) requires a digital identification that is an electronic authentication process attached to or logically associated with an electronic document, which may include a scanned or digitized signature, and which must be unique to the licensee, capable of independent verification, under the licensee’s exclusive control, and linked to the document so that it is invalidated if any data changes. No certificate authority, hash standard or vendor is named.
Does renewal force a new Washington seal?
In practice, yes. Because WAC 308-13-055(1) requires the license expiration date on the seal or stamp, the face goes out of date at each renewal and the device has to be refreshed. RCW 18.96.150(2) makes it unlawful to seal and sign after a certificate of licensure or authorization has expired, been revoked or is suspended, and also bars sealing technical submissions not prepared by the licensee or regularly employed subordinates or individuals under the licensee’s direct control. Renewal is at RCW 18.96.110 and WAC 308-13-160, reactivation at 308-13-165 and retired status at 308-13-225.
Does a Washington firm authorization number go on the seal?
No. RCW 18.96.020 requires a license or authorization to use the title or offer the services, and RCW 18.96.150(2) extends the unlawful sealing bar to a certificate of authorization that has expired, been revoked or is suspended, but the authorization number is not one of the elements WAC 308-13-055 puts on the individual seal. Nothing about the firm belongs on the face.
