Professional Seals, Stamps and Signatures

All final engineering/geoscience work products (hardcopy and electronic drawings, plans, reports and other documents) must be authenticated (sealed) by the person who prepared or directly supervised the work. Only documents that are signed and dated by hand, or, that have been digitally signed/certified are authenticated originals.

For additional information, please refer to the APEGNB Guideline for the Use of Professional Seal,

Learn more about Digital Signatures.

Did you know?

When used as a noun, the term “seal” refers to the stamp issued by APEGNB. As a verb, the term “to seal” refers to the application of the professional seal, signature and date. It is synonymous with the term “authenticate”. As well, the words seal and stamp are often used interchangeably.

Digital seal image

When an engineering document requires the seal to be affixed, the digital image of the seal must be added to the technology document you are signing, in the same way as you would do it by hand.

APEGNB now provides you with a personalized electronic seal image in your account, to be used in conjunction with your digital signature. This electronic seal image should not be confused with APEGNB’s digital signature. The digital signature protects the integrity of your document and confirms your identity, while the electronic seal is the visual element attached to your signature.

Read more about digital signatures in the section below.

How do I obtain a digital image of my seal?

Members who use the Notarius solution as their digital signature platform can download the digital image of their seal free of charge from their Notarius portal and automatically add it to the documents they authenticate. Members who do not use the Notarius digital signature can now order the digital image of their seal by completing the online form.

How to download your personalized electronic seal image.

FAQ

What is a Digital Signature?

A digital signature is an encrypted electronic signature that can guarantee the origin, integrity and authenticity of an electronic document. Digital signatures use certificate-based digital IDs to verity the signer identity.

What is an APEGNB Digital Signature?

APEGNB has a formal agreement with the Certificate Authority, Notarius, to issue digital signatures to our registrants through a fee-based subscription service. The digital signature held by registrants of APEGNB confirms the identity and professional designation of our registrants at the time of signing. It serves as proof that the signer has the right to practice in New Brunswick, in addition to ensuring the integrity of the signed documents and preventing their falsification.

What is the difference between an electronic signature and a digital signature?

An electronic signature is typically an electronic image (scan) of a handwritten signature. A digital signature is a secure type of electronic signature that binds the signature to the document using cryptography.

Who can apply a digital signature?

A digital signature can only be used by the holder of a digital certificate. It cannot be reproduced by anyone who does not have access to the password-protected digital certificate.

What are APEGNB’S requirements for the use of the digital signature?

For additional information, please refer to the APEGNB Guideline for the Use of Professional Seal.

Is Notarius the only accepted digital signature by APEGNB?

Yes, Notarius is the only approved certificate authority. Any digital signature technology other than Notarius must first be authorized by APEGNB.

What is the cost?

There is a one-time sign-up fee of $140 and a yearly subscription rate of $185. Pricing and subscription details can be found at: https://www.notarius.com/en/certifio/pro/apegnb

What is Certifio?

Certifio is the name of the digital certificate issued by Notarius.

What is ConsignO?

ConsignO is the name of the Notarius software which can be used to prepare and digitally sign documents. Other pdf readers such as Adobe and Bluebeam can also be used.

Where can I learn more?

Notarius provides a variety of training tools and supports including a live webinar every Wednesday at 2pm AT. For additional information check out the link at https://support.notarius.com/en/