Stamp and seal glossary

What each term means, and where the meaning changes depending on which country you are in. A company seal is optional in one jurisdiction and expected in another, and most definitions online pick one and write as though it applied everywhere.

Company Seal template, editable online — Company sealAdd an editable date

Common Seal template, editable online — Common sealCustomize this seal

Received Stamp template, editable online — ReceivedCustomize this stamp

Date Stamp template, editable online — Date stampAdd an editable date

Address Stamp template, editable online — Address stampCustomize this stamp

Signature Block template, editable online — Signature lineAdd an editable date

Notary Round template, editable online — Notary, round (state)Add an editable date

Open the stamp maker with any of these

Every preview on this page carries a faint Estamplab watermark. Your own download does not: the editor renders your stamp again, clean, as a transparent PNG, an SVG or a PDF. See the full template library.

Company seal: A mark carrying a company’s registered name, used to show that a document was issued by that company.
Common seal: The formal seal of a company, historically pressed into paper to execute a deed.
Corporate seal: A company seal, in American usage.
Company chop: The company seal, in East and Southeast Asian usage, where it often carries more authority than a signature.
Rubber stamp: A hand stamp with a moulded rubber die, inked from a pad and pressed onto paper.
Self-inking stamp: A rubber stamp with a built-in ink pad that re-inks the die after each impression.
Pre-inked stamp: A stamp with no pad at all: the ink is held inside the die itself and weeps through under pressure.
Wet ink stamp: A stamp pressed onto paper in real ink, as opposed to a stamp image applied to a file.
Digital stamp: A stamp that exists as an image file, placed onto a document on screen rather than pressed onto paper.
E-stamp: A digital stamp. Note that in India the same word also means something entirely different.
Stamp duty: A tax on certain documents, unrelated to the physical stamp used to mark them.
Notary seal: The seal of a notary public, carrying their name, commission number and jurisdiction.
Commissioner for oaths: A person authorised to administer oaths and take affidavits, whose stamp carries their commission details.
Affidavit stamp: The stamp applied to a sworn written statement, recording who took the oath and when.
Certified true copy stamp: A stamp declaring that a copy has been checked against the original and matches it.
Date stamp: A stamp whose main content is a date, used to record when a document was received, paid or processed.
Received stamp: A stamp marking that a document arrived, and when.
Transparent PNG: An image with no background, so whatever is underneath shows through.
SVG: A vector image format that stays sharp at any size.
Serial number: A number that increments with each use, so one impression can be told from another.
Embossed seal: A seal pressed into paper to raise the design, leaving no ink.
Wax seal: A blob of melted wax stamped with a die, historically used to close and authenticate a letter.
Ring text: Text that curves around the edge of a round seal.
LLC stamp: A seal for a US limited liability company, carrying the name exactly as filed with the state.

Estamplab is a design tool and this glossary describes common commercial practice rather than giving legal, medical or financial advice. Several terms here, notarial marks, professional seals and certified copies among them, are governed by the authority that issued the commission, registration or licence, so check the requirement with them rather than with a definition. Only produce a mark you are entitled to use.