To become a licensed land surveyor in Alabama, you need a board-approved degree, four to six years of progressive surveying experience depending on that degree, passing scores on three exams (the Fundamentals of Surveying, the Principles and Practice of Surveying, and Alabama’s state-specific ALSS exam), and an approved application filed with the Board of Licensure for Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors (BELS). The application fee is $125, and start-to-finish the process usually takes several years.1Alabama Administrative Code. Alabama Administrative Code Rule 330-X-4-A – Appendix – Fees
Choose Your Degree Pathway
Alabama recognizes three educational routes, and the degree you pick determines how long you will spend gaining experience afterward. The school or program must be approved by the board. ABET accreditation generally satisfies that standard, though the statute doesn’t require it by name.2Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 34-11-4 – General Requirements for Licensure or Certification
- A four-year degree in land surveying from a board-approved program requires four years of progressive experience.
- A four-year degree in a related field such as civil engineering, including at least 15 semester hours (or 22.5 quarter hours) of surveying coursework from a board-approved school, requires five years.
- A four-year degree in a related science from a board-approved school requires six years.
The gap matters. A civil engineering graduate with the required surveying coursework spends an extra year in the field compared with a land surveying graduate, and a related-science graduate spends two extra years before they can apply.2Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 34-11-4 – General Requirements for Licensure or Certification
Build Progressive Surveying Experience
Whichever degree you hold, your experience must be progressive: routine tasks giving way over time to independent judgment on complex problems like boundary disputes, geodetic surveys, and legal property descriptions. Drafting and clerical work don’t count unless they involve substantive surveying activity.
Most candidates gain their hours under the direct supervision of a licensed PLS. Alabama also accepts experience earned working alongside a licensed PLS as an associate at the same company and location, provided that surveyor closely observed the work.3Alabama Administrative Code. Alabama Administrative Code Rule 330-X-6-.01 – Qualifying Experience Whoever supervised or worked with you must verify your claims directly to the board.
Remote Work
If part of your experience was earned remotely, BELS wants extra documentation: a copy of your company’s remote supervision policy and a log describing how supervision was carried out, including the frequency of in-person meetings and virtual contact. Log entries have to be categorized as either in-person or remote.4Alabama Board for Engineers & Land Surveyors. Experience
If Your Supervisor Dies Before You Apply
If the PLS who supervised your work dies before your application is filed, another licensed individual at the same company can verify that experience for you.4Alabama Board for Engineers & Land Surveyors. Experience Losing an attestation would otherwise stall a complete file, so this fallback is worth knowing about early.
Pass the Three Required Exams
Every candidate for an Alabama PLS license takes three tests: the Fundamentals of Surveying (FS), the Principles and Practice of Surveying (PS), and the Alabama Land Surveying Standards, History and Law (ALSS) exam.
The FS and PS are written and scored by NCEES.5NCEES. Exams The FS covers mathematics, geodesy, and measurement analysis, and passing it makes you a Surveyor Intern, which is a prerequisite for the PS. The PS covers advanced surveying practice, boundary law, and professional ethics, and it’s built for candidates with at least four years of experience. Both are computer-based and delivered by Pearson VUE during quarterly windows: January–March, April–June, July–September, and October–December.6Pearson VUE. NCEES Certification Testing with Pearson VUE
The ALSS is Alabama’s state exam. It covers Alabama surveying standards, state laws, and the history of surveying practice here. It’s computer-based and costs $100.1Alabama Administrative Code. Alabama Administrative Code Rule 330-X-4-A – Appendix – Fees Every applicant has to pass it, including surveyors coming in from another state through comity.7Alabama Board for Engineers & Land Surveyors. Applications
File the Application With BELS
With the education, experience, and exams behind you, submit your PLS application through the BELS online portal. The fee is $125.1Alabama Administrative Code. Alabama Administrative Code Rule 330-X-4-A – Appendix – Fees The portal screens your eligibility answers before it accepts payment, so you won’t pay unless you appear to qualify.
Your file needs official transcripts, exam scores, and verified experience records. You also need five professional references, at least three of whom must be currently licensed Professional Land Surveyors who can speak to your training and work.8Alabama Administrative Code. Alabama Administrative Code Rule 330-X-7-.02 – References You’ll also submit documentation of your citizenship status.7Alabama Board for Engineers & Land Surveyors. Applications
One scheduling note: BELS doesn’t issue any licenses during September. If you need to start practicing by a specific date, work backward from that.7Alabama Board for Engineers & Land Surveyors. Applications
If You Already Hold a License in Another State
Alabama offers a comity path for surveyors licensed elsewhere. You don’t repeat the education-and-experience proof from scratch, but you do still have to pass the ALSS, and you file through the same portal with the same $125 fee.7Alabama Board for Engineers & Land Surveyors. Applications Reference and documentation requirements match those for first-time applicants.
Military spouses who hold a PLS license from a state with substantially equivalent requirements get faster service under Alabama’s Military Family Jobs Opportunity Act. The board must issue either a license or a temporary permit within 30 days of receiving the application, and the temporary permit stays valid for at least 360 days while the full review runs. The initial licensing fee is waived.9U.S. Department of Labor. Military Spouse License Transfer Options – Alabama
Keep the License Active
Alabama PLS licenses renew every two years. The renewal fee is $100.1Alabama Administrative Code. Alabama Administrative Code Rule 330-X-4-A – Appendix – Fees Each biennial cycle you must earn at least 30 Professional Development Hours (PDH), including two specific minimums:10Alabama Board for Engineers & Land Surveyors. Rule 330-X-13-.02 for Continuing Professional Competency
- At least 4 PDH on the Standards of Practice for Surveying in Alabama every two years.
- At least 1 PDH on ethics every year, for 2 per biennial cycle.
You can carry up to 15 PDH into the next renewal period.11Alabama Board for Engineers & Land Surveyors. How Many PDHs Can Be Carried to the Next Renewal Cycle? Seminars, college courses, and technical presentations all count. BELS audits randomly, so keep records.
If a license lapses, you can reinstate it within two years by making up the missed continuing education and paying a $350 reinstatement fee.1Alabama Administrative Code. Alabama Administrative Code Rule 330-X-4-A – Appendix – Fees Past two years, the process gets significantly harder.
Practicing Without a License
Don’t take on paid surveying work before your license issues. Practicing land surveying in Alabama without a valid license, or representing yourself as licensed when you aren’t, is a Class A misdemeanor, with each day counted as a separate offense. The board can also seek an injunction and a civil penalty of up to $5,000 per offense, plus costs and attorney fees, and it can withhold approval of a later application for up to six months from anyone previously found in violation.12Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 34-11-15 – Violations; Penalties Waiting for the license in hand is the safer path.