About Elevation Certificates

An Elevation Certificate is "an official form of the National Flood Insurance Program created to compare a property's elevation data (determined by field measurement) to the Base Flood Elevation data."

In more simple language, an Elevation Certificate provides an exact elevation measurement of a specific property, as measured by a licensed surveyor or engineer.

Using various surveying techniques and equipment, the surveyor physically measures the elevation of the property and compares it to the Base Flood Elevation data shown on FEMA's flood maps. To complete the process, the surveyor must use FEMA's Elevation Certificate form, and sign and seal the form.