Qualifications
License Information
Minimum Age: 18 years
Residency: California residency is not required
Entity Types: Individual and Business Entity
12 Hours of Study on Ethics and the California Insurance Code
The California Insurance Code requires the completion of the 12 Hours of Study on Ethics and the California Insurance Code course to prepare for your license examination.
The 12 Hours of Study on Ethics and the California Insurance Code is only required to be taken once (California Insurance Code section 1749(a)(1)); therefore, applicants applying for more than one license type need not repeat the required hours of Ethics and the California Insurance Code.
The California Department of Insurance (Department) License Examination Objectives provide applicants with the specific knowledge areas and requirements for the license they are seeking. Applicants can access the full list of License Examination Objectives at the link provided. The Department encourages applicants to complete a license examination course of study to help them prepare for their examination.
Continuing Education:
- Casualty agents shall satisfactorily complete approved courses or programs of instruction or attend seminars equivalent to 24 hours of instruction during each two-year license period, including at least 3 hours of ethics training. One of those ethic hours must be insurance fraud (licensee must verify with the education provider that the hour is included) before their license may be renewed.
- Any person who is 70 years of age or older and who has been licensed for 30 continuous years in California as a licensee in good standing in this state, may be exempt from the continuing education requirement
Important Note: This continuing education exemption does not apply to those individuals licensed for the first time on or after January 1, 2010 (California Insurance Code section1749.3 (c))
Documents Determining Authority to Act:
- A $10,000 Bond of Insurance Broker, form LIC 417-5, authorizes the licensee to act as an insurance broker. An insurance broker is a person who, for compensation and on behalf of another person transacts insurance other than commercial lines and life with, but not on behalf of an insurer.
- An appointment from an insurance carrier admitted to California will authorize the agent to act as an agent for the carrier. Insurance carriers submit appointments and terminations electronically through their Sircon for Carriers account. Alternatively, carriers can use the National Insurance Producer Registry (NIPR) appointments or terminations webpage to complete these transactions.
- An endorsement from a business entity licensed in California will authorize the agent to transact insurance under the business entities license. (California Insurance Code section 1661). Business entities will add or remove individual licensees through Sircon online services - Maintain Agency Associations.
- A sponsorship from a business entity or individual licensed in California authorizes the licensee to act as an insurance solicitor for the entity or individual. An insurance solicitor is a natural person employed to aid an insurance agent or entity in transacting insurance other than life, disability or health. An Action Notice of Solicitor, LIC 417-31.
