California Insurance Licensing Requirements

To get an insurance license in California, you must satisfy these requirements:

• Complete the education requirements prior to applying for a license. Most commonly, students enroll in 52 hours of education for a Life Agent or Fire and Casualty license. The course on Ethics and the California Insurance Code must only be taken once; therefore, applicants applying for more than one license type do not need to repeat the Ethics and Code course.

License Type	Required Hours of General Insurance	Hours of Ethics and California Insurance Code
Life Agent (Life, Accident and Health)	40	12
Fire and Casualty	40	12
Life	20	12
Accident and Health	20	12

Note: A certificate of prelicense education is valid for three years.

• Submit fingerprints. Fingerprint impressions are required for unlicensed applicants and can be submitted at anytime prior to taking the license examination or submitting the license application.
• Apply for an insurance license. You may apply online at the Fast Licensing Application Service.
• Schedule and pass the insurance examination. This link will provide you with the information on how to schedule your examination: Insurance License Examination Information.

You will be mailed your license upon application approval and passing the license examination. However, you may not transact, solicit or negotiate the sale of insurance until one of the following documents is completed and submitted to the California Department of Insurance:

• The sponsoring insurance company admitted to California completes an Action Notice of Appointment and submitted electronically. To submit appointments electronically contact the National Insurance Producer Registry and its authorized business partners for a list of approved partners.
• The sponsoring business entity licensed in California completes an Organization Endorsement, submitted through the Business Entity Endorsement and Termination Online Service.
• An Action Notice of Appointment- Fire and Casualty or Personal Lines Broker-Agent Only
• An Action Notice of Solicitor- Fire and Casualty or Personal Lines Broker-Agent Only

Note: Brokers in California are required to post and maintain a $10,000 Bond of Insurance.

Exemptions from general insurance prelicense courses:

• A new California resident applicant who had a current license in another state and completed 40 or 20 hours of prelicensing education for each license held in that state, or;
• An applicant for a license holding one or more of the following designations:
  • LUTCF: Life Only Agent, Accident and Health Agent 
  • CLU: Life Only Agent, Accident and Health Agent 
  • AAI: Personal Lines Broker-Agent, Fire and Casualty Broker-Agent, Limited Lines Automobile Agent
  • CPCU: Personal Lines Broker-Agent, Fire and Casualty Broker-Agent, Limited Lines Automobile Agent
  • CIC: Personal Lines Broker-Agent, Fire and Casualty Broker-Agent, Limited Lines Automobile Agent

If any of the above exemptions are met, the applicant must still complete the 12-hour Ethics and California Insurance Code course.