Center for Insurance Careers Resources

Overview


job-placement

Have questions about the Insurance program? See below for answers about licensing requirements, frequently asked questions, and helpful links to the NY Department of Financial Services website for license renewal and testing information.

Requirements

As per NY state law, all applicants must be 18 years of age or older to obtain any licenses necessary to work in the Insurance Industry.

FAQ’s | Question List:


Insurance Licensing Information

Insurance Continuing Education Information

FAQ’s | Answer List:


Insurance Licensing Information

You need to be 18, or older, per NY State law, to apply for an insurance license.

If you accept any commission, service fee or other valuable consideration for selling, soliciting or negotiating insurance, you must be licensed to do so.

An insurance agent represents an insurance company(ies) and sells insurance for whichever company(ies) have appointed that agent. An insurance broker represents the public and can sell insurance for any insurance company licensed in New York State which deals with brokers.

Depending on the insurance specialty you’re interested in here are the pre-licensing minimum classroom hour requirements:

Insurance Agent/ Broker Specialty Min. Number of Hours Needed
Life, Accident and Health Agent /Broker 40 hours
Accident and Health Agent /Broker 20 hours
Life Agent/ Broker 20 hours
Personal Lines Agent /Broker 40 hours
Property and Casualty Agent /Broker 90 hours
Life Settlement Broker 20 hours
Public Adjuster 40 hours

Yes. If you are registered with FINRA – Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, you are qualified to hold a Variable line of authority.

A Public Adjuster is generally engaged by the policyholder to protect their interests. He or she works exclusively for their client and has no ties to any insurance company.

Some Public Adjusters do work with an insurance company and are assigned its to look after the company’s interests.

Yes. New York State allows producers to have both agent and a broker licenses.

A producer is defined as any person required to be licensed to sell, solicit or negotiate insurance. A producer can be an Agent, Broker, Adjuster, Consultant, Reinsurance Intermediary or Excess Lines Broker. The license will indicate if you are a Producer licensed as an Agent, Broker, Consultant, Reinsurance Intermediary or Excess Lines Broker.

You can only do business in the name in which you are licensed.

The New York State Department of Financial Services uses Prometric, Inc. to provide examination services to candidates wishing to obtain an insurance license in New York.

Effective Saturday September 7, 2013, licensing exams will be given at Prometric’s testing centers located in various sites across New York State.

You can search for licensing information by name on the Producer Licensee Search on the NY State Department of Financial Services website. If you don’t find any licensing information, the license has not yet been issued. To inquire, please send an email to: Licensing@dfs.ny.gov

Insurance Continuing Education Information

If CE credits are required, all the CE credits must be completed before the license can be renewed or reinstated.

Licenses are eligible for renewal if it is within 180 days of the expiration date of the licenses.

After your license has been renewed the first time, continuing education (CE) will always be required upon subsequent renewal or relicensing applications. Credits must be accumulated during the renewal period, which begins with the effective date of the license. CE must be completed before processing the renewal or relicensing application.

In the case of relicensing, you may use credits accumulated in the previous renewal period, plus any completed up to the date that the relicensing application is completed.

As a licensee you must complete 15 credits of Continuing Education (CE) during each two year licensing period. All courses must be completed You are allowed to take any course that is state approved for your specific class of license.

It is the responsibility of the Producer to maintain the course completion documents. For any further information, contact where you took your continuing education course.

If you were born in an even numbered year, your license will expire on your birthday in an even numbered year. If you were born in an odd numbered year, your license will expire on your birthday in an odd numbered year. The effective and expiration dates appear on all licenses. Licensing information is available at https://myportal.dfs.ny.gov/nylinxext/elsearch.alice. You may search by name or license number; instructions are posted.

If you are a NY resident, and your license has been expired more than two years, you must retake the exam and submit a paper application with the passing score report and fee. If you are a nonresident and your license has been expired more than two years, you must currently be qualified in your home state and submit a paper application fee. If your license expired within the last two years, you may relicense on the NY State Department of Finance website at: http://www.dfs.ny.gov/insurance/relic.htm

Helpful Links


For your convenience here are some links to the New York Department of Financial Services website. There you will be able to find out even more about licensing requirements, schedule your licensing Exam, renew your license, and more.

Useful Articles