What Should I Do after Passing My Insurance Agent Exam?

Thank you this is helpful. though i am in New Jersey so i am not sure what actually applies but now i can ask those questions. 🙂

I’m in Arizona and looking to start. I want to be an independent agent but attached to a group that already has all the carriers. Any suggestions on how to start

Hi Hussain, After passing your exam you will apply for your license with the state licensing department. Soon as you have your license you will be able to go to work for an insurance company selling their products/policies. If you don’t already have a job lined up you’ll want to start looking at who’s hiring. Since there is a lot of turnover in the industry there are always companies hiring! Please let us know if you have any other questions.

Hello Elda, Most people will always work for an agency first to get experience.

Hello Alanna, Usually the steps to getting your license are Prepare, Pass & Apply. What state are you trying to get your resident license in? That will determine who gives the licensing exam and if a background/fingerprint process is required.

Hi Jose, Are you talking about selling insurance (Producer) or arranging the sale between two parties (brokering/consulting)? We find a lot of people don’t really know what a Broker is and they really mean Producer (please see here).

Hi Troy, Usually test results are good for a year although a few state’s results are only good for 6 months. If you look at your pass sheet from the test provider it should say. Good luck!

Hi Mary, Sorry but this gets a little into the weeds for us and I don’t think we can really help you with a definite answer. I think the only people that can answer this for you are those at the licensing department in each state (or you might get a consensus after a few calls). I know a few states, like Texas, have large reinstatement fees and other just have you retake exams. Your individual licenses should say how long they are good for and fees are probably different by state. I hope you are able to find the… Read more »

Hi Gabriel, It sounds like you need to work with your employer to be able to sell Health products/policies (best option). If you were an independent agent it’s possible some carriers would allow you to sell their products but that’s not a normal situation. You can get into some tricky situations working for two different agencies though. You might have a contractual agreement with you current employer that has limitations. Again, lots of possibilities here. If you are working for a captive company your only way is to find a new employer.

Did you pass your insurance license exam, apply for your license then not renew it? Most states allow you to reinstate your license for up to a year although you have to catch up on all your continuing education hours and pay a reinstatement fee. You will want to call your state’s licensing department to verify the procedure. Now if you didn’t ever apply for your license (just passed the licensing exam) your pass results from the test center are usually only good for 1 year. Beyond that time frame you will need to take your exam again. Good luck!

Hello Damon,
Did you send in your license application to the insurance licensing department with your pass results? Passing the exam only gives you the ability to apply for a license. If you did send in all the required information I’d call your state’s insurance licensing department and see what’s holding your license up. Usually it only takes a few weeks. Good luck!

Hi Teri, Usually CSRs are fully licensed in the office so that they can deal with quotes and review current customer’s accounts. Being fully licensed with a Property and Casualty Producer license allows you to get commissions for new sales you make. Is your employer moving you into more of a sales role? If so, then I assume that’s when more sales/product training might come on. If not, then for liability purposes your employer has just covered his or her bases.

Hello Delia, That will depend on which company you go to work for. If a company offers a base salary it usually starts paying once you have your license and go to work for them. Keep in mind that not all companies offer a base salary (each is a little different).

Hello Deborah, After passing your exam you first need to apply for your license at sircon.com/georgia then wait for the state to process your application and background check. Usually this process takes a few weeks but depends on how busy they are. Good luck!

Hello Liz, If you look at your pass results from the test center they should tell you how long they are good for. Usually we see that they are good for 1 year. It sounds like you just need to apply for your license as soon as possible and complete the background check. Good luck!

Hi Vivian, If you resign from your current job your employer will have to cancel your appointment with your current company. You can then go to work for another company, who will then call the insurance commissioner’s office and ask them to issue a new appointment so that you can represent their company. Please give us a call if you have any other questions. Thanks and have a great day!

Hi Pablo, You will want to call the Licensing Department in New York to find out what the holdup is on your application. Sometimes the background check take a while to get back but sometimes there are other issues. You will want to wait until you either have your license in the mail or see it was activated otherwise. Good luck!

Hello, Most any company you go to work for is going to train specifically for thier company so not having experience isn’t a problem. Unfortunately we don’t directly work with any company recruiters, unless they are sending us students, so I wouldn’t really be able to give you any other advice. You might look at the insurance forums at insurance-forums.com and see if anything peaks your interest. Good luck!

Hello Rebecca, Is looks like you have to wait at least 5 days before you can apply for your license but I don’t see a deadline for having to apply for it. Most states states allow for up to a year. Generally the pass results from your testing provider will list how long they are good for (usually a year) as well as the certificates of completion. You may want to contact the Illinois licensing department if you have further questions.

Hello Anna, You do not have to be sponsored to get your Property and Casualty license. You can take a course, pass your exam, and apply for your license on your own. You just won’t be appointed by anyone to sell their products/policies.

Hello Clinton, After passing the exam you usually have one year to apply for your license. You pass results from the testing center will give the specifics. As long as you complete your continuing education you won’t have to take the course/exam again. You don’t need to be hired to have the license, just to sell. Good luck!

Hello Carolyn, Generally you should be able to leave and go to work with another company without any issues. You’ll want to ready the fine print on your contract or work agreement and how it affects your owed commissions. The new agency will appoint you and the other company would notify the commission to cancel the appointment you had with them. Good luck!

Hello Missy, No. The insurance carrier gives the insurer the right to sell the products, the insurer gets a certificate of authority to sell those products in the state and the insurer then appoints the agent to represent them and sell those products.

Hi Alex, You will want to find a non-captive insurance company to hire and appoint you to sell the different products they have access to. That will allow you to shop around for your clients and find them the best deal. Good luck!

Hi Kim, You would be applying for the Agent license. 🙂 Congrats on passing your exam!

Hi Peter, The Expert in the office had this recommendation: Peter could go out and start knocking on doors given what I see if he is an independent situation or else go to work for a captive company (for brand name recognition). He can also approach people on the basis of just giving them a quote to see if he can save them money not just immediately replacing their existing policy. Good luck Peter!

Hi Jasmine, It depends on what state you are in. Most states have a fingerprint/background check requirement before they will process your license. Usually the test provider with mention that when you’re signing up to take your exam.

Hello Melissa, There is a huge amount of content that you are required to know so I completely understand being overwhelmed. The biggest thing I can recommend is getting a good night’s sleep. Secondly, be sure to look at your first attempt on your practice exams and see which questions you missed. It’s important to go back to that content and rewatch/learn it. We often see people mess up by taking questions over and over again which only leads to memorizing those questions, not learning the content the missed. The test providers will have 50+ variations of questions that test… Read more »

Hi Jimmy, usually your pass results are good for one year. It should actually say on your pass sheet with other instructions on how to complete the license process. I found this page with some useful New York Insurance Agent and Broker FAQs. Good luck!

Hello Keshia, I would try to start talking with some Insurance Carriers to see who’s products you can sell. There are probably a few insurance forums out there where people have done exactly what you are doing (we are more test world). Most of our students are going to go to work for an existing insurance company first to get some experience then possibly open their own agency. Also, we do provide Property and Casualty courses depending on your state. Let us know if you need anything else. Good luck!

Hello Sky, I think they are getting collecting general information from you that they will compare to your background check. I’m sure if you are close on your dates it shouldn’t cause a problem. You can always call the Texas Department of Insurance 512-676-6500 and see what they say. Good luck!

Hi Brian, I’m not sure. You’ll have to go through the background process to see what they say. Often people who have questions about their past will run their background check first and get an answer before taking a course/exam but I know that’s not your case. All I know is that you want to be 100% truthful on the background check’s application as we have seen a student get their ability to get licensed pushed back 2 years because they lied on their application. Let us know if you have any other questions.

Hello Christopher, If you are referring to a Marketing group you are most likely not going to get any training. My advise to someone new is to go where there is training and support, whether it is a captive or an established independent agency. Then down the road, after you have learned about the business and policies, you can choose your own path… maybe even start your own agency. Good luck!

Hello Edwin, Usually if someone is worried about passing the background check they contact the Department of Insurance (DOI) to get “pre-qualified” before taking a course and exam. I think at this point you are only able to apply for your license to see if everything is good. You might call your DOI if you are worried to see if there are any costs that could be saved in the event you don’t qualify for a license. Good luck!

Hello Rohan, Sorry but I do not have any real world knowledge in the area of your question. Wish I could be helpful but I can’t. Good luck to you.

Hi Jon, That is what the vast majority of our students do. It’s best practice to work for a company and get some experience before deciding if starting your own agency is what you want to do. It also proves to carriers that you know what you are doing! Good luck!

Hi Allen, What specific questions do you have?

Hi Joe, Usually you can cancel or reschedule within 48 hours but if you don’t take the exam, you will forfeit the exam fee. You are basically purchasing a time slot to take an exam. If you give them enough time to refill the time slot (e.g., 48 hours) they will refund you. Good luck!

Hello Nancy, I assume you are in New York so here’s a link to PSI’s Candidate bulletin with links to the licensing application. It looks like you have 2 years to apply for your license. Congrats and good luck!

Hello Marguerite, Your course provider should have issues a certificate of completion after you completed your course. If you are one of our students you would have needed to submit a study log in order to start the course audit process (if this is the case please give us a call at 1-800-870-3130 and we will get you taken care of). Congrats on passing your exam!

Hello Briana, If you haven’t completed any continuing education (CE) then most likely you will have to start over with the licensing process. You may want to call your DOI Licensing Department just to verify there aren’t any special circumstances. Good luck!

Hi Leah, There are a couple different things that come into play here. Are you looking to go to a live class or take an online class? We provide some great online insurance pre-licensing courses! Alternatively, you can do a Google search for live courses in your area. Most instructors have ratings and reviews that are helpful. Good luck!

Hi Keith, Congrats on passing your exam! Your pass sheet from the testing company could have the exact steps to get your license. I recommend that you take a look at insurance-forums.net to see what your options are and maybe make a few good connections. You could also go in and talk to a few independent insurance agent outside your area and they may have lots of good information for you. Good luck!

Hi Aj, Usually your test results are good for a year, within that period you need to apply for your license and have your fingerprinting/background check completed. Some state’s fingerprints are only good for certain period of time though (e.g., Idaho for 6 months). You will want to verify with your state’s DOI that they don’t have any specific rules like that. Good luck!

Hello Denise, Usually your pass sheet will say right on it (usually 12 months but sometimes only for 6). What state are you in?

Hello Maria, It looks like you have a few different options if you look at their Contact Us page: http://www.insurance.ca.gov/0500-about-us/05-contact/

Hello Alexis, Your license is yours as long as it’s a full Producer license and not a SubAgent license (some states like Georgia have). If you decide to move companies you will take your Producer license with you. Depending on your employment contact you might have to repay your licensing and fingerprints fees back though. Good luck!

Hi Alexis, It completely depends on how busy they are. We usually see students get their license in the mail within a week or two. Good luck!

Hi Mona, I don’t know what state you are in but I wouldn’t get a bond unless your state requires it. Sometimes we see non-resident licenses require a bond but not too often for a resident license. I would think whoever you are going to go to work for should also be able to recommend what you need. Calling your state’s Department of Insurance should also be able to send you down the right path. Good luck!

Hi Mona! Did you get your question answered? Let me know if you still need help.

Hi Brian, Since there is an Approved Course/Hour requirement in California you would have to get that certificate from the company who’s course your completed. If you didn’t take an approved course… you will most likely have to to earn a certificate. Congrats on passing your exam and good luck!