I need to reinstate my expired insurance license. What do I have to do?
The following license reinstatement information comes from the following page of the CDI website:
Reinstating the License Up to One Year after the License Expired
A license renewal is considered late if all renewal requirements are not met on or before the expiration date of a license. An expired license is eligible for reinstatement for up to one year after the expiration date. However, the licensee cannot transact insurance business until the license is reinstated.
Sircon's Renew or Reinstate a License is available to insurance producers, and adjusters who want to reinstate their licenses after the license expiration date has passed. Additionally, Sircon's Renew or Reinstate a License is available to insurance producers and adjusters who previously used the online renewal service as an on-time renewal but were not able to renew their license because not all of the requirements to renew were met prior to the license expiration date. The Sircon's Renew or Reinstate a License allows these licensees, once their requirements has been met, to complete the reinstatement of their license by paying the 50 percent license reinstatement fee.
Sircon's Renew or Reinstate a License for license reinstatement is not available to bail agents, who by law must reapply as a new applicant if their license is not renewed prior to the expiration date. Please review the requirements for license reinstatement.
To submit a paper renewal, use the Application to Renew Individual License form LIC 448-29A and complete the following steps:
- Complete all continuing education requirements (if applicable).
- Answer the two questions stated on the renewal application.
- Pay the original renewal fee plus a 50 license reinstatement fee.
- Submit the completed and signed renewal application to the following address: California Department of Insurance, P.O. Box 311, Sacramento, CA 95812-0311.
In addition, individuals may, for good cause shown, request an exemption to the electronic filing requirements. Such requests may be made by contacting the Toll-Free Licensing Hotline (800) 967-9331. These requests should be made several weeks prior to the license expiration date to ensure a timely renewal.
The licensee is not authorized to transact insurance business until after the license has been reinstated.
Appointments
If a license is reinstated after the expiration date, all insurance company appointments are cancelled. The appointments are not required to renew the license, but are required prior to transacting insurance business for an insurance company.
Reinstating the License More than One Year After the License Expired
A license is eligible for reinstatement for up to one year after the expiration date of the license. After one year, a new application will have to be filed. To apply for an insurance license online, log on to Sircon's Apply for a License service for both resident and nonresident applicants. This link takes the applicant to the procedures of how to file an application online. If you already know how to use the online application service, you may go directly to Sircon's Apply for a License.
The requirements link describes all of the necessary qualifications, requirements, fees, and form numbers for those license classes issued by the CDI.
This means that if you want to reinstate a license more than one year after the license expired, you'll have to do everything just as if you were applying for the license for the first time. If your certificate of completion from your prelicensing course has expired, then you'll have to take a new prelicensing course to earn a new certificate of completion. (Note: Certificates of completion are only valid for a 3-year period. Also, you CANNOT use your previously taken prelicensing course to earn another certificate of completion.)
If you need to take a new prelicensing course, you'll need to set up a new account in Upward Bound and purchase the course in the new account. If you want to be able to use the same email address on your new Upward Bound account that you used with your old one, email the Upward Bound Support Team to let us know and we will close your old account to make your email address available for use with the new Upward Bound account.