Insurance agents who sell life and accident & sickness insurance must renew their licence with the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (FSRA) every two years.
About licence renewals
Your life and accident & sickness licence covers a period of two years, after which you will need to renew it to keep your licence active.
FSRA will send you an email 60 calendar days before the expiration date to let you know you will need to renew your licence. This is a courtesy reminder – it is your responsibility to know when your licence will expire and to ensure your email address is up to date with FSRA.
You can renew your licence at any time during the 60-day window.
Note: while most renewals are processed quickly, others may require additional review. Submit your renewal application as soon as possible to avoid having your licence expire.
Moving to a non-sponsored licence
If you’re renewing your licence for the first time, you will move to a non-sponsored licence. You can still be connected to the insurer that you started out with, but you are now responsible for renewing your licence.
Fee for renewing a licence
The fee to renew your life and accident & sickness licence is $170. This fee will cover the next two years of your licence, after which you will have to renew your licence again.
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What if I have an inactive licence? |
If you want to start selling life and accident & sickness insurance again, review Reinstate my life and accident & sickness insurance licence. |
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What if I miss the deadline for renewing my licence? |
If you don’t renew your licence before the expiration date, your licence will lapse and it will no longer be active.
If you want to continue selling life and accident & sickness insurance after your licence has lapsed, review Reinstate my life and accident & sickness insurance licence. |
Before you submit your renewal application
Continuing education credits required for renewal
To renew your life and accident & sickness licence, you are required to complete 30 continuing education (CE) credits in the previous two years that you were licensed. Keep your certificates of completion for at least four years.
The CE credits must have been completed within the previous licensing period so you cannot include:
- anything you completed while inactive
- anything you completed before you qualified as an agent
- anything you've already used as a CE credit in an earlier licensing period
What courses qualify as a CE credit?
The course must be related to the technical aspects of life insurance to qualify as a CE credit. These are just some examples of what qualifies as a CE credit and what doesn't.
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Qualifies for CE credit |
Does not qualify for CE credit |
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Errors and omissions insurance
As a non-sponsored agent, you will need to get your own errors and omissions (E&O) insurance in your own name. The policy must be active at all times and:
- be in the same legal name that you use for your agent licence
- include at least a $1 million limit for a single occurrence
- include extended coverage for loss resulting in fraudulent acts
Applying for E&O insurance
There are several E&O insurance providers in Ontario. FSRA cannot endorse or recommend a specific provider. You must do your own research and determine which provider is best for you. Consider contacting an insurer that you have a contract with or an industry association for recommendations.
Keep your E&O insurance active
You will need to have the E&O insurance coverage for as long as you have the licence, regardless of whether you’re actively selling insurance. FSRA will conduct random audits to ensure agents have their E&O insurance.
Checklist for renewing your licence
Review this checklist to ensure you are ready to renew your licence.
Requirements:
- two years of sponsored agent experience
- a current and active E&O insurance policy in the same legal name that you use for your agent licence
- 30 CE credits (you will need proof, such as certificates or transcripts)
You will also need to share any new information about bankruptcies, lawsuits, criminal records, decisions from other regulators or licensing bodies and other employment information.
Ready to renew your licence?
You can access Licensing Link to fill out and submit your renewal application.
CE credits: you will need to provide the name of the course, date of completion, number of credits earned per course and the name of the provider. Keep your certificate or transcript on hand as proof. FSRA will not accept your application if you do not provide your CE information.
What happens after your renewal is submitted:
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For most applications |
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If the application requires additional review |
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New Criminal Record check process
FSRA is changing its licensing processes for background criminal checks to ensure the processes remain up to date. Criminal record checks are part of FSRA’s rigorous licence qualification process to protect consumers by ensuring only suitable individuals sell or offer financial products and services in Ontario.
FSRA now requires licence applicants to complete their criminal record checks through our approved vendor, Triton Canada (Triton). If you have disclosed information about a criminal matter, or FSRA has received information that you may be involved in a criminal matter, you may be required to complete a background check after you have submitted your renewal application.
If required, FSRA will notify you, and will send a link to Triton’s website to complete the background check. Once completed, you will need to provide the 8-digit confirmation number found in your Triton invoice to FSRA. A fee of $19.15 applies for Triton’s service, and the background check is valid for 90 days.
Please monitor your email frequently for any information requests from FSRA. If you have any further questions about the new background check process, please contact us.