Transferring a license when moving to a new state
QUESTION:
We recently interviewed a producer who just moved from Arizona where he held a P&C license. We would like to hire him. How do we go about getting him licensed in our state? Does he need to take any classes and pass the test? How long will it take?
ANSWER:
Our society is very mobile, so this is a question that IA&B encounters regularly. Bottom line, it always depends on the state’s licensing law, but there are some similarities. For a closer look, let’s compare our three states.
Delaware
The Department of Insurance must receive the individual’s application as a resident and the fee within 90 days of the cancellation of the individual’s previous license. The DOI will verify that the license was cancelled. If everything is complete, the education, experience and examination requirements will be waived and a brand new Delaware resident license will be issued.
Maryland
The Maryland Insurance Administration must receive the application as a resident within 90 days of the cancellation of the individual’s previous license, along with a letter of clearance issued by the prior state and the fee. If everything is complete, the education, experience and examination requirements will be waived and a brand new Maryland resident license will be issued.
Pennsylvania
Within 90 days of establishing his principal place of residence or business in Pennsylvania, the producer must apply for an individual license, provide a letter of clearance from his prior state and pay the application fee.
The producer must first request an Arizona clearance letter. Once he has received it, he can apply on SIRCON. Since an electronic application is preferred (and will shorten the turnaround time), it is best to fax a copy of the clearance letter to the Insurance Department’s Bureau of Producer Licensing on the same day he applies online to facilitate retrieval of the application.
In Pennsylvania, any new producer also needs to be fingerprinted, but the licensing process will not be held up waiting for the results. The individual will need to set up a fingerprinting appointment with Thompson – available by calling (800) 715-2418 – and take a copy of his online confirmation page from SIRCON as well as a copy of the clearance letter to the test center. Thompson has been told that individuals clearing from another state do not have to take the exam.
Note: The letter of clearance is generally easy to obtain. Most departments of insurance allow producers to apply for a letter of clearance online or, at the very least, download a form from their Web site.
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