Georgia Insurance Continuing Education

Resident Requirements

In order to renew your insurance license in the state of Georgia, you must meet the state's continuing education requirements. For each two-year license term, any agent, subagent, counselor, or adjuster not exempt must complete the required amount of CE for their license and level of experience.

If you are an agent, counselor, or adjuster who has been licensed for less than 20 years, you must complete 24 hours of insurance CE every two years. The CE can be completed in any area for which you are licensed and must include three hours of ethics.

If you are an agent, counselor, or adjuster who has been licensed for more than 20 years, you must complete 20 hours of insurance CE every two years. The CE can be completed in any area for which you are licensed and must include three hours of ethics.

Some licenses have particular conditions or restrictions:

• Limited Subagent ONLY: If you are only licensed as a limited subagent, you must complete 10 hours in the license type you hold. No ethics is required.
• Combination License: If you have multiple license types including a limited subagent license, only 5 CE hours in the subject area for which you have a subagent license can apply towards your CE requirements.
• Credit Insurance: If you have a multiple line license and one of those lines is credit insurance, only 5 CE hours in self-study Credit Insurance can apply towards your total CE hours. The rest must come from the other lines. If you have only a Credit Insurance license, no ethics course is required.
• Workers' Compensation Adjuster ONLY: If you are only a workers? compensation adjuster, you must complete 20 hours of CE either (a) specifically in the lines of property and casualty or (b) through the State Workers? Compensation Board. No ethics course is required.
• Workers Compensation Adjuster: If you are a workers? compensation adjuster in addition to other lines of insurance, either (a) you must complete the regular CE requirements specifically in the lines of property and casualty, or (b) 10 of your CE hours must be completed through the State Workers? Compensation Board. 
• National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP): If you are licensed for property covered under the NFIP, you must complete a one-time three-hour course related to NFIP. These hours can apply towards general CE requirements.

Rules for Non-Residents

If you are a non-resident, you may be exempt from Georgia insurance continuing education requirements if:

• You fulfill the CE requirements of your home state
• You claim this exemption during the license renewal
• Your home state reciprocates with Georgia's licensees in the same manner

Non-residents who fail to fulfill any of these criteria must complete Georgia's CE requirements.

Carryover of Excess CE

If you complete more than the required hours of continuing education in a two-year filing period, this credit may be applied towards the next period. However, you may not fulfill more than 50% of the next periods total CE requirements through carryover credits.

Insurance License Term Renewal Requirements

Licenses expire on the last day of the licensees birth month every other year, regardless of the date of the original licensure. You must file the renewal form along with the fee and evidence of CE requirements by this date.

You may file a late renewal with the appropriate fee up to 15 days after the license expires. After this period, you must file for late renewal reinstatement and an additional penalty of $150.

If the late renewal reinstatement is received six or more months after the license has expired, you must submit electronic fingerprints in addition to all other forms, fees, and penalties. If it is received more than one year after the date of expiration, you must reapply for the license.

Rules for Taking the Exam

You must pass a proctored final exam with a score of 70% or higher in order to pass each CE course. If you fail the exam, you may take it again. There is no limit on retakes.

All CE exams are closed-book. You may not refer to course material while the exam is in progress, and an impartial proctor must be present to ensure compliance with this regulation. The proctor may not be a family member or a person who has a financial interest in the exam result.

Rules for Repeating a Course

Within any licensing period, you may not take a CE course for credit more than once. After the date of license renewal, you may repeat the course and receive credit for the next renewal period.

Credit for Instructors

Instructors teaching an approved CE course may receive the same credit as their students for that class. They cannot teach the same course multiple times for additional CE credit during any licensing period. However, they may teach different courses, and each unique course will count towards their CE hours.

Reporting Rules

In order to confirm CE compliance, your CE provider will submit your credit hours directly to the state. However, you should keep your own class records, including certificates of completion, in case of a CE audit.

Insurance CE Requirements Exemptions

Upon completion of all required forms and at the discretion of the Commissioner, the following individuals may receive a reduction of or exemption from CE requirements:

• Persons holding professional designations in insurance 
• Persons who spent an equivalent amount of time on insurance-related activities, including but not limited to:
  • Teaching insurance-related courses 
  • Projects including research of insurance laws and regulations
  • Legislative activities related to insurance
  • Insurance-related journalism
  • Active participation in professional insurance associations subject to that association's verification (members may receive up to three hours of related CE credit)

The following individuals have reduced CE hours per licensing period. They must complete 12 hours, with three of those hours in ethics:

• Persons with a BBA in Risk Management and Insurance from an accredited college
• Persons with certain professional designations, including CPCU, CLU, FLMI, CIC, CEBS, ChFC, AAI, CFP, CRM, and CISR

Individuals holding the professional designation of Universal Claims Certification (UCC) are exempt from all CE requirements.

Agents holding a current, nonactive license are also exempt from CE requirements while the license is nonactive.

Annuity Requirements

All insurance producers must take a one-time, four-hour Annuity Suitability course that has been approved by the department before handling annuity products. Until completing this course, agents may not sell, solicit, or negotiate an annuity product.

If you have completed a similar course in a different state, you have fulfilled the requirement and do not need to retake the course.

Long-Term Care Training Requirements

Agents must undergo special training in order to handle long-term care partnership policies. This training includes:

• An initial eight-hour long-term care course
• A four-hour CE long-term care course every licensing period

If you have taken another states long-term care partnership course, you may receive credit for up to six hours of the initial eight-hour course. You must still complete a two-hour Georgia-specific Medicaid course.

Flood Insurance Training Requirements

Licensees who intend to sell flood insurance must follow national guidelines. In order to sell flood insurance, the individual must complete a one-time minimum of three training hours as outlined by the National Flood Insurance Program and FEMA. This may be completed in any state in which the producer is licensed.