Michigan Insurance Continuing Education

Resident Requirements

Unless exempt, all resident producers and solicitors must complete 24 hours of continuing education, including three hours in ethics. The remaining 21 hours may be completed in any line of authority.

Rules for Non-Residents

Michigan is reciprocal with all other states, which means that if you have complied with another state?s continuing education requirements, you automatically comply with Michigan?s and are exempt from any additional requirements.

Carryover of Excess CE

If you complete more than the required CE hours for any license term, you may apply up to 12 hours of excess CE to the following term. Ethics hours will be applied toward general CE requirements and will not meet the following term?s ethics requirement. 

Insurance License Term Renewal Requirements

Licenses are perpetual so long as you complete the CE requirements by each review date. 

Continuing education review dates take place on the first day of your birth month. If you were born in an even-numbered year, the renewal dates will occur in even-numbered years. If you were born in an odd-numbered year, the renewal dates will occur in odd-numbered years.

The date of your first CE review will be printed on your license in the lower left-hand corner. This date must allow you at least 12 months to complete your CE requirements. If your first renewal date ? as determined by your birth month and year ? would take place less than 12 months after the date your first license is approved, it will be pushed back to the next CE review date, 2 years later. Thereafter, your review dates will occur every two years.

If you fail to complete your continuing education on time, your license will be suspended for 90 days or until you fulfill the requirements. While suspended, you may continue to service existing customers, but you may not transact any new insurance business.

If you fail to complete CE requirements before the 90 days are over, your license will be terminated. In order to be considered for reinstatement within 1 year of your CE review date, you must 

• Complete the CE requirements and have them reported
• Submit an application for licensure
• Pay associated fees

In both cases, all carriers for which you are appointed will be notified of your suspended or terminated status as a licensee.

Rules for Taking the Exam

In order to pass a continuing education course, you must score at least 70 percent on a closed-book final exam. You may not refer to course material or any other outside sources while taking the exam. All exams must be monitored by an impartial proctor who has no financial interest in your performance on the exam.

If you do not pass an exam on the first try, you may retake it. There is no limit on retakes, so you may take the test as many times as you like.

Rules for Repeating a Course

CE courses may be taken only once for credit during each two-year term. You may retake the course for personal gain, but you will not receive additional credit.

Credit for Instructors

Instructors do not receive CE credit hours for the courses they teach. 

Reporting Rules

Your course provider will submit proof of course completion on your behalf, but you should make sure that you have fulfilled any additional required information or fees. If you want to look up how many CE hours you have completed and the number of requirements you have remaining, you should use the Insurance Agent Locator on Michigan?s Department of Insurance and Financial Services (DFIS) website.

After you pass a course, the course provider will issue you a certificate of completion within 30 days. You must keep your certificate of completion for five years in order to resolve any disputes that may arise. 

If you have completed a course and have a certificate but the credit hours do not appear on the Insurance Agent Locator, you must contact your course provider directly and attempt to resolve the matter with them. If you cannot resolve the discrepancy, contact Michigan?s DFIS office with proof of completion.

Insurance CE Requirement Exemptions

If you are a non-resident producer or solicitor who has completed the CE requirements of another state, you are deemed compliant with Michigan?s CE requirements as well. 

The following types/lines of authority do not have continuing education requirements:

• Limited life
• Crop-hail
• Travel, accident, and baggage
• Title
• Credit products
• Limited lines property and casualty

In addition, in cases of severe hardship, an individual may apply for a waiver of CE requirements prior to the expiration date of the license. Severe hardship includes:

• A terminal illness affecting one's ability as a producer
• Extended illness of the licensee or the licensee's spouse that requires an excessive amount of care
• Active military duty or deployment

Those experiencing cases of severe hardship may alternatively apply for an extension of CE requirements.

Michigan Annuity Requirements

The new Annuity Best Interest requirement became effective June 29, 2021. Accordingly, the deadline for producers to complete the training requirements set forth in Section 4160(7) of the Code is December 29, 2021.

Producers subject to Section 4160(7) of the Code may complete the required training by completing either the new 4 hour training course or the additional 1-time 1 hour training course.

Producers who are licensed by DIFS on or after June 29, 2021, must complete the one-time, 4 hour training course approved by the Director before engaging in the sale of annuities.

Michigan Long-Term Care Training Requirements

Insurance producers who sell long-term care (LTC) products must complete special training that includes:

• A one-time eight-hour course prior to selling LTC products
• Four hours of CE for each subsequent CE term

These training hours can be applied toward the total CE requirements for the periods in which they are taken.

Individuals who complete substantially similar coursework in another state are held to be compliant with Michigan?s requirements as well.

Flood Insurance

In order to comply with the requirements established by FEMA and the National Flood Insurance Program, you must complete a one-time three-hour course before selling flood insurance.