How to get an Arizona life insurance license

What is an Arizona life insurance license?

Arizona licenses insurance producers by line, and Life is defined in the statutes as coverage on human lives, including the benefits of endowment and annuities. DIFI, the Arizona Department of Insurance and Financial Institutions, issues the license. You must be at least 18. An Arizona resident who does not already hold an Arizona insurance license must also submit Form L-152, the lawful presence form, with a required form of identification, unless fingerprints went in electronically.

Your background matters, because DIFI runs a background check on fingerprints. DIFI also lists a form for certain prior convictions. If you have a criminal record or a past regulatory action, ask DIFI how it applies before you spend money on an exam.

Do you need a pre-licensing course in Arizona?

We could not find a state-required course on the DIFI pages or the PSI bulletin. DIFI says that you generally must pass an Arizona insurance exam administered by PSI for the authority you want. The PSI bulletin mentions pre-licensing study courses only as optional preparation, with a pointer to find study materials. Because this is a negative finding, ask DIFI to confirm before you decide to skip a course. A prep course is a study choice, not a state step, unless DIFI tells you otherwise.

How do you get an Arizona life insurance license?

1. Schedule and pay for the Life exam with PSI, either at a test center or with remote proctoring. Remote exams require a smartphone as a second camera.
2. Take and pass the exam. The statute and the PSI bulletin say that the Department must receive all required application materials within one year after you pass.
3. Apply through NIPR and pay the DIFI license fee. DIFI says to submit your application via NIPR. Paper applications are allowed, but NIPR is prioritized for processing.
4. Get fingerprinted with Fieldprint after you have submitted the NIPR application. DIFI's process guide tells applicants not to complete the Fieldprint appointment until after they have applied.
5. Wait for DIFI to process the file. DIFI says it processes most license applications within 10 days and that applications can take up to a month. DIFI does not produce paper license certificates, and the license appears in the online license search.

What does the exam cover, and what does it cost?

The Arizona Life Insurance Producer exam, series 13-31, has 100 items and a 2-hour limit. PSI adds a small number, 5 to 10, of unscored experimental questions on top. You must get 70 percent correct to pass. The exam is offered only in English, and PSI offers time and a half for candidates whose first language is not English, with a letter. The outline gives percentages by topic and does not state a separate count of Arizona law questions.

The exam fee is $50 and is not refundable or transferable. It is valid for one year from the date of payment. Arizona law says you may not take an examination more than four times within a twelve month period, and after four failures there is a one-year wait. You cannot book a new exam on the same day you tested.

The sources disagree on the FBI processing fee by 44 cents, and the bulletin says the fee may change at any time, so confirm it with DIFI. Using the DIFI figure, the exam, license and FBI fee come to $192, plus the Fieldprint fee, any NIPR charge and any prep course. DIFI also has a waiver form for a low-income applicant whose family income is at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty level.

What does continuing education look like in Arizona?

Arizona's cycle is longer than most. DIFI says licenses renew every four years, with the expiration on the last day of your birth month, and a new license can run between three and four years. It requires 48 hours of continuing education (CE) per four-year licensing period. At least 6 of those hours must be ethics. CE must be finished before you submit your renewal, and you can renew up to 90 days early.

If you miss the date, you can renew an expired license during the following year by paying the renewal fee plus a $100 late renewal fee. After a year the license is treated as a new application. Anyone who wants to sell annuities must first complete four hours of Arizona-approved annuity training. We could not find the renewal fee amount on a DIFI page. The statute sets it as the quadrennial license fee, within a range of $60 to $180, so confirm it before you renew. Our continuing education guide compares the rules in several states.

Can you sell in Arizona if you live in another state?

Yes, with a nonresident license. The statute requires an active license in good standing in your home state and reciprocity, and the PSI bulletin says the exam does not apply to most nonresidents. We did not find a separate nonresident fee page, so confirm the cost with DIFI before you apply through NIPR. Nonresident CE is not required if your home state has CE and honors Arizona credits. A Texas license or a Georgia license can be that home license, and our general license guide explains how a second state works.

If you are moving to Arizona, DIFI says to complete your Arizona fingerprint and background check within 90 days of receiving clearance from your prior resident state. We could not find appointment rules or fees on the pages we reviewed. Our carrier contracting guide explains what appointments involve in general.

How Checkmate fits

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