Delaware Department of Insurance Licensing Requirements

To work in insurance in Delaware, you need a license from the Delaware Department of Insurance that matches your role, and the Delaware insurance license requirements come down to five steps: choose the right license type, pass the state exam at Pearson VUE, clear a criminal background check, apply electronically through the National Insurance Producer Registry (NIPR) with the state fee, and renew every two years after completing continuing education. Delaware does not require pre-licensing coursework for producers, which lets you schedule the exam as soon as you are ready.¹

Pick the Right License for What You Will Do

The license type you need depends on what you plan to do with insurance in Delaware. Picking wrong wastes application fees, so settle this before you register for an exam.

A producer license covers selling, soliciting, or negotiating policies. You can request one or several lines of authority on a single application: life, health, property, casualty, and personal lines. The initial state fee is $125.²

An adjuster license is for investigating and settling claims. Delaware issues separate licenses for independent adjusters, who work for insurers, and public adjusters, who represent policyholders. Both pay a $125 initial fee.

Public adjusters have an added requirement. Before the Commissioner will issue the license, you must file a $20,000 surety bond from an insurer authorized to do business in Delaware, and your license terminates automatically if that bond lapses.³ You also need to show enough experience or training in first-party property claims.⁴

A surplus lines broker license lets you place coverage with non-admitted insurers when the admitted market cannot write what a client needs. You must already hold a resident or non-resident producer license, and the Commissioner has to find you competent and trustworthy for surplus lines work.⁵ The initial fee is $275.²

Limited lines and specialty licenses cover narrower roles such as self-service storage facility producers. The initial fee is $125, and some categories skip the exam entirely. Travel insurance licensees and automobile club licensees are exempt from both pre-licensing education and the state exam.⁶

Baseline Eligibility

You must be at least 18 and have a Social Security number or taxpayer identification number for the NIPR application.⁷

Delaware does not require pre-licensing coursework for a resident or non-resident producer license. Most states ask for 20 to 60 hours of classroom instruction before the exam; Delaware does not, which is why candidates can move directly to scheduling.¹

Be prepared to disclose outstanding financial judgments, bankruptcies, and tax liens on the application. The Department reviews these during the background check, and public adjuster applicants must have the $20,000 bond in place before applying.

Pass the State Exam

Pearson VUE develops and administers Delaware’s insurance exams.⁸ Each exam is multiple-choice and splits between general insurance knowledge and Delaware-specific laws and regulations.⁹ You register and pay in advance with a credit card, debit card, or voucher; the fee is non-refundable. Appointments can be booked as late as the day before, subject to availability, and are offered at Pearson VUE testing centers or online.¹⁰ Bring a valid government-issued ID. Unauthorized materials or communication during the exam will disqualify you on the spot.

Passing scores vary by exam. Some require a scaled score of 70, others 80, and your score report will state the threshold.⁸ You get your result immediately. Fail, and you must wait at least 24 hours to reschedule, pay the fee again, and try as many times as you need.

Clear the Background Check

Every applicant is reviewed for criminal history, financial responsibility, and prior regulatory actions. Fingerprinting is done through IdentoGO, where state and federal criminal history checks are completed in one appointment.¹¹ The combined state and federal check through the Delaware State Police costs $85, with the IdentoGO amount sometimes varying slightly.¹²

Convictions involving fraud or financial misconduct can lead to denial, though the Department weighs explanations and evidence of rehabilitation case by case. Failing to disclose something that later surfaces in the check is treated as dishonesty, and that is harder to recover from than the underlying offense.

Apply Through NIPR

Delaware accepts only electronic applications, filed through NIPR, which collects the state fee and its own transaction fee in the same step.¹ You will enter your full legal name, Social Security number, license type, and lines of authority. Errors cause delays, so check everything before you submit.

State fees are non-refundable:

Insurance producer: $125
Adjuster or appraiser: $125
Surplus lines broker: $275
Limited lines producer: $125
Adding a line of authority: $50

Figures come from the fee schedule statute and NIPR.²⁷ If you answered yes to any background question, upload supporting documents through NIPR’s Attachments Warehouse or send them to the Department by mail, email, or fax.

Non-Resident and Relocation Applicants

If you hold the same lines of authority in good standing in another state, Delaware waives both the exam and any pre-licensing education for a non-resident license.⁶ You still apply through NIPR, and state fees match the resident fees: $125 for producers, $275 for surplus lines brokers.¹³ If your home-state license was recently cancelled, you have 90 days from the cancellation date to apply under the waiver, provided your prior state certifies you were in good standing.

Moving to Delaware works the same way in reverse. You have 90 days from establishing residency to convert to a resident license, and the exam and pre-licensing requirements are waived for whatever lines you already held.

Renew by February 28 of Even-Numbered Years

Delaware licenses run on a biennial cycle tied to a fixed date rather than your birthday. Resident licenses must be renewed by February 28 of even-numbered years, and the renewal window opens the preceding December 1.¹⁴ All renewals go through NIPR. Fees are $125 for producers, $125 for adjusters, and $225 for surplus lines brokers.²

Continuing Education

Finish your continuing education before you renew. Producers need 24 hours per biennium with three in ethics. Adjusters, public adjusters, and fraternal producers need 12 hours with three in ethics.¹⁵ If you were newly licensed during the current biennium, you are exempt from CE for that cycle.¹⁴

You can carry up to five excess credits into the next biennium, but ethics credits do not carry over and must be earned fresh each cycle. If you have a legitimate reason you cannot finish in time, the Department can grant an extension of up to 12 months; submit the request in writing at least 30 days before the biennium ends.

Late Renewal and Reinstatement

Missing February 28 does not immediately kill your license, but the costs climb. From March 1 through August 31, late renewal is $225 for producers and adjusters, or $425 for surplus lines brokers. Starting September 1, the Department adds a $200 administrative fee. If your CE was not finished by February 28, a separate $200 CE late fee applies on top of the rest.¹⁴

If your license has been suspended, revoked, or cancelled for 12 months or longer, you have to start over. That means completing all licensing requirements again, including retaking the exam for every line of authority you want back.

Report Changes After You Are Licensed

Notify the Department within 30 days if you move into or out of Delaware. You can submit the change by fax, by email to licensing@delaware.gov, or electronically through NIPR.¹⁶ If anything happens after your initial application that would change a “no” answer on a background question — an arrest, a conviction, a regulatory action — report it promptly. The Department reviews these disclosures and may act depending on severity.

Penalties for Operating Without a Current License

Doing insurance business after your license has lapsed is one of the faster ways to turn a manageable problem into a serious one, since it layers retroactive fines on top of a regulatory history that complicates reinstatement.

Beyond that, the Commissioner can fine unfair or deceptive practices up to $1,000 per violation, with a $100,000 aggregate cap. Where you knew or reasonably should have known you were violating the law, the per-violation cap rises to $10,000 and the six-month aggregate to $150,000, and the Commissioner can suspend or revoke the license.¹⁷ Violating a cease-and-desist order carries up to $11,500 per violation. Insurance fraud draws administrative fines of up to $10,000 per act, a 15% assessment to cover investigation costs, possible restitution, and in severe cases criminal prosecution.

1
Delaware Department of Insurance. Producer License Laws FAQ
2
Justia Law. Delaware Code Title 18 701 – Fee Schedule
3
Justia Law. Delaware Code Title 18 1752 – Bond Requirement
4
Delaware Code Online. Delaware Code Title 18 Chapter 17A – Licensing of Public Adjusters
5
Delaware Code Online. Delaware Code Title 18 Subchapter II – Surplus Lines Insurance
6
Justia Law. Delaware Code Title 18 1709 – Exemption From Examination
7
NIPR. Delaware Resident Licensing Individual
8
Pearson VUE. Delaware Insurance Candidate Handbook
9
Pearson VUE. Delaware Insurance Supplement Examination Content Outlines
10
Pearson VUE. Delaware Insurance Licensing Exams
11
Division of Professional Regulation. Criminal Background Check Process
12
Delaware State Police. Obtaining a Certified Delaware Criminal History
13
National Insurance Producer Registry. Delaware Non-Resident Licensing Individual
14
NIPR. Delaware Resident Renewal Individual
15
Delaware Department of Insurance. Continuing Education Frequently Asked Questions
16
Delaware Department of Insurance. Producer License Laws FAQ
17
Delaware Code Online. Delaware Code Title 18 Chapter 23 – Trade Practices Relating to Insurance