An insurance agency license in Florida is effective indefinitely. It is a perpetual license with no fixed expiration date, no renewal application, and no renewal fee, so long as the agency keeps a qualified Agent-in-Charge (AIC) continuously designated with the Department of Financial Services. If the agency goes 90 days without an AIC on file, the license expires automatically on the 91st day, and the only way back is a brand-new application.1MyFloridaCFO. Frequently Asked Questions
Perpetual Does Not Mean Maintenance-Free
Florida does not put agency licenses on the biennial renewal cycle that applies to many other professional credentials. There is no deadline on your calendar and nothing to file every two years just to stay licensed.1MyFloridaCFO. Frequently Asked Questions
What keeps the license alive is a single structural requirement: a designated Agent-in-Charge providing services to the agency at all times. Pull that support out and the license starts a 90-day countdown toward automatic expiration. Everything else in this article is really about protecting that one requirement.
The Agent-in-Charge Keeps the License Alive
Every insurance agency location in Florida must have a designated Agent-in-Charge. The AIC must hold an active individual license and be appointed for at least two of the lines of insurance the agency handles at that location. If the agency only transacts one line, the AIC must be licensed and appointed for that line.2Florida Senate. Florida Code 626.0428 – Agency Personnel Powers, Duties, and Limitations
The AIC is more than a name on a form. This person supervises everyone at the agency location, whether or not they personally handle each transaction or deal directly with customers. Each branch office also needs an AIC on file, though one person can cover the main location and additional branches if no insurance activities requiring licensure happen at those branches when a licensed agent is absent.2Florida Senate. Florida Code 626.0428 – Agency Personnel Powers, Duties, and Limitations
One boundary worth noting: if you are a single licensed agent working under your own name and you do not employ or use the services of other licensees, you do not need an agency license at all. The agency licensing requirement applies when a business operates under a trade name or employs additional licensed agents.3Florida Senate. Florida Code 626.112 – License and Appointment Required
Your AIC’s Continuing Education Is Your Problem Too
Because the agency license survives only as long as the AIC’s individual license stays active, the AIC’s continuing education compliance is really an agency-level concern. Florida requires licensed agents to complete CE every two years. Agents licensed fewer than six years need 24 hours (a 4-hour update course plus 20 elective hours). Agents licensed six or more years need 20 hours (the 4-hour update plus 16 electives). Agents with 25 or more years of licensure who hold a CLU, CPCU, or qualifying degree need only 10 hours (the update plus 6 electives).4The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 626.2815 – Continuing Education Required
If your AIC falls behind and their personal license lapses, the agency loses its qualified AIC and the 90-day clock starts. Track compliance independently through the DFS MyProfile portal rather than relying on the agent to self-report.5Florida Department of Financial Services. Continuing Education
Reporting Changes to DFS
Agencies keep their information current through the DFS MyProfile portal, which handles adding or terminating an AIC, modifying owner and officer details, and managing branch locations.6MyFloridaCFO. MyProfile Info and Tutorials
When the AIC changes, the agency must notify DFS within 30 days, and the new designation takes effect upon notification.2Florida Senate. Florida Code 626.0428 – Agency Personnel Powers, Duties, and Limitations Address changes, ownership changes, and updates to officers or directors should also be reported promptly through the same portal.
What Happens When the AIC Leaves
This is where agencies get into trouble. The statute is strict: an agency location cannot conduct insurance business unless an AIC is designated and providing services at all times.2Florida Senate. Florida Code 626.0428 – Agency Personnel Powers, Duties, and Limitations The moment the designated AIC ends their affiliation with the agency, the location should stop transacting insurance until a replacement is on file.
The timeline:
- Day 0. The AIC leaves. The agency should not conduct insurance business at that location without an AIC in place.
- Within 30 days. The agency must notify DFS of the change and designate a new AIC. This is the expected window for getting a replacement on file.
- Days 31 through 90. The license still exists, but the location remains prohibited from transacting insurance until a new AIC is designated.
- Day 91. The license automatically expires. No hearing, no warning letter. It simply ceases to exist by operation of law.
The 90-day period is not a grace period for continuing business. It is the window during which the agency can save its license by designating a new AIC. Operating without a designated AIC during that stretch risks disciplinary action from DFS.2Florida Senate. Florida Code 626.0428 – Agency Personnel Powers, Duties, and Limitations
Reapplying After the License Expires
There is no reinstatement for an expired agency license. Once it expires on day 91, the agency applies for a completely new license as if it had never been licensed.1MyFloridaCFO. Frequently Asked Questions Expect to pay:
- A $50 nonrefundable license application fee, or $10 for a title agency.
- A $5 license ID fee during the application process.
- $49.50 for fingerprinting, paid to the vendor and covering FDLE, FBI, and processing.
- $60 per appointment for both resident and nonresident agents; nonresident agents also pay $6 per county where they intend to physically transact insurance.
All fees are nonrefundable.7Florida Department of Financial Services. Fees and Payment Methods The bigger cost is time. The agency has to wait for DFS approval before resuming business, and during that gap it cannot legally write policies, collect premiums, or service existing clients. For an established book of business, the lost revenue from a few weeks of downtime easily exceeds the filing fees.
Other Ways the License Can End
Automatic expiration from a missing AIC is the most common way agencies lose their licenses, but it is not the only way. DFS must suspend, revoke, or refuse to continue an agency license on grounds that include misrepresentation on the application or to insureds, demonstrated lack of fitness or trustworthiness, fraud or misappropriation of funds belonging to insurers or insureds, unlawful rebating, certain felony or financial-services misdemeanor convictions, and willful violations of DFS orders, rules, or the Florida Insurance Code.8Florida Senate. Florida Code 626.611 – Grounds for Compulsory Refusal, Suspension, or Revocation of License or Appointment
A revoked license is a worse outcome than an expired one. Revocation creates a regulatory history that follows the agency’s principals into future licensing applications, while an expired license mainly costs the agency its downtime and reapplication fees.