How to get a New York insurance license

New York issues an insurance license through the Department of Financial Services (DFS), and the path is the same whether you aim to work as an agent or a broker: complete a prelicensing course the Department approves, pass the PSI exam for your line of authority, and apply online. The coursework load depends on the line, with 90 hours for a property and casualty license and 40 hours for a combined life, accident and health license. The fixed state costs are a $40 exam fee and an $80 license fee for residents, and most candidates move from enrollment to a submitted application within a few weeks.

Insurance licenses New York issues

New York licenses insurance producers as agents or brokers, and issues separate licenses for adjusters and several specialty roles. An agent represents one or more insurers and needs a company appointment before selling; a broker represents the public and can place business with any New York authorized insurer that accepts it. Agents and brokers follow the same education, exam, and application steps for a given line of authority (DFS agents and brokers hub^[1]).

The main licenses, with their coursework, exams, and fees, look like this:

Eligibility for a New York insurance license

You can apply at 18 or older, and New York asks for no college degree and no prior industry experience. Under New York Insurance Law, every individual applicant must be of full age when the license issues, and the producer licensing statute imposes no schooling or work-history condition beyond the prelicensing course itself (N.Y. Insurance Law § 2103^[2]).

One criminal-history issue can block you. Under 18 U.S.C. 1033, anyone convicted of a felony involving dishonesty or a breach of trust is disqualified from insurance employment; the DFS licensing hub^[1] explains that the Superintendent may lift the ban through the Application for Written Consent to Engage in the Business of Insurance, filed with your license application.

Fingerprinting does not apply to producers. New York requires fingerprints only for independent adjuster, public adjuster, bail bond, and life settlement broker applicants, taken by live scan through IdentoGO at a New York authorized center, while resident agent and broker applicants submit no prints (DFS fingerprinting procedure^[3], NIPR New York resident requirements^[4]). Fingerprinted applicants attach one of the two IdentoGO receipts to the application, and DFS discards the scans if it does not receive the application within 10 days of taking the prints.

Complete New York prelicensing education

New York Insurance Law requires every agent, broker, and public adjuster applicant to finish a prelicensing course the Department of Financial Services has approved before sitting for the exam, and Insurance Law 2103 counts classroom study and its equivalent, correspondence or internet coursework, alike, so you can complete the hours online (N.Y. Insurance Law § 2103^[2]). RealEstateU's New York prelicensing courses are delivered online for each major line of authority, letting you finish the state-required hours without attending a classroom.

Designation holders skip the coursework entirely. Agent and broker applicants who hold the Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter (CPCU), Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU), Chartered Life Underwriter Associate (CLUA), Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC), or Master of Science in Financial Services (MSFS) designation are exempt from the prelicensing course (DFS prelicensing education page^[5]).

Broker and public adjuster applicants can also substitute experience on a Statement of Employer: a broker needs 1 year of responsible insurance duties at an insurer, broker, or agent during the last 3 years, and a public adjuster needs 1 year of industry employment involving sales, underwriting, or claims. Your school completion certificate never expires, and you submit it with the license application (PSI candidate bulletin^[6]).

Life, accident and health license in New York

The combined life, accident and health authority requires 40 hours of approved prelicensing education, or 20 hours for either the life-only or accident-and-health-only authority, plus the PSI exam for the line, and it authorizes you to sell life insurance, annuities, and accident and health products (DFS life licensing page^[7]). The combined exam (17-55) has 150 questions with a 2.5-hour limit; the life exam (17-51) and the accident and health exam (17-52) each have 100 questions and 2 hours (PSI candidate bulletin^[6]).

Designation holders take a shorter exam. A life agent candidate with a CLU or CLUA skips the course and sits only for the 50-question Life and Health Laws and Regulations exam (17-73); a life broker candidate can do the same with a CLU, ChFC, or MSFS (DFS life licensing page^[7]).

Selling variable life or variable annuities adds a federal layer: you must hold the life authority, register with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), furnish your FINRA Central Registration Depository (CRD) number, and provide proof of passing FINRA Series 6, 7, or 63.

Property and casualty license in New York

A New York property and casualty license requires 90 hours of approved prelicensing education, the heaviest load of any line, plus the PSI exam and the standard producer application. The exam (17-56) has 150 questions and a 2.5-hour limit, and the authority covers auto, home, liability, and commercial coverage (DFS property and casualty licensing page^[8]).

A CPCU designee skips the 90 hours and takes only the 50-question Property Casualty Laws and Regulations exam (17-74). Broker candidates without a designation can waive the education with 1 year of responsible insurance duties during the last 3 years, documented on a Statement of Employer; armed forces members qualify if the employment fell within the 3 years before entry and they apply within 1 year of discharge (DFS property and casualty licensing page^[8]).

Personal lines license in New York

The personal lines authority covers non-commercial insurance sold to individuals and families rather than businesses, and it requires 40 hours of coursework and the 100-question personal lines exam (17-54), with a 2-hour limit (DFS property and casualty licensing page^[8]).

Insurance adjuster licenses in New York

New York licenses independent adjusters, who investigate and settle claims for insurers, and public adjusters, who negotiate settlements on behalf of policyholders, and every adjuster applicant must pass a New York exam because the state grants no reciprocity for adjusters (PSI candidate bulletin^[6]). An independent adjuster candidate needs no prelicensing course and takes a line-specific exam (17-63 through 17-72), each 60 questions in 1 hour, except the general adjuster exam (17-70), which has 100 questions and 2 hours.

Public adjuster candidates face more requirements: a 40-hour approved course, waivable with 1 year of qualifying industry employment, the 60-question public adjuster exam (17-62) with a 1-hour limit, a $1,000 bond covering the licensing period, and 5 certificates of character from community members who have personally known the applicant for at least 5 years (DFS adjuster licensing page^[9]).

Both adjuster types pay a $100 fee for a term longer than 1 year, or $50 for 1 year or less, and all adjuster licenses expire on December 31 of even-numbered years. Adjuster applications go through the NY LINX portal, and a temporary independent adjuster permit is available for catastrophes when a New York authorized insurer sponsors the applicant. For renewal, public adjusters complete 15 continuing education credits per cycle while independent adjusters are exempt (DFS continuing education page^[10]).

Pass the New York insurance licensing exam

PSI Services administers every New York insurance licensing exam, each attempt costs $40, and you pass with 70% of the questions correct. Exams run at PSI computer testing centers across the state and by remote proctoring, and your score appears on screen when you finish, with a score report emailed to you (PSI candidate bulletin^[6]).

A few rules shape your scheduling. Exam fees are nonrefundable and are forfeited if you do not test within 1 year of PSI receiving payment. You can cancel or reschedule without penalty up to 2 days before the appointment. After a failed exam you cannot book a new appointment the same day, but you can retest as soon as the following Friday. Each exam may include 5 to 10 unscored experimental questions.

Apply for your New York insurance license

Residents apply online through NY LINX, the Department's licensing portal, and the resident producer fee is $80 for a term longer than 1 year or $40 for 1 year or less, with all fees non-refundable (DFS fee schedule^[11]). You must submit the application within 2 years of passing the exam, because New York exam scores stay valid for 2 years (NIPR New York state information^[12]). Wait a day or two after passing before you file, so your score reaches the state's system.

Include the prelicensing school certificate or your designation evidence, plus the original passing score report. You can pay by credit card, electronic funds transfer, or paper check, and any returned e-check or paper check draws a $20 fee (DFS property and casualty licensing page^[8]). Processing typically takes 7 to 10 business days, per the National Insurance Producer Registry, though review can run longer when background or documentation questions arise; you can check status on NIPR with a transaction, payment, or order number (NIPR application status page^[13]).

Company appointments and selling as an agent

An agent license is considered inactive until at least one insurance company files an appointment with DFS, while brokers never take appointments at all. The appointing insurer files its notice within 15 days of signing the agency contract or of the first policy application, and an agent with no appointment on file when renewal comes due cannot renew (DFS industry licensing FAQ^[14]). A company appointment is not needed to obtain the agent license in the first place, so you can complete the licensing steps before lining up your company.

Renewal and continuing education in New York

Producer licenses run up to 2 years and expire on your birthday in an odd- or even-numbered year based on your birth year, and you renew online during the 180-day window before expiration, because New York allows no renewal after the date passes (DFS license renewal page^[15]). Filing fewer than 60 days before expiration adds a $10 late fee under Insurance Law 2103 (N.Y. Insurance Law § 2103^[2]).

Continuing education (CE) requires 15 credits per biennial period once a license has been in effect more than 2 years, completed before you submit the renewal. Under amendments effective November 12, 2021, applying to renewals on or after April 1, 2022, the 15 credits must include:

• 1 hour of insurance law
• 1 hour of ethics and professionalism
• 1 hour of diversity, inclusion, and elimination of bias
• 1 hour of flood insurance, if you hold any property and casualty line
• 3 hours of enhanced flood insurance, if you sell flood through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP)

Courses come from Department-approved providers in classroom, webinar, or self-study formats, excess credits do not carry into the next period, and a $10 biennial filing fee applies per license under Section 2132 (DFS continuing education page^[10], N.Y. Insurance Law § 2132^[16]).

If a license expired within the last 2 years, you relicense online with CE documentation and a $10 filing fee; if it expired more than 2 years ago, you must retake the exam and file a paper application with the passing score report and fee (DFS industry licensing FAQ^[14]).

Nonresidents, reciprocity, and moving to New York

Nonresidents apply through the National Insurance Producer Registry (NIPR), which sends the home-state certification directly to DFS, and pay the retaliatory fee set for their declared home state, for example $190 for New Jersey residents, $110 for Pennsylvania, and $144 for California (DFS nonresident licensing page^[17], DFS fee schedule^[11]). You must hold an equivalent active resident license for each line you request, and nonresidents who are CE-compliant in their home state owe no New York CE.

New York waives the exam and coursework for licensees from reciprocal states. Under Insurance Law 2103, an applicant licensed in another state for the same lines skips New York's exam and education when that state licenses New York nonresidents on the same basis, provided the applicant is currently licensed or applies within 90 days of the prior license's cancellation while in good standing (N.Y. Insurance Law § 2103^[2]).

Moving to New York works the same way: an out-of-state licensee applies within 90 days of establishing residence and needs no education or exam for lines previously held. Moving away, a New York resident requests a Letter of Clearance through NY LINX, then converts the New York license to nonresident status and provides the new home-state license within 30 days (NIPR New York state information^[12]).

Other New York insurance licenses

DFS also issues title insurance agent, bail bond, life settlement broker, excess lines, and consultant licenses, each with its own rules. Title agents need 20 hours of coursework and the 17-81 exam under Insurance Law 2139, and New York attorneys in good standing skip both (DFS title licensing page^[18]). Bail bond agents take the 17-59 exam with no course and post a $5,000 bond. Life settlement brokers complete 20 hours and the 17-80 exam. Excess lines brokers take no course or exam but must already hold a property and casualty broker license, with a fee set by county population, $50 for counties under 100,000 residents and $400 above that (NIPR New York resident requirements^[4]). Consultants, who sell advice rather than policies, take the 17-57 or 17-58 exam with no coursework (PSI candidate bulletin^[6]).

Print and look up a New York insurance license

New York does not mail paper licenses; the license issues as a PDF you print yourself from the Producer/Licensee Search tool on the DFS website, and any future print request carries a statutory $15 duplicate fee (DFS industry licensing FAQ^[14]). The same search serves anyone who needs to verify a producer's credentials.

What licensed insurance agents earn

Insurance sales agents earned a median annual wage of $62,280 in May 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, in an occupation that projects steady demand. The field held 572,600 jobs in 2025, projects 3% growth from 2025 to 2035, and expects about 43,100 openings each year, with insurance agencies and brokerages employing 63% of agents (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook^[19]). Typical entry education is a high school diploma, with licensing required in every state worked.

Next steps

Start with the products you want to sell: life and health products call for the life, accident and health authority, while auto, home, and commercial lines call for property and casualty. Enroll in an approved prelicensing course, which you can complete online, and book your PSI exam when the coursework is done. Once you pass, file the online application through NY LINX, and if you will act as an agent rather than a broker, begin talking with appointing companies early so you can start selling as soon as the license issues.