Prelicensing Education

• To help ensure the competency of insurance agents and brokers in the state, the Office of Financial and Insurance Regulation requires that applicants for most insurance producer licenses complete between 20 to 40 hours of prelicensing education. You can find a list of approved education providers on the OFIR website. You can apply for a waiver of the education requirement if you have one of several insurance-related professional designations.
  
  

Application

• Submit your licensing application online via the National Insurance Producer Registry. Provide information about your work history and education and answer a series of questions pertaining to any criminal convictions. You must submit your application before taking the licensing examination. The application is only valid for six months, so you should schedule your examination within that time period.
  
  

Examination

• The Michigan Office of Financial and Insurance Regulation has outsourced the licensing examination process to a third-party vendor, Prometric. You can register for the appropriate licensing examination by calling Prometric at 800-493-3926 or going to the Prometric website. As of February 2011, the examination fee is $40. Take the examination by computer at one of Prometric's testing sites. To pass, you must achieve a score of at least 70 percent. You will receive your score and a printed score report at the conclusion of the examination. Prometric transmits your score to the Office of Financial and Insurance Regulation, which will then issue your license.
  
  

Continuing Education

• Unlike most states, Michigan does not require its insurance licensees to renew their licenses every few years. However, as a requirement of maintaining your license in good standing, most insurance licenses require that you complete 24 hours of continuing education every two years. Producers who sell limited life, crop, travel, title or credit insurance are exempt from this requirement. The Office of Financial and Insurance Regulation will suspend your license for 90 days if you fail to satisfy the continuing education requirement. You can service your existing clients during the suspension, but you cannot sell any new policies. If you don't complete the continuing education by the end of your 90-day suspension, the Office of Financial and Insurance Regulation will revoke your license.