Arkansas CS/Enablement Summary of AR Business Rule Overhaul for use with customers:
Effective November 13, in support of Arkansas's Executive Order 26-04, NIPR has partnered with Arkansas to review and update business rules to streamline the licensure process for applicants. In addition to business rule updates, there are also upcoming process changes in which the applicant will take and pass their exam prior to applying for the license when exam is required for the license. To learn more about the process changes please visit Legal Bulletins - Arkansas insurance Department.
New License Classes Added include:
LC 25 MGA
LC 105 Third Party Adminstrator
License Classes/Lines of Authority Removed
• License Class 3 Insurance Producer,
LOA 115 Funeral Expense will only be offered to AR residents going forward.
LOA 126 PrePaid Legal is being removed and will no longer be offered.
LOA\_197 Marine is being removed and will no longer be offered
• License Class 23 Consultant
will only be offered to AR residents going forward for all lines of authority except LOA\_197 Marine
LOA\_197 Marine is being removed and will no longer be offered
• License Class 9534 Consultant Agency
Will only be offered to AR residents going forward for all lines of authority except LOA\_197 Marine
LOA\_197 Marine is being removed and will no longer be offered
AR Business Rule Change Summary
NIPR is modifying 65 existing Gateway rules for Arkansas. These are application and transaction processing rules enforced by the NIPR Gateway at the point the application is submitted. The changes are grouped below.
Applications that used to Defer will now be stopped at submission
Across the alert, rules that previously returned Defer now return Reject (Online) / Decline (Backend). The applicant is stopped at submission instead of being pended for state review.
Applying for a resident AR license while holding an active AR non-resident license.
A DRLP is provided who is not actively licensed in Arkansas (RL, RLR, NRLNHS, NRRNHS).
The DRLPs listed do not cumulatively cover all lines of authority applied for (RL, RLR, NRL).
Consultant Agency applications where no DRLP is licensed for Consultant.
Life Settlement Producer applied for without applying for or holding an active AR Insurance Producer license, and Life Settlement Producer renewals not submitted at the same time as the Insurance Producer renewal.
Exchange Producer applied for or renewed without an active AR Insurance Producer license.
NRAL DHS applications where the selected Designated Home State does not have an active non-resident adjuster license.
Exam must be passed before the application is submitted
Resident applicants for Producer (Accident & Health or Sickness, Crop, Life, Property-Casualty, Personal Lines), Surplus Line Producer and Title Agent/Title must have a passed exam record at submission. Applications without one are rejected rather than deferred for state exam verification.
Exceptions: a Consultant applicant who holds an active AR Insurance Producer license on PDB, and an applicant whose resident license is Inactive and is within 90 days of the AR RL application.
Reapplication (Reinstatement to NIPR, which occurs 1 year after the expiration date) follows the same rule for every license class that required an exam on initial application.
The No Home State exam defer rule and the PSI special character (E) processing rule are both removed.
Supporting documents now go to the NIPR Attachment Warehouse
Arkansas is retiring mail, fax and email submission of supporting documents. Documents are now attached at https://nipr.com/licensing-center/attachments.
Non-citizen applicants attach a copy of the green card or work authorization (RL, NRL, NRLNHS, NRALNHS, NRALDHS).
Individual Surplus Lines Producer applicants attach proof of the $50,000 bond.
Both non-uniform question updates (RLR and NHSR) now direct the applicant to the Attachment Warehouse instead of the Licensing Division fax number and LicenseMail@arkansas.gov.
New bond requirements for the two new license classes
LC 25 MGA - proof of a $100,000 bond must be attached to the Attachment Warehouse before the license will be issued (RL). Defers.
LC 105 Third Party Administrator - proof of a $25,000 bond must be attached (RL and NRLNHS). Defers.
DRLP requirements expanded
Adjuster (PDB code 5) is added to the list of resident license classes that must provide at least one DRLP.
Insurance Producer and Adjuster - Business Entity are added to the DRLP required list on RLR, NRL and NRR.
New rules require at least one DRLP licensed for Insurance Producer (RL, RLR, NRL, NRR) and at least one DRLP licensed for Adjuster (RL).
On No Home State applications, DRLPs move from not required to required for Insurance Producer - Motor Club.
Cumulative LOA coverage by the listed DRLPs becomes a new rule on NRL/NRR and on NRLNHS/NRRNHS, and the resident rule is restated to apply to Consultant Agency, Surplus Lines Agency, Title Agency, Exchange Agency, Insurance Producer and Adjuster - Business Entity.
New restrictions on applicants
Applicants with a PDB status reason of Deceased or Suspended are prevented from applying (RL, NRL) and from renewing (RLR, NRR, which also includes Revoked).
Applicants with a status reason of Revoked cannot reapply for three years from the status date.
Applicants with a status of Inactive (Arkansas uses Inactive for voluntary surrender) must reapply as a new applicant regardless of expiration date, and are no longer eligible to renew.
Variable Life and Variable Annuity applicants must provide a FINRA CRD number on the application.
Owner/Partner/Officer/Director (OPOD) information is now required on all business entity applications. The Surplus Lines Agency and Consultant Agency exemptions are removed.
Address requirements tightened
Resident applications now require the residence address to be in Arkansas; an Arkansas business address no longer qualifies. The No Home State rule mirrors this - the residence address must be outside Arkansas.
PO Box is accepted for the mailing address only, and the rule now applies to both individual and business applicants rather than business only.
Renewal changes
No partial renewals. The applicant must renew all lines actively held in Arkansas that are offered electronically through NIPR, and this now applies to both individuals and business entities. The business entity "allow partial renewals" rule is removed.
The Late Renewal (Arkansas DOI reinstatement) exclusion list is expanded to add MGA and Third Party Administrator alongside Life Settlement Producer and Life Settlement Broker.
Applicants with a license in the renewal period (90 days prior to expiration) cannot submit an amendment to add lines of authority. They must renew first.
Rules removed or relaxed
The duplicate resident/non-resident overlap rule is removed, superseded by the updated version of the same rule.
The non-resident Adjuster and Consultant Agency DRLP cumulative coverage rules on NRL and NRR are removed.
The adjuster 12 month experience or apprenticeship proof requirement is removed for both RL and NRLNHS.
Both non-resident Consultant messages (the resident state reciprocity contact message and the related defer) are removed.
The Credit LOA restrictions on non-resident Producer applications are removed in both directions.
The rule deferring all non-uniform LOAs on NRR is removed.
The Surplus Lines Producer and Surplus Lines Agency "renewal not due if obtained after November 1" rules are removed.
The NRARDHS rules requiring an active equivalent license in the resident state, and waiving Crop Adjuster renewal for licenses issued between August 1 and September 30, are removed.
The RLR Exchange Producer state review defer is removed.
No Home State deferrals are narrowed. Only Adjuster No Home State applications defer for state review; clean applications for other license class and LOA combinations process through.
New applicant facing messages
A new "application has been processed" message is returned on all RL and RLR applications that are not declined, with links to check status at https://nipr.com/licensing-center and to print the license at https://nipr.com/help/print-your-license.
The criminal background check link is updated to https://cbc-enterprise.ark.org/aid, and a matching background check defer rule is added for NRLNHS individual applications.
Variable Life and Variable Annuity applicants are now sent to the state for review instead of being told to email proof of Series 6 or Series 7.
Add NPN to transaction now applies to both individuals and business entities on RL and NHS.
