Arkansas: Insurance Continuing Education

A resident state insurance license is critically important, since for most lines of authority and license types, it’s the license that renders all other licenses valid. 

And, since an insurance producer’s ability to renew their resident state insurance license in Arkansas depends on their fulfillment of the continuing education (CE) requirements, that makes CE doubly important. Put another way, Arkansas makes a producer license renewal contingent on their CE being up to date. No CE, no more insurance license.

Of course, before you read on, know we believe our information is accurate and current, but the reader should consult their exact state website and any relevant professionals before making any decisions of consequence.

Who is Arkansas Insurance CE for?

In Arkansas, nonresident producers and nonresident adjusters are in good standing as long as they are current on the CE requirements and licensing in their own resident state. So, the producer license renewals we’re going to discuss following are required for those who hold the following lines of insurance and are residents of Arkansas:

• Life insurance
• Accident and health or sickness insurance
• Property insurance
• Casualty insurance
• Variable products insurance 
• Personal lines insurance

Insurance adjusters, too, generally have the same requirements as producers in Arkansas, though the state’s Rule 50 says, “if a person is a non-exempt producer … and a licensed adjuster, that person shall be required to meet the continuing education requirements of both licenses (emphasis added).”

Additionally, Arkansas’s CE requirements do not apply to title agents, who instead must complete six hours with one ethics requirement within a year of the license issue date and annually on their birthday thereafter, and whose CE particulars are governed by Arkansas’s “Rule 87.”

What is the due date for Arkansas Insurance CE Credits? 

If you received your insurance license in Arkansas after 2011, your license renewal and CE requirements are fairly straightforward. You must have everything completed on or before your birthday every two years from the first year of your licensure, although newly licensed individuals are exempt from having to complete CE for the initial license period. Put another way, for the first two birthdays after you get your insurance license, you don’t have to worry about CE. You’ll just pay the renewal fee by that second birthday and go about your business. But, after that, you’ll begin a two-year period during which you have to pick up your CE hours.

The state sends out notices 90 days before a producer’s birth month in their renewal year to remind them about current requirements. There is no grace period offered when your renewal date rolls around – either you have met requirements or you haven’t, period.

Because Arkansas insurance licenses were issued on an annual basis prior to 2011, some producers’ license and CE renewal dates are based on the year they were born. If you were licensed in Arkansas before 2011, you must meet your CE requirements by your birthday in odd years if you were born in an odd year, or in even years if you were born in an even year.

If you are at least 60 years old and got your Arkansas insurance license before July 1, 2003, or if you have maintained an active license since at least 15 years before July 1, 2003, you can request an exemption to maintaining CE hours.

How many hours of CE are required for Arkansas insurance producers?

Within the general hours requirement for continuing education, most states require specific carve outs for certain topics, and Arkansas is no exception. While the state requires agents to take 24 hours of continuing education coursework in that two-year period, at least three of those hours must be in the area of ethics. Courses may not be repeated within a two-year period, either.

Arkansas recognizes a variety of CE providers, but producers can earn CE while also pursuing additional professional designations such as those provided by the College for Financial Planning, which provides training for the Certified Financial Professional designation, among others.

If you are licensed in Arkansas to sell long-term care insurance (LTCI), your initial certification will require an eight-hour training course, and ongoing CE of four hours specific to LTCI every biennial renewal cycle. The four hours are countable in the total 24 hours required by the state.

Similarly, if you are licensed to sell flood insurance, Arkansas allows you to count three hours of the training requirements established by the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s National Flood Insurance Program toward your CE requirements, as well.

For more information about state-specific licensing requirements, or to find out how AgentSync can make it easier to operate across multiple states, check out our state jurisdiction pages.

Arkansas Insurance CE FAQs