Iowa Continuing Education and Producer Authority

License Maintenance and Reporting

Change of Address (Iowa Admin Rule 191-10.12)

A licensed Iowa producer must notify IID of any change of address within 30 days of the change. Notification is filed through the NIPR Gateway unless the Division instructs otherwise.

Denial, Renewal, and Termination (Iowa Code 522B.11)

IID may deny, suspend, revoke, or refuse to renew a producer’s license on grounds defined by Iowa Code 522B.11 — including providing materially false information on the application, conviction of a felony, fraudulent or coercive practices, misappropriating funds, and license revocation in another state. The licensee is entitled to notice and a hearing under Iowa Code 507B.6.

Reinstatement

A formerly licensed producer may reinstate an expired license up to 12 months after expiration, provided CE compliance is documented. After 12 months, the producer must apply for a new license — which means re-passing the licensing exam.

Continuing Education in Iowa (Iowa Admin Rule 191-11.1 through 191-11.4)

Iowa requires every licensed resident producer to complete continuing education during each three-year license period.

• Total hours. 36 credits per three-year renewal cycle (Iowa Admin Rule 191-11.3(1)).
• Ethics. At least 3 hours of the 36 must be in ethics.
• No carryover. A producer cannot carry over CE credits earned in excess of the requirement from one CE term to the next (Iowa Admin Rule 191-11.3(3)).
• Renewal date. Last business day of the producer’s birth month, every three years.
• Exam-in-lieu option (Iowa Admin Rule 191-11.3(7)). A producer may elect to satisfy the CE requirement by retaking the licensing exam for each qualification held.

Product-Specific Training

• Flood / NFIP. Producers selling flood insurance through the NFIP must meet the NFIP’s training and continuing education guidelines, and an insurer must show IID on request that its appointed producers have done so (Iowa Admin Rule 191-11.4(2)).

Reduced CE — Crop Only (Iowa Admin Rule 191-11.3(8))

A resident producer who holds only a crop insurance line of authority needs to complete 18 credits of CE every three years, including 3 hours of ethics, plus any training required by the federal Risk Management Agency.

Public Adjusters

Public adjusters operate under Iowa Code Chapter 522C with a different CE structure: 24 credits every 2 years, including 2 hours of ethics.

CE Exemptions

Iowa’s CE rules exempt several categories from the general requirement, including:

• Nonresident producers whose home state has a CE requirement (compliance with the home state’s rules satisfies Iowa).
• Producers licensed solely for credit insurance or surety subject to limited line rules.
• Active-duty military producers in defined circumstances.
• Attorneys licensed and in good standing with documented CLE compliance, under certain limitations.

Commissions and Referral Fees (Iowa Code 522B.12; Iowa Admin Rule 191-10.14)

Iowa Code 522B.12 and Iowa Admin Rule 191-10.14 govern how producers may share compensation:

• Referral fees to unlicensed persons. A licensed producer may pay a nominal referral fee to an unlicensed person — provided the unlicensed person does not discuss specific policy terms or conditions with the prospective customer, and the same fee is paid for each referral whether or not it results in the purchase of insurance.
• Commission sharing between licensed producers. A licensed producer may share commissions with another licensed producer authorized for the same line of authority.
• Unlicensed commission activity prohibited. Paying or receiving an insurance commission by someone who is not licensed for that line of insurance is prohibited and subjects both parties to discipline.

Why the Appointment Matters: Principal-Agent Liability

When an insurer appoints a producer, the insurer becomes the principal in a legal agency relationship. The insurer is generally responsible for the producer’s actions taken within the scope of the producer’s authority:

• Actual authority. Authority the insurer has expressly granted (typically in the agency contract) or that is impliedly necessary to carry out the express grant.
• Apparent authority. Authority that a reasonable third party would believe the producer possesses, based on the way the insurer has held the producer out to the public. Even when the producer exceeds actual authority, the insurer may still be bound to a client who reasonably relied on what the producer appeared to be authorized to do.

Practicing Across State Lines: Reciprocity and NIPR

Iowa is a fully reciprocal state under the NAIC Producer Licensing Model Act:

• Resident vs. nonresident. A producer’s resident license is issued by the home state.
• Reciprocity. Iowa accepts the home-state license of producers from other states without requiring them to retake the licensing exam.
• NIPR — National Insurance Producer Registry. Iowa uses NIPR for new licenses, renewals, and appointment filings.