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Annual Licence Renewal


Annual licence renewal opens on April 15, 2026. The deadline for annual licence renewal is June 1, 2026, and renewals completed between June 2, 2026 and July 31, 2026 will incur a late fee. Any licence not renewed by July 31, 2026 will be automatically cancelled for non-renewal.

How to Prepare for Annual Licence Renewal

All licensees are encouraged to register for an account on the new online portal and link to their existing profile. Please review the step-by-step instructions in video format below to ensure that you correctly link to your existing profile to avoid delays accessing your licence when annual licence renewal opens.

How to register for a new account as an existing user
View a step-by-step guide on how to register and link to your existing account.

Existing users, please note:
If it’s indicated that your record is not found in the system even though you had an existing portal account, do not continue by clicking Register for a New Account. 

Instead, please contact portal@insurancecouncilofbc.com for assistance to retrieve and link to your account to avoid duplicate accounts.
 

Annual licence renewal is done through the Insurance Council's online portal and consists of several steps, but includes the following components:

  1. Reviewing licensing information,
  2. Submitting annual licence renewal declarations, and 
  3. Submitting payment for the annual licence fee.


CE and E&O insurance requirements must be met before renewal


Council Rule 4(4) requires licensees to have met their continuing education (CE) and errors and omissions (E&O) insurance requirements before they are able to renew their licence. Licensees who cannot confirm that they have met their CE requirements and/or do not have the required E&O insurance will not be able to renew their licence. 
 
All licensees regardless of licence status or working status are required to meet CE requirements. Licensees who are anticipating that they will not be able to meet CE requirements due to extenuating circumstances and are not working should contact the Practice and Quality Assurance team early to ensure there is enough time to review the situation and consider what steps, if any, are available to avoid a lapse in licensure or the cancellation of their licence. To understand your CE and E&O insurance requirements, visit: Licensee Responsibilities.

About Annual Licence Renewal

 

Who needs to complete annual licence renewal

All insurance licensees must submit their annual licence renewal declarations and fee for each licence held, whether their licence status is active, inactive, or suspended. The renewal deadlines are the same for all licensees, regardless of the class of licence. All licensees must submit their declarations, regardless of who pays the annual licence fee. 

Nominees are reminded that an annual licence renewal declaration and fee is required for each agency/firm licence, in addition to their own individual licence. Licensees are required to complete their renewal themselves (or completed by the nominee for agencies and firms) and this cannot be delegated.


About the annual licence fee

Please see Licensing Fees.

It is the responsibility of the individual licensee to ensure that the annual licence fee is received by the Insurance Council, even if they have an agreement with their agency or firm to submit the payment on the licensee's behalf.

 

How to submit your annual licence renewal

All annual licence renewals are done via the online portal. 

  • Sign into the Insurance Council's online portal.
  • ​Review licence information.
  • Submit the annual licence renewal declarations to confirm you have met your ongoing licensing requirements.

  • Pay your fee with Visa, Mastercard, Amex, or Interac Online debit. If your agency or firm is submitting your fee, you must first complete the above steps yourself and then follow-up with them to confirm that the fee has been paid.

    Step-by-step instructions will be available by April 15, 2026.

More information and FAQ for the online portal can be found here.
 

 

About your annual licence renewal declaration

Depending on the type and class of licence held with the Insurance Council, licensees will be asked to confirm a number of statements related to their licence requirements, including confirmation that the licensee has met their CE requirements for the prior licence year (from June 1 to May 31) and is meeting their E&O insurance requirements. No supporting documentation needs to be submitted at the time that the declarations are made, but licensees are to maintain proper records and be prepared to produce these if audited.


Questions and support

Our online portal support team can assist with accessing your online portal account or navigating the renewal process on the portal. Please email portal@insurancecouncilofbc.com or call 604-695-2005 or call 1-877-688-0321 and press 6.

Our Practice and Quality Assurance team can assist with regulatory, compliance and practice questions or any questions related to the declarations. Please email practice@insurancecouncilofbc.com or call 604-695-2008 or call 1-877-688-0321 and press 3.

Our Licensing team can assist with your licence information and any changes to your licence, including upgrade applications and updates such as adding or removing a supervisor, adding or removing authorization to represent an agency or firm, name changes or cancelling your licence. Please email licensing@insurancecouncilofbc.com or call 604-695-2007 or call 1-877-688-0321 and press 2.


 

Frequently Asked Questions

Annual licence renewal basics

Do I need to renew my licence?

Online portal

(redirects to Online Portal page)

Payments

Continuing education

Late annual licence renewal

Errors & omissions (E&O) insurance requirements

Annual Licence Renewal Essentials

My agency/firm pays my annual licence fee. What do I need to do?

Each licensee is responsible for completing their annual licence renewal, including submitting their declarations, via the online portal and can then select the option that they have an agreement with their agency/firm that the agency/firm will submit the fee on their behalf. Please confirm this with your agency/firm before selecting this option.

It is the responsibility of the individual licensee to ensure that the annual licence fee is paid and received by the Insurance Council, even if the licensee has an agreement with the agency/firm that the agency/firm will submit the payment on their behalf.
 
Your licence renewal is not complete until you have submitted both the required annual renewal declarations and the fees have been received. If the fee has not been received by the Insurance Council by the late period, your licence will be automatically cancelled.

I have a life licence and a general licence. Do I need to submit an annual licence renewal for both?

Yes, if you hold more than one licence with the Insurance Council, you are required to submit declarations and an annual licence fee for each licence that you hold.

I have a licensed agency/firm. What do I need to do?

It is the nominee's responsibility to complete the agency's/firm's renewal, including submitting the annual licence renewal declarations and fee for the agency/firm. If the agency is licensed for general and life insurance, completion of both licences' annual licence renewal declarations as well as payment of two annual licence fees is required. The nominee is also required to submit their annual licence renewal declarations and fee for each of their own individual licence(s).

What happens if I don't submit an annual licence renewal?

Where a licensee has not submitted the annual licence renewal declarations and/or not submitted their fee by July 31st, the licence will be automatically cancelled for non-renewal. If your licence is cancelled for non-renewal, you must cease all insurance activities in British Columbia until you submit a licence application and your licence is reinstated. To submit a cancellation request, please log into your online portal account and select Licence Updates from the main menu.

For more information about reinstating an insurance licence, please review the Reinstatement Provision.

Continuing Education

Do I need to complete my continuing education (CE) before I submit my annual licence renewal?

Yes, in accordance with Council Rule 4(4), licensees have met their CE requirements and have the required E&O insurance, in order to renew their licence. Licensees are required to submit declarations confirming they have met their continuing education requirements for the prior licence period, which runs from June 1 to May 31 each year, before they can continue with their annual licence renewal. 

For more information about continuing education, please visit the Continuing Education page of our website.

If I submit a late annual licence renewal, does that allow me additional time to complete my continuing education?

No. Continuing education must be completed by May 31 each year and the related requirements must be met prior to renewing your licence. Licensees who do not meet their CE requirements by May 31st or per the CE Program for their licence class will be in breach of Insurance Council Rules and Code of Conduct. Licensees who submit a late annual licence renewal and who completed their CE requirements after May 31st will still be required to confirm they met their CE requirements and also explain the non-compliance. Proof of CE completion must be kept for five licence periods and provided to the Insurance Council, if requested.

Where can I find more information about my continuing education requirements?

Please visit the Continuing Education page of our website to learn more about your CE requirements. There you can view the Continuing Education requirements for your licence class and find other helpful CE related resources, such as learning about the CE Accreditation program, information about courses and webinars, a Q&A section, and more. Each licence class has its own CE Program which sets out their CE requirements, including the minimum number credits required, what courses qualify as CE, how to calculate eligible CE credits, and more.

Do I Need to Renew My Licence?

I'm not conducting insurance business right now and my licence is inactive. Do I need to submit an annual licence renewal?

Yes. An annual licence renewal declaration and fee is required for all licence holders, regardless of active, inactive or suspended licence status.

My licence was issued between March 1 and May 31, do I need to submit an annual licence renewal this year?

No. Licences issued between March 1 and May 31 have a first annual licence renewal date of June 1, the following year. Please refer to your licence confirmation letter as your first renewal date is stated in this letter.

What do I need to do if I want to cancel my licence?

Licensees should submit a request to cancel their licence via their online portal account by selecting Licence Updates from the main menu, or by sending an email with their name, licence number and the requested cancellation date to licensing@insurancecouncilofbc.com. 

Payment

I am an agency/firm and I want to pay the annual licence fees on behalf of licensees who are authorized to represent my agency/firm. How can I do that?

Agencies/firms will need to ask their licensees to sign into their individual online portal account and submit their annual licence renewal declarations through their own account. When the agency/firm logs into their account, they can then submit payment for all of the licensees who have submitted their declarations. Nominees have access to do this, and can assign delegates via their own portal account. Please see the online portal page for more information about the delegate functionality. 

It is the agency/firm's responsibility to review the list of licensees displayed in the agency/firm's portal account and to report any changes required to the Licensing Department at licensing@insurancecouncilofbc.com. 

How do I pay by EFT?

Agencies/firms can pay by EFT only with a prepaid account, which must be set up with the Insurance Council's accounting team in advance (see instructions below). As these accounts take time to set up and additional time must be allowed for the transfer and deposit of funds, the account must be set up by May 15th each year in order to ensure that the funds are available for the agency/firm's use in time for the June 1st deadline.

Agencies/firms are eligible to set-up a prepaid account if they are submitting payment for a minimum of 40 annual licence fees.

How do I set up and use a prepaid account?

 

At this time, we are currently determining whether prepaid accounts will be available for 2026 licence renewal. The Insurance Council recently introduced a new technology platform, which is still being implemented in stages, and some payment features are still being finalized. 

 

Prepaid accounts are for annual licence fees only. After the conclusion of the late licence renewal period, the Insurance Council will return any unused funds back to the prepaid account. The Insurance Council can start accepting requests to set up a prepaid account in early March, in advance of annual licence renewal opening to licensees. Agencies/firms are encouraged to set up their account early as it does take a few business days to set up the account and add funds. Agencies/firms who have previously used a prepaid account must always set up a new account each year.
 
 

Late Annual Licence Renewal

I hold an active insurance licence and I missed the June 1 annual licence renewal deadline and will be submitting a late renewal. Can I still conduct insurance business?

Yes, your insurance licence remains valid until July 31. If you have not completed your licence renewal, including submitting the required declarations, and if we have not received your annual licence fee by the end of day on July 31st, your licence will be automatically cancelled for non-renewal.

Errors & Omissions (E&O) Insurance Requirements

Where can I find information about my E&O insurance requirements?

You can learn more about your E&O insurance requirements on the E&O Insurance page of our website.