Applying for a license

The Canadian Insurance Participant Registry (CIPR) provides a secure, self-serve service for regulated parties to maintain, and control access to, their personal information. Registrants receive a unique identifier, called their CIPR#, to use within the industry and across all jurisdictions across the country for the length of their career.

If you’ve written an exam with AIC before, or have a previous license from Alberta, you already have a CIPR number.

New to CIPR? Register for a CIPR number.
Forgot your CIPR number or login or have to update your email? Use the prompts on the CIPR login page or view the CIPR FAQs. Do not create another CIPR profile (duplicate accounts are deleted by the system).

Education requirements vary by insurance license class and level. You can find these by choosing the type of license you’re applying for.

You’ll need to pass the required provincial exam* before you can apply. Exams marks are only valid for 12 months. AIC must receive paid and approved license applications within 12 months of the applicant passing the exam(s).

Exceptions:

• If an individual re-applies within 24 months (2 years) from the last time they held an active license in the same class, they are exempt from having to rewrite the required exam(s). Note: AIC must receive the paid and approved applications within those 24 months.
• If you’re currently licensed in your home jurisdiction for an equivalent license as you’re applying for in Alberta, you will not need to take the required exam (as you’ve already passed exams considered equivalent to Alberta’s). However, you are still required to submit applications under your AIC account and meet the Alberta licensing requirements, as we do not automatically transfer or “activate” licenses from other jurisdictions.

Please review exam information for more about writing an exam.

* Please note there are different exams for different types of insurance certification.

A criminal record check from MyBackCheck or from your local police or RCMP detachment is required. That criminal record check must be issued within the last three (3) months from the date AIC receives the paid and approved application(s).

AIC does not accept third party criminal checks from Triton, Certn, or Verifications Canada. If the criminal check is provided by your local police station or the RCMP, a PDF of the report must be provided when completing your application.

Click here to see more information about the process to provide a criminal record check from MyBackCheck.

U.S. residents must obtain an FBI or First Advantage criminal record check.

Licensed agents will need an active E&O policy meeting the terms and conditions approved by the Alberta Insurance Council. Please provide:

• • The name of your E&O carrier (insurance company covering the policy, not the brokerage who may have sold you the policy)
  • Your E&O policy number
  • The effective and expiry dates of your policy (your policy must be active at the time of application, it cannot be expired or effective in the future)

If you’re applying as an employee of an insurer, you are exempt from this requirement and will not be required to enter E&O policy information during the application process.

Check out the E&O requirements for more information.

Sponsorship is mandatory. You’ll need an employer (agency or sponsoring insurance company) to recommend your licenses. Sponsorship is required to submit an application and to hold a license.

Part of the application process is determining that licensees are not in positions of power that advantage themselves over their clients. From the legislation:

Insurance agents: the individual must not be in a position to use coercion or undue influence in order to control, direct or secure insurance business; the individual must not be engaged in another occupation or business that would place the individual in a conflict of interest position when acting as an insurance agent.

See Understanding Voluntary Undertaking Agreements for more on this and information on occupations that can potentially delay your license application.

There are other eligibility criteria individuals must provide more information about in order to apply for a license (e.g. convictions, bankruptcy, etc.)

If an individual answers “yes” to any of those questions in their application, they will be required to provide an explanation and/or attach evidence as a PDF.

If your application requires additional review, you will be contacted via the email address in your CIPR profile by an AIC Licensing Officer.

Section 1(bb) of the Insurance Act: “Insurance agent” means a person who for compensation,

i. solicits insurance on behalf of an insurer, insured, or potential insured;

ii. transmits an application for insurance from an insured or potential insured to an insurer;

iii. transmits a policy of insurance from an insurer to an insured;

iv. negotiates or offers to negotiate insurance on behalf of an insurer, insured, or potential insured or the continuance or renewal of insurance on behalf of an insurer or insured; or

v. enrolls individual in prescribed contracts of group insurance.

Section 2(1) of the Insurance Act: “Adjuster” means a person who, for compensation,

1. directly or indirectly solicits the right to negotiate the settlement of a loss under a contract of insurance on behalf of an insured or insurer or a reciprocal insurance exchange, or
2. negotiates the settlement of a loss under a contract of insurance on behalf of an insured or insurer or a reciprocal insurance exchange.

An adjuster does not include:

1. a lawyer when practicing law,
2. a trustee of property or an agent of an owner of or person having an insurable interest in property who negotiates a settlement of a loss under a contract of insurance in respect of the property,
3. an insurer, or
4. an employee of an insured who negotiates the settlement of a loss under a contract of insurance on behalf of the insured

Section 455 of the Insurance Act:

1) No business that acts as an insurance agent may indicate in any manner that it represents another business that acts as an insurance agent.

2) No individual may act as an insurance agent for a business unless the individual holds a valid and subsisting insurance agent’s certificate of authority specifying that the individual is authorized to represent that business.

3) An individual who is an employee or independent contractor of a business may act as an insurance agent for more than one business, but an individual must obtain a separate insurance agent’s certificate of authority for each business that the individual represents.

Representation includes business cards, websites, email signatures, advertising, how you answer the phone, as well as any other channels you use to represent yourself as an insurance agent.

Section 489 of the Insurance Act:

No business or individual who is required to hold an insurance agent’s or adjuster’s certificate of authority before acting as an insurance agent or adjuster may indicate in an advertisement that the business or individual is an insurance agent or adjuster or offer in an advertisement to provide the services of an insurance agent or adjuster unless the business or individual, as the case may be, holds the appropriate valid and subsisting certificate of authority.