Getting your Hawaii insurance license is the first step to becoming an insurance agent in Hawaii. Whether you’re interested in selling property and casualty insurance, life insurance, health insurance, or any combination of those lines of authority, this article has the information you need to get started.

The Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs – Insurance Division has a 6-step process on how to become an insurance agent in Hawaii. We’ll walk you through step-by-step; from the license application to insurance test prep, to the Hawaii insurance exam, and beyond.

This guide has everything you need to know to get your HI insurance license quickly and easily.

How to Get Your Hawaii Insurance License

Getting your insurance license in Hawaii is easy! Just follow our step-by-step guide. Be sure to bookmark this page so that you can visit it again throughout this process.

Step 1. Which Insurance Licenses Do You Need?

The first step to getting your insurance license is choosing which licenses you need. The most common licenses new insurance agents get are the property & casualty license (P&C), life and health insurance license (L&H).

The types of insurance products and policies you’ll be selling will determine which licenses you need. Here are some examples of the types of policies you can market with each license:

• Property and Casualty Insurance License – Auto Insurance, Home Insurance, Business Insurance, etc…
• Life and Health Insurance License – Life Insurance, Annuities, Medicare, Health Insurance, etc…

Most insurance agents and producers choose to get both P&C and L&H licenses, but if you plan on specializing in only one category then you don’t need every license.

Insurance adjusters require a separate license. You can find more information on becoming an insurance adjuster here: Hawaii Insurance Adjuster License.

Step 2. Hawaii Insurance Pre-Exam Education

After you’ve determined which licenses you need, it’s time to begin studying for the Hawaii insurance exams.

Hawaii does not require you to take a certain amount of pre-license credits before testing. This means that studying for your exam is 100% up to you.

Most folks choose to take an insurance pre-license course online. These courses are created specifically to give you the skills you need to pass the test. Others purchase books or other self-study tools to prepare themselves.

It’s wise to take a week or so to dedicate to your study of this exam. If you don’t feel as though you’re a strong test taker, take a little longer, but don’t let it drag out for long. We want you to pass your test the first time you take it, and we know that you can do it.

Step 3. Hawaii Insurance License Exam

The next step after completing all of your pre-license coursework or self-study is to take the insurance exam. You will take one exam for each line of insurance you wish to carry.

Pearson VUE offers what is called “back-to-back” exams in Hawaii. This means that you can take the Property and the Casualty exams on the same day, and only pay for one of them. This is also the case with the Life and Accident and Health exams.

This is a proctored test, which means that you will be in a controlled environment with a person watching over you. For people who haven’t tested in a situation like this should be aware of this fact, and work on taming their nerves prior to sitting for the exam.

The fee for each attempt of the exams is $75. When you show up you must have a photo ID any other documents that the testing facility has asked you to bring.

All of the exams are comprised of around ninety (80) questions (some a few more, some a few less), and are split into two sections: General Knowledge, and State Specific.

Pearson VUE also allows “partial pass” in Hawaii. This means that if you pass one section of an exam, but not the other, you will not have to retake the already passed section when testing again.

To explain the scoring of the exams, we will quote the Pearson VUE Hawaii Insurance Licensing Candidate Handbook:

Check out our Insurance Exam Guide. It’s extremely in-depth, and will hopefully help you pass the first time.

Insurance license tests are intentionally difficult, but not impossible by any means. You should study to the point of comfortability with the information before you attempt the test. Failing the exam isn’t the end of the world, but keep in mind that you will need to pay the fee each time you attempt the test.

You may register to take your exams and find more information on the Pearson VUE Hawaii Insurance Exam page.

Step 4. Fingerprinting And Background Check

The State of Hawaii requires that all insurance license applications provide fingerprints prior to licensing. Giving your fingerprints will initiate a background check. If you have any prior misdemeanors or felonies, this may affect the outcome of your licensing efforts. For more information on this topic, call the Hawaii Department of Insurance at (808) 586-2790 or email the Insurance Department.

You must schedule your fingerprinting appointment with Fieldprint Hawaii. Tell them that you are getting your fingerprints for a Hawaii insurance license. The fingerprint is HI-DCCA-INS.

The fee for fingerprinting is $63. When completed, they will send the results directly to the Insurance Department.

Step 5. Hawaii Insurance License Application

Once you have completed your exams and fingerprinting, you are now ready to apply for your license. If you have more than one line of authority that you have passed the exam for, be sure to apply for all of those lines.

The fee for an online application depends on your date of birth and when the Hawaii Department of Insurance receives your complete application. Refer to the 2022 Hawaii Fee Schedule for Producer.

If you have questions about how long your first license period will be, call the Hawaii Department of Insurance at (808) 586-2790 or email the Insurance Department.

Fill out and submit your online application on the NIPR Hawaii website.

Step 6. Application Review

Once you have submitted your application and have filled all the other requirements, your license application will be reviewed by the state. Your background check will also be reviewed.

If everything is to acceptable standards your license should be issued quickly. If there are any items from your background check that need to be reviewed, it may slow down the process of issuance. If this is the case, the state may contact you to provide context to the issues that they have run into.

After submitting the application, and the background check information comes back, your license should be issued between one to three (1-3) business days. After the license is issued, the insurance department will mail you a hard copy of the license.

If you want to look up your license number prior to receiving it in the mail, you may do so with the Hawaii Insurance License Search Tool.

Congratulations!

You’ve done the work, put in the time and effort, and now hold the key to your own success!  We’re proud of you. Take five (5) minutes and celebrate.

After Getting Your Hawaii Insurance License

Once you’ve passed your exams and completed the licensing application, you are now a licensed insurance agent in Hawaii. A common question we hear is, “I have my insurance license, now what?” Here are a few things you can do or need to know:

• Get a job in the insurance field. Check out StateRequirement’s Insurance Jobs board
• If you’re going to sell advanced life insurance products, you’ll need to have the proper securities licenses. Series 6, Series 7, and Series 63 are the most common among insurance agents, but you’ll need to begin with the SIE (Securities Industry Essentials) exam. Find out which licenses you need with our Securities Licensing Guide
• Every two years, you’ll need to renew your insurance license. Check out our guides on Hawaii Insurance License Renewal and Hawaii Insurance Continuing Education for more details
• Learn how to market yourself as an insurance agent: Have a look at our Insurance Agent Marketing article
• Interested in learning how successful life insurance agents operate? Check out our How Do Life Insurance Companies Make Money article

Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs Contact Information

Mailing Address:
Hawaii Insurance Division
P.O. Box 3614
Honolulu, Hawaii 96811

Phone: (808) 586-2790

Fax: (808) 586-2806

Email: insurance@dcca.hawaii.gov

Website: http://cca.hawaii.gov/ins

License Search: Hawaii Insurance License Search and Lookup