How to Renew Your Insurance License in Montana

Written by: Ethan Peyton

Last updated:

How to Renew Your Insurance License in Montana

If you’re getting near your Montana insurance license renewal date, keep your license active by taking your Montana insurance continuing education (CE) courses in advance of your expiration date.

This guide will provide you all the information you need to ensure you fulfill your MT insurance license renewal and insurance CE requirements on time.

Montana Insurance License Renewal and CE Requirements
Expiration TimeEvery 2 years
Required Continuing Education (CE)24 credit hours
Renewal CostCE course cost
Recommended CE CourseKaplan Education Company

Montana Insurance Continuing Education 

In order to keep your Montana insurance license in good standing with the state, you will need to renew your license by completing your Montana Insurance CE requirements before your expiration date.

In Montana, insurance licenses expire every two years. The expiration will be on your date of birth, biennially, based on the anniversary of your original license year. This means that if you were licensed in an even-numbered year, your license will expire on your birthday in the next even-numbered year.

Montana Insurance Continuing Education Courses

Insurance CE comes in many forms. Most folks nowadays choose to take a self-paced course online, but you can also complete your credit hours by attending an in-person class or even a scheduled online webinar.

Self-paced Course

The most common method of continuing education today. These CE courses allow you to log in to an online platform any time of day to complete your credit hours. Most of these courses are a mixture of video and text combined with a knowledge exam at the end. Some platforms even allow you to take the course from your phone, which could be useful if you’re short on computer time.

In-person Class

This is how continuing education courses all began. Join your fellow insurance license holders for a live class taught by an industry professional. You may be able to find a “school” that provides all of your state’s required credits in a few full-day classes, or you might also take some shorter sessions to fill part of your requirements.

Scheduled Online Webinar

This is essentially the same as an in-person class, except you don’t have to travel away from your home or office. You will be taught by an instructor who will deliver the lesson at a specified time. Many webinars even allow you to interact with the instructor if you have specific questions.

Recommended Course

For Montana insurance CE courses and credits, StateRequirement recommends:

4.7 out of 5 starsKaplan Education Company

Tip: Most courses certify completion by taking either a knowledge exam at the end or by counting attendance to all of the scheduled classes. If you want to save time, it’s best to go with a self-paced course. If you want no exam, try an in-person class or an online webinar.

Montana Insurance Continuing Education Requirements

The Montana State Auditor, Securities and Insurance Commissioner – Insurance Department requires that all insurance producers and agents complete their continuing education requirements before their expiration date. In Montana, these requirements include:

  • Twenty-four (24) total hours of Montana insurance continuing education every renewal period, which is two (2) years
  • Three (3) of those hours must be in the subject of ethics
  • One (1) of those hours must be in the subject of Montana Statues

Note

If you have a producer license in more than one line of authority (ex. Property & Casualty and Life & Health), you do not need to take double hours. Your total amount of CE credit hours due is still twenty-four (24).

Once you completed the insurance CE course, your CE course provider will send a certificate of completion to the Montana Insurance Department. Make sure to keep a printed copy of your certificate for your records.

Tip

It is recommended to complete all continuing education credits 30 days prior to the expiration date of the license. This will give the CE provider time to report the successful completion to the department of insurance. Your CE courses can be taken at any time within your license term.

Montana Insurance License Renewal

After you have completed your continuing education requirements, you may renew your Montana insurance license to keep it active.

Follow the steps below to complete your Montana insurance license renewal requirements ahead of your expiration date.

Step 1: Complete Montana Insurance License Continuing Education

Follow the steps above to complete your required 24 hours of CE.

Step 2: Apply for Montana Insurance License Renewal

After you have completed your continuing education and you are within 90 days of your license expiration, your resident producer license will renew automatically. Your license’s expiration date is printed at the top right-hand corner of your license.

Step 3: Pay the Montana Insurance License Renewal Fee

There is no fee to renew your insurance license in Montana. If you’re late in completing your CE requirements by the license lapse/renewal date, you will pay a $100 late renewal fee.

Pay the renewal fees via NIPR by credit card, electronic check, or your chosen online payment system.

Once you complete the steps above before your CE renewal date, you can renew your license in Montana.

Congratulations!

You’ve taken the steps you need to take and now your insurance license is good for another two years!

What Happens If My Insurance License Expires In Montana?

In Montana, there’s no need to renew your insurance license as long as you have fulfilled your CE requirements. If you don’t complete your CE credit hours on time, there will be a $100 late renewal fee.

You can opt to late renew your license up to one year after your CE renewal date via NIPR Renewal Process.

Montana Insurance License Lookup

You can look up the status of your Montana insurance CE credits and Montana insurance license renewal by using these resources:

  • View your current accrued CE credits using the Montana State-Based Systems – NAIC tool.
  • Check your renewal status via NIPR.
  • If you don’t know your insurance license number (National Producer Number or NPN), you can find your name via State-Based Systems Lookup Search. Select Montana as your jurisdiction and Licensee Search Type. Enter your information and click Search.

Montana State Auditor, Securities and Insurance Commissioner – Insurance Department Contact Information

Mailing Address:
Montana State Auditor, Securities and Insurance Commissioner
Insurance Department
840 Helena Avenue
Helena, Montana 59601

Phone: (406) 444-2040

Fax: (406) 444-3497

EmailProducerLicensing@mt.gov

Websitehttps://csimt.gov/insurance/

Montana Insurance License Renewal FAQ

How often do I need to renew my Montana insurance license?

In Montana, the expiration date or renewal date is most often based on the requirement to complete continuing education (CE) hours every two years. You must renew by this date and meet your CE hours. You can find out when you need to renew your insurance license on the front of the license itself. The expiration date will be printed directly on the license. Make sure that you renew your insurance before this date.

How much does it cost to renew my Montana insurance license?

Montana doesn’t charge license renewals as long as you meet your CE requirements on time. You only need to pay for the CE provider cost. Check on Montana’s requirements to learn more about the costs you can expect to renew your insurance license. Renewing your insurance license through the NIPR (National Insurance Producer Registry) comes with a $5.60 processing fee.

What are the continuing education requirements for Montana in renewing my insurance license?

You should check with the Montana State Auditor, Securities and Insurance Commissioner – Insurance Department to determine how many hours you need and if there are restrictions on what kind of CE will be accepted. Continuing education topics include insurance policies, ethics, insurance law, and more. Some topics apply to all insurance agents, such as claims and tax updates. Other classes will be geared toward specific lines, such as property and casualty or life and health. See above to find out more about Montana Insurance CE courses and requirements.

How do I document the completion of my continuing education courses?

Sending in course completion paperwork to the state is typically the responsibility of the course provider. As the individual taking the course, you will not need to send in documentation. If you want to check your continuing education progress and make sure that all completed courses are in your state file, you can use your state’s online system to look up license information, including continuing education completion.

What is NPN for an insurance agent?

You will need your National Producer Number, or NPN, to renew your insurance license. This number is assigned to each individual working in insurance when they are first licensed. If you are unsure of your NPN, you can look it up on the National Insurance Producer Registry using your license number or social security number.

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