There are always tons of questions that come up regarding Continuing Education. Below you will find some of the most frequent and urgent questions that we have encountered. Please feel free to call us if you need more information or if your question is not listed. We are always happy to lend a hand.
CE Requirements
Q: How many credit hours must I earn to meet the requirements?
A: A total of 24 hours is required by May 1, 2010. Of those 24 credit hours, at least three must be from courses categorized as Ethics. As detailed in the chart below, producers must comply with CE requirements based upon their date of licensure.
|
Resident Producers with a CE Requirement |
||||
|
Producer License Date |
License Renewal Requirement |
Biennial License Renewal Fee |
CE Requirement |
CE Recordkeeping Fee |
|
Through April 30, 2009 |
Yes |
$25 |
24 hrs |
$15 |
|
May 1 – June 2, 2009 |
Yes |
$25 |
3 hrs ethics |
$7.50 |
|
June 3 – October 31, 2009 |
N/A |
N/A |
3 hrs ethics |
$7.50 |
|
November 1, 2009 – April 30, 2010 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
Q: What if I hold both life, health and accident and a property and casualty authorities?
A: If you hold property and casualty authority and life, accident and health authority you must complete at least eight of the twenty-four required hours in courses related to each of these lines of authority plus three hours of Ethics. If you earn more than three Ethics credits, they will be applied towards your 24 hours credit total requirement.
Fees
Q: What is the CE reporting fee?
A: The annual fee is $7.50 per year ($15.00 for two years).
Resident and nonresident producers subject to the CE requirement must pay the CE reporting fee in EACH year of the compliance period. The fee must be paid by May 1, 2010 for the 2008-2010 compliance period. Producers cannot be compliant if the fee is not paid even if other requirements have been met.
A: For the CE period beginning May 2, 2008 and ending May 1, 2010, Prometric will send a fee notice to your address of record. You may pay your reporting fees on Prometric’s web site: www.prometric.com.
You may also pay by check, American Express, Visa or MasterCard. Make checks payable and mail to: Prometric, ATTN: SC CE Fees, 1260 Energy Lane, St. Paul, MN 55108.
A: Your license will lapse. You cannot be compliant unless the fee is paid. See the next sections for details about consequences of non-compliance.
Consequences
Q: What happens if I do not earn my CE credit hours or meet nonresident compliance requirements?
A: The failure of any licensee to pay the recordkeeping fee and/or meet the biennial continuing education requirement will result in the lapse of his or her license on May 1, 2010. Resident producers may reinstate a license by providing documentation to the South Carolina Department of Insurance that the proper 24 hours of continuing education have been completed and submitted to Prometric, and submitting the recordkeeping fee if it has not been paid. The producer must also pay a $50 penalty fee to the Department. Once the Department notifies Prometric that the penalty has been paid, Prometric will process the payment and apply the credits.
Nonresidents may reinstate a license by submitting the recordkeeping fee to Prometric, if it has not been paid. The producer must also pay a $50 penalty fee to the South Carolina Department of Insurance. Once the Department notifies Prometric that the penalty has been paid, Prometric will process the payment and do the home state status verification.
Proof of completing the necessary hours and paying the recordkeeping fee must be received by Prometric, and the $50 penalty fee must be received by the South Carolina Department of Insurance by 5:00 p.m. November 1, 2010. Nonresidents must pay the recordkeeping fee to Prometric and the $50 penalty fee to the South Carolina Department of Insurance by 5:00 p.m. November 1, 2010. After that date, resident and nonresident producers whose licenses have lapsed will have their license and qualifications canceled. In order to regain licensure the resident producer will be required to pass the state licensing exam and meet all requirements to become re-licensed. Nonresident producers will be required to reapply for licensure.