Hawaii Insurance CE Requirements for Agents

Hawaii's continuing education requirements for Property and Casualty (P&C) insurance producers are regulated by the Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA), Insurance Division. Every resident insurance producer in Hawaii must complete CE to maintain their license, and the state takes compliance seriously — there is no grace period for late renewal. If you miss your deadline, your license expires immediately, and reinstatement costs $300. Multi-line producers face an additional layer of complexity: Hawaii specifies exactly how many hours must fall in each line of authority.

TLDR: Hawaii P&C producers must complete 24 hours of CE every 2 years, including 3 hours of ethics or Hawaii insurance law. Licenses expire on the last day of your birth month biennially. There is no grace period — missed deadlines trigger a $200 reinstatement penalty ($300 total). Multi-line producers must split hours between P&C and Life/Health.

Who Needs CE in Hawaii

All resident Hawaii insurance producers holding an active license must complete CE before each biennial renewal. This includes agents licensed for Property and Casualty, Life, Accident and Health or Sickness, or any combination of these lines. The CE requirement applies regardless of whether you are actively writing business — as long as your license is in active status, you must complete the hours.

Hawaii does not offer broad exemptions for experienced agents. Unlike some states that waive CE for producers with 25 or more years of service, Hawaii requires CE from all active licensees. Limited lines licensees (such as those holding only a surplus lines, rental car, or travel insurance license) should check with the DCCA Insurance Division for their specific requirements, as some limited lines may have reduced or different CE mandates.

Non-resident producers licensed in Hawaii are generally exempt from Hawaii CE requirements if they meet the CE requirements of their home state and their home state has reciprocity with Hawaii. If your home state does not require CE, you must comply with Hawaii's full 24-hour requirement.

How CE Hours Break Down

Hawaii requires 24 hours of approved continuing education per two-year renewal period. The breakdown depends on whether you hold a single line or multiple lines of authority:

• Single-Line P&C Producers (24 hours total):

  • 21 credit hours relating to the Property/Casualty class of insurance
  • 3 credit hours relating to ethics and/or Hawaii insurance laws and rules

• Multi-Line Producers — P&C and Life/A&H (24 hours total):

  • 11 credit hours relating to Property/Casualty
  • 10 credit hours relating to Life/Accident and Health or Sickness
  • 3 credit hours relating to ethics and/or Hawaii insurance laws and rules

• Ethics or Law (3 hours required): Hawaii allows the 3-hour requirement to be satisfied by either an approved ethics course or a course covering Hawaii insurance laws and rules — or a combination of both. This flexibility is unique; most states require ethics specifically.

• No carryover: Hawaii does not allow credit hours earned during one renewal cycle to carry over to the next. Extra hours completed this cycle cannot reduce your next cycle's requirement.

• No repeat courses: While Hawaii does not explicitly publish a repeat restriction period, we recommend varying your coursework each cycle to stay current on different aspects of the industry. Check with the DCCA if you plan to retake a specific course.

The line-specific breakdown for multi-line producers is a detail that matters. If you hold both P&C and Life/Health authority, you cannot simply complete 24 hours of P&C courses — you must allocate hours according to the DCCA's formula. This is more prescriptive than most states.

Renewal Timeline and Deadlines

Hawaii insurance licenses expire on the last day of the licensee's birth month, every two years. The even/odd alignment is based on your birth month: producers with birthdays in even-numbered months (February, April, June, August, October, December) renew in even-numbered years, and those born in odd-numbered months renew in odd-numbered years.

Note that Hawaii uses the birth month (not birth year) to determine the even/odd cycle. This is different from most states, which use the birth year. Make sure you know which cycle you fall into — getting this wrong can lead to missed deadlines.

Hawaii offers no grace period for late renewal. If your license expires and you have not completed CE and submitted your renewal, your license is immediately inactive. You cannot transact insurance, and all carrier appointments are at risk. The consequences are swift:

• You must apply for reinstatement with a $200 reinstatement penalty plus the standard $100 renewal fee, totaling $300.
• You have up to one year from your expiration date to reinstate. After one year, you must go through the full initial licensing process again — including passing the written exam.
• As of March 2022, all reinstatements must be submitted electronically through the DCCA. The Insurance Division no longer accepts CE certificates directly from licensees; all CE completions must be reported by the provider.

We recommend completing all CE hours at least 60 days before your expiration date. CE providers report hours to the DCCA electronically, and delays in reporting can leave you appearing noncompliant even if you finished the work.

Approved CE Providers

Hawaii requires all CE courses to be approved by the DCCA Insurance Division. You can find information about approved courses and providers through the DCCA Continuing Education page. The DCCA uses Sircon (Vertafore) for electronic CE reporting and license management.

Both classroom and online self-study courses are accepted in Hawaii. The state does not impose a minimum classroom or webinar requirement, so producers can complete all 24 hours through online self-study if they prefer. Given Hawaii's geographic isolation and the distribution of agents across multiple islands, this flexibility is especially important for producers on neighbor islands where in-person CE options may be limited.

When choosing courses, verify they are approved for your specific line of authority and that the provider will report your completion electronically to the DCCA. Since 2022, the DCCA no longer accepts certificates directly from licensees — only provider-reported completions count. Major national CE providers including Kaplan, WebCE, and ExamFX offer Hawaii-approved courses.

Common Mistakes Agents Make

1. Getting the even/odd renewal cycle wrong. Hawaii bases the even/odd renewal year on your birth month, not your birth year. A producer born in April (month 4, even) renews in even years, even if they were born in an odd year like 1987. This is the opposite of most states and catches agents who transfer from the mainland.

2. Not splitting hours correctly for multi-line licenses. Multi-line producers must divide hours between P&C (11 hours) and Life/Health (10 hours) plus 3 hours of ethics/law. Completing 24 hours of only P&C courses when you hold both lines leaves you noncompliant. Check your line breakdown before enrolling.

3. Submitting CE certificates directly to the DCCA. Since March 2022, the DCCA only accepts CE completion data reported electronically by approved providers. Sending your own certificates of completion to the Insurance Division will not satisfy your requirement. Make sure your CE provider handles the reporting.

4. Assuming a grace period exists. Hawaii has no grace period. Your license expires on the last day of your birth month, and there is no extra window to renew without penalty. Agents accustomed to states with 30-day or 90-day grace periods are sometimes caught off guard by Hawaii's strict deadline.

5. Waiting too long to reinstate after a lapse. If your license lapses, you have one year to reinstate for $300 total. After one year, reinstatement is no longer available — you must start the entire licensing process from scratch, including pre-licensing education and the written exam. We strongly recommend treating a lapse as an emergency and reinstating as soon as possible.

How Hawaii Compares to Other States

Hawaii's 24-hour biennial requirement matches the national average for P&C producers. Compared to other island and Pacific-region considerations, Hawaii's total hours align with most mainland states including California (24 hours), Texas (24 hours), and Colorado (24 hours).

Where Hawaii stands apart is the line-specific hour allocation for multi-line producers. Most states allow producers to choose any approved courses adding up to the total — Hawaii dictates exactly how many hours must go to P&C versus Life/Health. This adds a planning step that does not exist in most other states.

Hawaii's no-grace-period policy places it among the strictest states in the country, alongside California. The $200 reinstatement penalty (on top of the $100 renewal fee) is steeper than what many states charge. Nebraska charges a $40 late fee with a 30-day window, and New Mexico charges $90 with a 30-day grace period. Texas offers 90 days. Hawaii gives you zero extra days — and $300 if you miss the mark. The birth-month-based even/odd cycle (rather than birth-year-based) is another Hawaii-specific detail that mainland agents need to adjust to when entering the market.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I complete all my CE online in Hawaii?

Yes. Hawaii allows producers to complete all 24 hours of CE through online self-study courses. There is no minimum classroom or webinar requirement. This is particularly valuable for agents on neighbor islands where in-person classes may not be readily available. We recommend completing online courses at least 60 days before your renewal date to allow time for provider reporting to the DCCA. Remember that the DCCA only accepts CE data reported by the provider — you cannot submit your own certificates.

What happens if I do not complete CE on time in Hawaii?

Hawaii has no grace period. If your CE is incomplete when your license expires, your license immediately becomes inactive. You must apply for reinstatement and pay a $200 reinstatement penalty plus the $100 renewal fee ($300 total). All carrier appointments may be terminated during a lapse, and you cannot legally transact insurance. If more than one year passes, you cannot reinstate and must restart the entire licensing process, including passing the written exam. For most agents, the reappointment process with carriers is even more costly than the reinstatement fee itself.

Do CE hours from other states transfer to Hawaii?

Hawaii does not automatically accept CE hours from other states unless the course is also approved by the DCCA. Some national CE providers offer courses that carry approval in multiple states, which helps agents licensed in Hawaii and on the mainland. Non-resident producers are generally exempt from Hawaii CE if they meet their home state's requirements and their home state has reciprocity with Hawaii. If your home state has no CE requirement, you must comply with Hawaii's full 24-hour requirement.

How do I verify my CE hours with the Hawaii DCCA?

You can check your CE status through the DCCA Insurance Division portal or by contacting the Insurance Division directly. Since 2022, all CE completions must be reported electronically by your CE provider — the DCCA no longer accepts certificates from individual licensees. We recommend verifying your hours at least 60 days before your license expiration. If hours are missing, contact your CE provider immediately. For unresolved issues, reach out to the DCCA Insurance Division's licensing section. Keep your own completion certificates as backup for E&O protection purposes, even though the DCCA will not accept them directly.