Information - Services - Formalities by subjects - Business start-up preparations - Companies subject to licensing and monitoring requirements - Insurance intermediary; application for a permit - Dienstleistungsportal Bayern

Description

You are an insurance intermediary if you work either as an insurance broker or insurance agent:

• An insurance broker is someone who brokers or concludes insurance policies for the policyholder on a professional basis without having been commissioned by an insurance company or an insurance agent.
• An insurance agent is a person who brokers or concludes insurance policies on a professional basis on behalf of an insurance company or insurance agent.

In addition to obtaining permission, you must apply for entry in the Register of Insurance Agents and obtain a registration number. You can apply for entry in the register together with the permit. Before starting your activity, you must register your business.

The permit can be issued to a natural person and a legal entity. It is valid for an unlimited period.

Partnerships such as the Gesellschaft bürgerlichen Rechts (GbR) or the Offene Handelsgesellschaft (OHG) cannot obtain the permit. Here, each managing partner requires the permit.

As a tied insurance agent, you work exclusively for one or, if the insurance products are not in competition, for several insurance companies. Here you have the possibility to be registered directly by your insurance company in the intermediary register. In this case you do not need a permit.

If you broker insurance policies in addition to goods or services, i.e. as a product accessory, you can be exempted from the obligation to obtain a permit by applying to the Chamber of Industry and Commerce for exemption. In this case, however, you are also subject to the registration requirement.

The permit may be restricted in terms of content and may be subject to conditions if, in the opinion of the authority, this is necessary for the protection of the general public or the clients.

If you are a citizen of the EU/EEA, have a permit or a trade as an insurance intermediary in another country and only wish to work temporarily in Germany, you do not need a permit in Germany. However, you must notify the authorities in your home country of your intended activity.

Prerequisites

• Personal reliability, i.e. you have not been convicted of a criminal offense in the last five years.
• Orderly financial circumstances, i.e. you are not in private insolvency or registered in the debtors' register.
• Professional liability insurance with a minimum coverage of 1,130,000.00 Euro for each insured event and 1,700,000.00 Euro for all insured events in one year in total
• Expertise

Procedure

In order to obtain a permit as an insurance advisor, you must submit a corresponding application together with the necessary documents to your competent Chamber of Industry and Commerce (IHK).

• If applicable, it is also possible to submit an online application.
• At the same time as you submit your application, you can also apply for entry in the register of intermediaries
• The IHK will check whether you meet the requirements on the basis of the information and documents you have submitted.
• After examination you receive the permission by post

You must apply for entry in the Register of Intermediaries at the latest before commencing your activity.

Special notes

If you have employees who assist in insurance brokerage, they do not need their own permit. However, you must register them in the intermediary register and ensure that they have the necessary expertise and personal reliability.

Deadlines

The permit is valid for an unlimited period.

Processing time

Processing takes a few weeks after all documents are complete.

Required documents

• The following documents are required:
  • Police certificate of good conduct and information from the central commercial register for submission to an authority (for legal entities and their legal representatives)
  • Information from the debtors' register of the central enforcement court (enforcement portal)
  • Information on entries in the insolvency register as well as a declaration by the competent local court as to whether insolvency proceedings have been opened
  • Proof of expertise, either by means of an IHK examination or a relevant professional qualification
  • Proof of the existence of professional liability insurance (certificate from an insurance company licensed in Germany for submission to the IHK) in the original and not older than three months.
  • Further documents may be required

  In the case of (commercial) partnerships, each managing partner must submit an application and documents.

Fees

• Fees are incurred. These result from the fee schedule of the locally responsible IHK.

Legal bases

• § 34d Abs. 2 Gewerbeordnung (GewO)
• § 11a Gewerbeordnung (GewO)
• § 156 Gewerbeordnung (GewO)
• Verordnung über die Versicherungsvermittlung und -beratung (Versicherungsvermittlungsverordnung - VersVermV)
• Gesetz über den Versicherungsvertrag (Versicherungsvertragsgesetz - VVG)
• Gesetz über die Beaufsichtigung der Versicherungsunternehmen (Versicherungsaufsichtsgesetz - VAG)

Links to more information

• § 5 Verordnung über die Versicherungsvermittlung und -beratung (Versicherungsvermittlungsverordnung - VersVermV)

  Auflistung der anstelle der Prüfung als Sachkunde anerkannten Berufsabschlüsse

• IHK-Finder

  Die zuständige Industrie- und Handelskammer ermitteln.

• Verfahren über das Netzwerk einheitlicher Ansprechpartner für Ihr Bundesland suchen