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How to get a life insurance licence in Canada, province by province

Outside Québec, every province uses the same Life Licence Qualification Program: an approved course, then four provincial exams (two for an accident and sickness licence), then a licence application. What changes from one province to the next is who runs the exam, whether you can write it online, and what the regulator asks for after you pass. This guide compares them, using only what the regulators publish.

LLQP Exam · facts checked October 21, 2026 on each regulator’s site · where a regulator does not publish a point, we say so

The common path

  1. Take the LLQP course

    With a provider approved in your province. In Ontario, FSRA describes a course of about 100 hours, offered in class, by correspondence or online, with fees set by each provider. Your course certificate is valid for 12 months from completion (CISRO).

  2. Write the provincial exams

    Four modules for the life licence: Life Insurance, Accident and Sickness, Segregated Funds and Annuities, Ethics and Professional Practice. Two modules for the A&S-only licence: A&S and Ethics. 75 minutes each, 60% on every module.

  3. Find a sponsor where required

    Ontario requires a licensed insurer to sponsor a new agent for the first two years. Alberta’s application goes through with sponsor approval. Nova Scotia requires an endorsement from a licensed insurer.

  4. Apply for the licence

    Through the regulator’s portal or form, within the deadline after you pass: one year in Ontario and BC, 12 months in Alberta.

The exams themselves are covered in detail in the LLQP exam guide. This page is about the provincial layer around them.

Province comparison

Sources listed at the bottom of this page, checked October 21, 2026.
ProvinceExam run byOnline or in personAfter passing
OntarioDurham CollegeIn person onlyInsurer sponsorship, E&O, Licensing Link, $170
British ColumbiaInsurance Council of BCIn person; online exams written after June 30, 2023 not acceptedCouncil Rules Course, 24-month supervision
AlbertaAlberta Insurance Council, Calgary and EdmontonIn person (online not mentioned)AIC portal, sponsor approval, within 12 months
SaskatchewanNot confirmed on the council’s pageNot confirmedSupervision, E&O or bond, $125 licence
ManitobaInsurance Council of ManitobaIn person since July 1, 2023Check with the council
New BrunswickDurham CollegeIn person in Fredericton, or onlineFCNB Self-Serve Portal
Nova ScotiaDurham CollegeOnlineInsurer endorsement, paper application
Prince Edward IslandDurham CollegeOnline onlyCheck with the province

The table is a starting point, not a substitute for your regulator’s page. Rules move: BC stopped accepting online exams in 2023, Manitoba moved to in-person sittings the same year, and Ontario announced modernized exam procedures in February 2024.

Rewrites differ too

The national CISRO policy allows 3 rewrites, 24 hours apart, then a one-year wait and a repeat of the course after a fourth failure. PEI applies a six-month wait from the third attempt, and New Brunswick’s page contradicts its own announcement. Details on the retake rules page.

After the exam: what regulators ask for

Passing the exams makes you eligible. It does not license you. The published requirements after the exam vary more than the exam itself.

RequirementWhere it is published
Sponsorship by a licensed insurer for the first two yearsOntario
Errors and omissions insurance of at least $1 million per occurrenceOntario
E&O insurance or a bondSaskatchewan
Supervision of at least 24 months (12 with CLU, CFP or RFP)British Columbia
Supervision until 50 placed policies and 1 year as a licenseeSaskatchewan (licensed after January 1, 2020)
Council Rules CourseBritish Columbia
30 continuing-education credits per two-year licence termOntario
Licence renewal every 3 yearsNova Scotia

If a requirement is not listed for your province, that does not mean it does not exist; it means we did not find it published on the regulator’s page we checked. Ask the regulator directly.

Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the territories

Manitoba. The Insurance Council of Manitoba moved LLQP exams to in-person sittings effective July 1, 2023. We did not find the booking process, fees or post-exam requirements on the page we checked, so contact the council before you plan dates.

Saskatchewan. The Insurance Councils of Saskatchewan publish the supervision rule, the E&O or bond requirement and the $125 individual licence fee. The exam logistics are not confirmed on that page. See the Saskatchewan guide.

Territories. New Brunswick’s regulator lists Durham College as exam administrator for the Northwest Territories as well. For Yukon and Nunavut we have not verified the arrangements; ask the territorial insurance regulator.

Newfoundland and Labrador. Not verified for this guide. Check with the provincial regulator.

Québec: a separate system

Québec does not use the common-law LLQP described here. It has its own qualification program and exams, run by its own regulator, and an Ethics module based on civil law. If you are licensed in Québec and want to work in a common-law province, expect to show the common-law Ethics module: New Brunswick, for example, requires Québec candidates to prove module 112.

Province guides

Ontario

Durham College exams, insurer sponsorship, E&O, Licensing Link, fees and CE credits.

British Columbia

Insurance Council exams, results timing, Council Rules Course and supervision.

Alberta

AIC exam centres and fees, French option, portal application and deadlines.

Saskatchewan

New-agent supervision, E&O or bond, licence fee.

Atlantic Canada

New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island compared.

Preparing for the exam? 2,760 questions in the official format · $40

See the prep course

Sources

Checked October 21, 2026.

Any questions?