BC introducing Restricted Insurance Agency Licence
Published January 15, 2026
On December 18, 2025, the BC government published the
Restricted Insurance Agent Licence Regulation which will introduce a restricted licence for incidental sales of insurance. The regulation will come into force January 1, 2027.
In BC, insurance products are commonly offered in addition to the sale of consumer goods and services. Under this new regulation, certain non-insurance businesses must become licensed to sell insurance products. The types of businesses that will require a restricted insurance agency licence to sell corresponding insurance products are
listed in the regulation.
About the restricted insurance agency licence
The provincial government has tasked the Insurance Council of BC with issuing and overseeing this new
restricted insurance agency (RIA) licence, which will permit trained representatives to sell insurance under the agency’s licence.
The
RIA licence program is being developed and will go through consultation and a legislative rule-making process before RIA licences can be issued. Once the licence program is finalized, the Insurance Council expects to start accepting RIA licence applications in November 2026.
Information about the
proposed licence program, including an overview of licensing requirements, is now available on the Insurance Council website at
insurancecouncilfobc.com/RIA. This includes:
- What is an RIA licence?
- What’s the impact and who needs a licence?
- Licence qualification and ongoing requirements
- Steps and timeline for licence development and implementation
- About applying for an RIA licence.
What this means for BC insurance licensees
The new restricted licence regime brings oversight, training standards and greater transparency to incidental sales of insurance in BC and aligns the province with similar regimes in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and New Brunswick.
Only businesses listed in the
Restricted Insurance Agent Licence Regulation are included in the restricted licence regime. This excludes the vast majority of Insurance Council licensees as their main business is insurance. However, current licensees whose ordinary business is not insurance are affected if their business is listed in the regulation. This includes: 1) restricted travel insurance agency licences; and 2) standard insurance licences limited to the sale of products that are included in the regulation. More
information about impacts to these groups is available here, but is summarized below:
Restricted travel insurance agencies
As the regulatory framework for incidental sales of insurance in BC is changing, current restricted travel insurance licensees will need to transition from their current licence to the new restricted insurance agency licence by December 31, 2027. This is to align the regulation of incidental sales of insurance by travel agencies with other businesses under a single restricted licensing regime. The Insurance Council will provide a streamlined transition process to support current Restricted Travel Insurance licensees and will contact these licensees directly when this process begins.
Licences limited to the sale of specific products
With the introduction of the new regulation, some licence holders limited to specific products will be eligible to apply for the new RIA licence. Eligibility is based on whether the licensees’ ordinary business and insurance sold are included in the
Restricted Insurance Agency Regulation. However, these licensees will be able to renew and maintain their current licence.
More information
More information about the restricted insurance agency licence and related regulation is available on the Insurance Council website:
insurancecouncilofbc.com/RIA.
In the months leading up to licence application, updates will be available through the website and other channels to explain what the licence is, how it will be implemented, why it matters and how it will impact businesses and consumers.
Should you have questions, you can reach us at
RIA-licence@insurancecouncilofbc.com.