Skip to content
Supervision > Regulation of Insurance Intermediaries > Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Requirements

Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Requirements

Overview

Licensed insurance intermediaries are required to be fit and proper persons to carry on regulated activities. In this regard, licensed insurance intermediaries who are individuals should continuously update their technical and regulatory knowledge, and refresh themselves on the ethical standards through CPD in order to ensure their professional competence and standard in providing service to the policyholders and potential policyholders.

CPD Requirements for Individual Licensees

Individual licensees must satisfy the CPD requirements set out in GL24: Guideline on Continuing Professional Development for Licensed Insurance Intermediaries (“GL24”) in each Assessment Period. Please refer to the GL24 and its Interpretation Notes for details. For ease of reference, the CPD requirements for individual licensees are summarized as follows:

  • Each “Assessment Period” begins on 1 August of a year and ends on 31 July of the following year.
  • Starting from the 3rd Assessment Period (i.e. from 1 August 2021 onwards), the minimum number of CPD hours for individual licensees (except travel agents) is 15 CPD hours for each Assessment Period, including a minimum of 3 compulsory CPD hours on “Ethics or Regulations” courses. Travel agents are only required to undertake a minimum of 3 CPD hours for each Assessment Period, with no compulsory hours required on “Ethics or Regulations”. 
  • According to paragraphs 30 – 32 of Annex 1 to GL24, individual licensees can earn a maximum of 5 CPD hours for each CPD Assessment Period through participation in Type 1 and Type 7 E-learning Activities. However, to facilitate the achievement of CPD hours and to encourage greater use of E-learning Activities, the cap on the number of CPD hours that can be obtained through Type 1 and Type 7 E-learning Activities for each Assessment Period is lifted permanently. This means that there is no longer any cap on the number of CPD hours to be earned through E-learning Activities starting from the 3rd Assessment Period and each Assessment Period going forward. Please refer to the circular issued on 25 March 2022 for details.
  • Type 1 and Type 7 Qualified CPD Activities delivered via virtual classrooms (e.g. Microsoft Teams, Cisco Webex, Zoom) are, subject to the prior approval of the Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications - the appointed CPD assessment authority (applicable to Type1) or the prior administrative vetting of the Insurance Authority (“IA”) (applicable to Type7), regarded as an acceptable form of CPD activity. There is no cap on CPD hours to be earned through CPD activities delivered via virtual classroom platforms. 
  • Any CPD hours earned during an Assessment Period in excess of the total number of minimum CPD hours required cannot be carried forward to the next Assessment Period. 
  • Individual licensees are required to report the Qualified CPD Activities they have attended in each Assessment Period to the IA in a format and manner prescribed by the IA and their Appointing Principal(s) no later than 30 September (i.e. within 2 months after the expiration of the relevant Assessment Period).
    • Details of the CPD reporting procedures and the CPD Declaration Form will be announced and released in due course. Please refer to the announcement on the IA's website from time to time. 
  • Individual licensees are required to retain sufficient documentary evidence in support of their attendance or completion of all the Qualified CPD Activities for at least 3 years after the end of the relevant Assessment Period.
  • Any failure to comply with the CPD requirements set out in GL24 by an individual licensee may result in a disciplinary action to be taken by the IA against that individual.

Qualified CPD Activities

There are 8 types of Qualified CPD Activities as set out in Annex 1 to GL24:

Type 1: Approved CPD Activities
Type 2: Degree Programmes
Type 3: QF Accredited Insurance Programmes
Type 4: Other QF Accredited Programmes
Type 5: Studies for Attaining Specified Qualifications
Type 6: Fulfilment of CPD Requirements of Specified Qualifications
Type 7: CPD Activities Organized by the IA / Financial Regulators / Law Enforcement Agencies / Independent Statutory Bodies / Former Self-Regulatory Organizations
Type 8: CPD Activities Organized/Approved by Recognized Professional Bodies for their CPD Programmes

Type 1 Qualified CPD Activity (“T1 CPD”)

In order to be T1 CPD, CPD courses must be assessed and approved by the appointed CPD Assessment Authority, namely the Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications (“HKCAAVQ”). CPD providers who wish to offer T1 CPD should submit their applications to the HKCAAVQ for assessment. Please access the website of the HKCAAVQ for the application procedures.

The HKCAAVQ has published on its website a “List of Currently Approved CPD Activities”, which is updated periodically. Individual licensees are advised to refer to this list from time to time for the latest list of T1 CPD.

List of Type 1 Qualified CPD Activities open for Public (Virtual classrooms and E-learning Activities)

Virtual Classrooms refer to CPD activities delivered via Microsoft Teams, Cisco Webex and Zoom etc.  Subject to the prior approval by HKCAAVQ, virtual classrooms are regarded as the acceptable form of CPD activity. E-learning Activities refer to online courses which are delivered through a digital learning platform which could be undertaken by users anytime and anywhere, and users must have passed the end-of-course assessment in order to earn the CPD hours.   There is no cap on the CPD hours earning through either virtual classrooms or E-learning. Here is a list of Type 1 Qualified CPD Activities in the form of virtual classrooms and E-learning activities that are open to public (i.e. not in-house CPD activities):


Type 7 Qualified CPD Activity (“T7 CPD”)

CPD Activities organized by the IA, financial regulators, law enforcements agencies, independent statutory bodies or former self-regulatory organizations (“former SROs”) can be recognized as T7 CPD. T7 CPD are not required to be assessed or approved by the HKCAAVQ. Instead, they are in general subject to prior administrative vetting by the IA:

This list is updated periodically for public information. Individual licensees are advised to refer to this list from time to time for the latest lists of T7 CPD.

Some of the above materials are presented in PDF format. Please download Adobe Reader for viewing. Install the Asian Font Pack if necessary.