Becoming an insurance broker in China is a company-level regulatory project, not a matter of obtaining an individual sales certificate. A brokerage company normally needs a registered legal entity, eligible shareholders, traceable capital, qualified management, suitable operating systems, and permission from the Chinese financial regulator before arranging insurance for customers.
The governing framework includes the Insurance Law of the People’s Republic of China, the Measures for the Supervision and Administration of Insurance Brokers, company law, foreign-investment rules, and administrative requirements issued by the National Financial Regulatory Administration. The authority is often called the NFRA. It replaced the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, or CBIRC, in 2023.
Regulatory practice may differ between provincial offices, especially in relation to application documents, interviews, capital verification, and branch operations. Applicants should confirm the current position with the NFRA office responsible for the intended place of registration. A Chinese lawyer, accountant, and insurance-compliance adviser can also help prevent expensive structural errors before funds are transferred.
What an insurance broker does in China
An insurance broker acts for a policyholder, prospective policyholder, insured business, or another insurance customer. Its role may include reviewing the customer’s risks, comparing available policies, requesting quotations, negotiating insurance terms, arranging coverage, checking policy documents, and assisting during claims.
Commercial brokers often perform more work than simply presenting a selection of policies. They may review property values, liability exposures, employee benefits, cargo movements, construction risks, or business-interruption exposures. After assessing the customer’s position, the broker approaches insurers that may be willing to accept the risk.
The service continues after placement in many cases. A broker may maintain policy schedules, manage additions and deletions, monitor renewal dates, support claims notifications, and check whether endorsements reflect the customer’s instructions. For a large corporate client with several factories or offices, this administrative work can occupy much of the brokerage team’s time.
A broker does not become the insurer. It does not normally accept insured risk or guarantee that an insurer will pay a claim. Coverage depends on the policy wording, the facts of the loss, disclosure by the policyholder, and the insurer’s claims decision. Brokers should explain this distinction clearly and avoid statements that could be mistaken for a payment guarantee.
Insurance brokers compared with insurance agents
An insurance agent normally acts for one or more insurance companies within the authority granted by the insurer. The agent markets products, collects application details, and performs other sales work on the insurer’s behalf. An insurance broker generally represents the insurance customer under a brokerage appointment or service agreement.
The distinction affects legal duties, compensation, product selection, conflicts of interest, and customer communications. A brokerage should not present itself as conducting an independent market comparison if it has considered only one insurer. It should state the basis of its recommendation and any material restriction on the insurers or products reviewed.
Business names do not determine regulatory status. A company may call itself an adviser, consultant, platform, membership service, or technology provider, yet still conduct brokerage if it recommends policies, directs applications, negotiates coverage, or receives remuneration tied to completed insurance transactions.
Confirm whether the proposed activity requires a broker license
The first operational step is to describe the proposed business in plain terms. The description should explain what employees will say to customers, what the website or mobile application will do, how applications will reach insurers, who will receive premiums, and how the company will earn revenue.
Activities that commonly indicate insurance brokerage include recommending an insurance product, comparing insurer quotations, helping negotiate policy wording, arranging insurance contracts, collecting transaction-based commission, and representing a policyholder during placement. Claims assistance may also form part of a brokerage service where it follows an insurance placement arranged by the company.
General risk consultancy does not always amount to brokerage. A consultant might inspect premises, prepare loss-control reports, or advise a business on internal risk procedures without recommending or arranging an insurance contract. Even so, the commercial agreement, marketing material, payment structure, and actual staff conduct must support that position.
Online comparison models need close review. A website that publishes neutral educational material presents a different regulatory case from one that ranks products for an identified customer, gathers application data, redirects the customer to an insurer, and receives payment after the policy is issued. Automation changes the delivery channel; it does not remove licensing duties.
Create an activity map before forming the company
An activity map records every party involved in a proposed sale. It should show the customer, brokerage company, insurer, payment provider, software provider, call centre, marketing partner, and any group company. For each party, it should state who advertises, recommends, collects data, receives money, handles complaints, and stores records.
This exercise often reveals regulatory problems early. A marketing company may be planning to explain coverage even though it has no brokerage authority. A group technology company may intend to retain health data without a clear legal basis. An overseas parent may expect to approve recommendations from outside China, raising data-transfer and accountability questions.
The applicant can then separate licensed brokerage work from ordinary support functions. Outsourcing administrative work may be possible, but the licensed broker must retain control over regulated conduct, customer treatment, records, and regulatory reporting.
Select a suitable company structure
Most applicants use a Chinese company with independent legal-person status, commonly a company with limited liability. The articles of association, registered business scope, ownership structure, and internal governance must support insurance brokerage operations.
A representative office is generally not an alternative to a licensed brokerage company. It may conduct liaison, research, or promotional work within its registered scope, but it cannot normally arrange insurance or earn brokerage commission in its own name.
Ordinary company registration and financial regulatory approval are separate matters. Registration with a local market-regulation administration creates the legal entity, but it does not by itself authorize the entity to conduct insurance brokerage. The company must wait for the required insurance intermediary permission before starting regulated sales.
Domestic ownership and foreign investment
Both domestic and overseas investors may consider the brokerage sector, subject to the rules in force at the application date. China has removed several former foreign-ownership restrictions in financial services, but a foreign-funded applicant still faces regulatory review of its ownership, financial condition, controllers, business plan, and management.
A foreign investor may use a wholly foreign-owned company or a joint-venture structure where permitted. The better structure depends on commercial aims, governance arrangements, funding, tax treatment, and whether the local shareholder will perform a genuine operating role.
Foreign investment brings extra paperwork. The NFRA may request documents concerning the overseas shareholder’s incorporation, authorization, audited accounts, ownership chain, controllers, compliance history, and source of funds. Documents issued abroad may require notarization and an apostille or another authentication procedure, followed by an accurate Chinese translation.
Applicants should allow time for this work. A minor inconsistency between an overseas corporate register, an audit report, and the Chinese application can trigger further questions. Names, registration numbers, ownership percentages, and signing authority should match across the full document set.
Registered capital and funding
Insurance brokerage companies face minimum capital requirements under the brokerage measures and related supervisory practice. The applicable threshold depends in part on the proposed operating territory and current regulatory policy.
Under the 2018 brokerage measures, figures commonly cited are RMB 10 million for a company operating within its registered province, autonomous region, or municipality, and RMB 50 million for a company operating beyond that area. Later policy changes, pilot arrangements, local interpretation, or the applicant’s business model may affect the amount accepted in practice. An applicant should obtain written or well-documented confirmation from the responsible NFRA office rather than relying on an old online summary.
| Issue | What the regulator may examine |
|---|---|
| Registered capital | Amount, payment status, timing, and compliance with insurance and company rules |
| Source of funds | Bank records, shareholder accounts, loan arrangements, and related-party transfers |
| Ownership | Direct shareholders, indirect owners, beneficial owners, and actual controllers |
| Financial capacity | Audited accounts, liabilities, cash position, and ability to support the brokerage |
| Integrity | Regulatory penalties, criminal matters, dishonest conduct, tax issues, and court enforcement records |
China’s revised company law, effective from 1 July 2024, generally requires shareholders of newly formed companies with limited liability to contribute subscribed capital within five years after establishment. Financial-sector rules may impose stricter payment or verification requirements. Insurance applicants should follow the stricter rule where different regimes apply.
Capital must be genuine and traceable
The regulator may review bank statements and transaction records to establish where the investment funds came from. Money routed through several related companies, funded by unexplained loans, or returned to a shareholder soon after contribution will attract attention.
Applicants should avoid circular funding. In a typical circular arrangement, a shareholder contributes money, the new company transfers it to a related party under a questionable service agreement, and the funds return to their original source. Such conduct can raise concerns about false capital contribution, governance, and the company’s ability to meet operating expenses.
Shareholders should also budget beyond the statutory minimum. Licensing preparation, office rent, salaries, software, insurance, professional fees, tax, and customer-service operations require working funds. A brokerage that invests every available renminbi as registered capital but leaves little cash for operations may appear weak even if it satisfies a numerical threshold.
Shareholders, controllers, and governance
The NFRA may assess each major shareholder and the person who exercises actual control over the applicant. Review is not confined to the names appearing on the business licence. Shareholder agreements, voting rights, funding arrangements, nominee holdings, and family or group relationships may indicate that another person controls the company.
An application should provide a complete ownership chart reaching natural-person owners or publicly listed parent companies, as applicable. It should explain any trust, partnership, variable voting arrangement, or other structure that affects control.
Shareholders are generally expected to have lawful income, a sound financial position, and an acceptable compliance record. Prior penalties do not always end an application, but failing to disclose them can cause a more serious problem than the original event.
Corporate governance documents
The articles of association should allocate authority among shareholders, directors or the executive director, supervisors where used, and senior management. They should address voting, appointment rights, capital changes, profit distribution, conflicts, related-party transactions, and dissolution.
A brokerage also needs operational decision procedures. Product approval, insurer onboarding, large expenditure, commission changes, customer remediation, outsourcing, data incidents, and branch openings should be assigned to named functions or committees.
Foreign-funded companies may wish to reserve many decisions for the overseas parent. That approach needs care. The Chinese brokerage’s directors and managers must retain enough authority to meet local legal and supervisory duties. A manager cannot reasonably accept regulatory responsibility while lacking power to stop a non-compliant sales campaign.
Appoint qualified directors and senior managers
Insurance brokerage requires managers with relevant experience and a satisfactory integrity record. Roles commonly include the legal representative, general manager, person responsible for brokerage operations, compliance officer, finance lead, and technology or data lead. The required structure varies according to the scale and distribution model.
The regulator may review educational background, employment history, insurance experience, financial-sector knowledge, prior management posts, penalties, and personal dishonesty records. Certain appointments may require approval, qualification review, or filing.
Candidate résumés should contain exact dates and explain gaps. Employment certificates, degree records, professional certificates, and references may be requested. An impressive job title carries little weight if the candidate cannot explain policy placement, complaint controls, commission reconciliation, or sales supervision during a regulatory interview.
Regulatory interviews
Senior managers may be asked to attend an interview or provide written explanations. Questions often cover the proposed customer base, products, revenue, internal controls, staffing, data systems, and handling of customer money.
Managers should know the business plan rather than recite prepared slogans. They should be able to explain how a policy moves from enquiry to issuance, how the brokerage checks product suitability, who approves advertising, and what happens when a customer complains.
Where an overseas group provides technology or central services, the Chinese management team should explain the division of responsibility. The local entity remains accountable for its regulated operations even if a parent company owns the software.
Recruit and supervise brokerage personnel
China no longer relies on the former nationwide insurance intermediary qualification examination as the sole entry route for individual sales personnel. This does not mean anyone can sell insurance without training. The licensed brokerage remains responsible for selecting fit personnel, assigning duties, training staff, supervising conduct, and preserving employment and training records.
Training should cover insurance law, policy structure, exclusions, customer needs, truthful advertising, privacy, complaints, anti-fraud controls, and the products each employee handles. Life and health sales require careful treatment of medical disclosures, waiting periods, surrender values, renewability, and policy exclusions. Commercial staff need knowledge relevant to the risks they place.
The company should test competence rather than recording attendance alone. Short examinations, observed customer calls, file reviews, and supervised sales can show whether employees can apply the training.
Employees, contractors, and referral partners
Calling a salesperson an independent contractor does not remove the brokerage’s responsibility if that person acts on its behalf. The same applies to call centres, social-media promoters, automobile dealers, travel businesses, property managers, and other referral partners.
A referral partner should stay within the role agreed by contract. A party paid only to provide a lead should not start recommending policy terms or completing applications unless its regulatory position permits that conduct.
Compensation should not encourage mis-selling. A commission plan based only on sales volume can lead staff to omit exclusions, discourage cancellations, or recommend higher-paying products. Balanced measures may include file quality, complaint history, persistency, disclosure accuracy, and compliance with customer instructions.
Prepare the licensing application
The application package normally combines corporate records, financial evidence, personnel materials, premises records, and operational policies. The exact checklist should come from the responsible regulatory office.
Common documents include the application form, business licence or establishment records, articles of association, shareholder resolutions, ownership chart, source-of-funds evidence, capital verification records where requested, management résumés, office lease, organisational chart, business plan, financial forecast, and internal control manuals.
The application should use consistent facts throughout. If one document states that the company will serve consumers nationwide while another proposes only provincial commercial business, the regulator may question whether management has settled the operating model.
Write a practical business plan
The business plan should state who the brokerage expects to serve and how it will reach them. Customer groups might include manufacturing businesses, exporters, construction companies, technology firms, employers buying group benefits, or individual consumers buying health and accident cover.
It should identify the insurance classes to be offered, the proposed geographical area, expected insurer partners, staffing levels, sales channels, projected premium volume, commission assumptions, operating costs, and break-even period.
Forecasts should be credible. A new brokerage with five employees is unlikely to place enormous premium volumes in its first month without an established customer source. If the business depends on referrals from a shareholder or affiliated platform, the plan should explain the relationship and how customer choice will be protected.
The plan should also address poor trading outcomes. Management needs a response if insurer appointments take longer than expected, policy volumes fall below forecast, commission rates change, or a data project costs more than planned.
Build operational and compliance policies
Written policies need to match the proposed business. Copying manuals from a bank, insurer, or overseas broker often produces rules that Chinese employees cannot follow and that do not fit the company’s systems.
The policy set commonly covers corporate governance, customer classification, product review, sales approval, marketing, commission, conflicts, complaints, claims support, record retention, outsourcing, data protection, cybersecurity, anti-money laundering where applicable, fraud prevention, business continuity, finance, and regulatory reporting.
Product review and insurer onboarding
Before distributing a policy, the brokerage should review the insurer, policy wording, target customer, exclusions, premiums, cancellation provisions, renewal terms, claims procedure, and sales material. The review should record who approved the product and which customer group it is meant to serve.
The brokerage should also assess prospective insurer partners. Relevant points include licensing status, approved business classes, service capacity, quotation process, policy issuance, claims contacts, commission payment, data exchange, and audit rights.
A product should not remain on sale indefinitely without review. Policy wording, insurer appetite, pricing, or regulatory guidance may change. Periodic checks help stop staff from distributing outdated documents.
Conflicts and remuneration controls
A broker may receive commission from an insurer, a fee from a customer, or another lawful payment. The basis of payment should be recorded and disclosed where law, regulation, or the customer agreement requires it.
Higher commission from one insurer can affect recommendations. The company should compare products on customer-related factors such as coverage, exclusions, insurer acceptance, service, price, and claims handling. It should not select a policy simply because it pays more.
Gifts, rebates, marketing allowances, volume bonuses, and payments to related parties require review. Commercial descriptions should match the true purpose of the payment. Relabelling sales commission as a technology fee will not alter its substance.
Premises, records, and technology
The applicant should have a genuine business address suitable for its operations. The regulator may inspect the office, signage, employee work areas, document storage, network arrangements, and customer-service facilities.
A nominal address with no staff or equipment is unlikely to support a serious application. Shared offices may require extra explanation concerning privacy, record security, access control, and whether the company has independent operating space.
Files should allow the brokerage to reconstruct each transaction. A customer record may contain needs analysis, quotations, recommendation notes, disclosures, application documents, customer instructions, policy wording, payment records, call recordings, messages, endorsements, and claims correspondence.
Retention rules should state how long records are kept, where they are stored, who can retrieve them, and how deletion is approved. Records must remain readable after software changes. Anyone who has tried opening a ten-year-old proprietary file format will know why that matters.
Submit the application and respond to the NFRA
The applicant normally coordinates company registration with the insurance licensing process. The proper order can depend on local procedure, so the responsible NFRA office and market-regulation administration should be consulted before incorporation.
After submission, the regulator may request corrections, supplementary evidence, manager interviews, capital records, or an office inspection. Questions should be answered accurately and within the stated deadline. If the business model changes during review, the applicant should disclose the change rather than leave inconsistent documents on file.
Regulatory review should not be treated as a paperwork formality. The authority is assessing whether the company can protect customers, maintain reliable records, fund operations, and control its sales force.
The company must not start insurance brokerage while waiting for permission. Preparatory activity may include hiring, system testing, policy writing, and preliminary discussions with insurers. Recommending policies, accepting applications, arranging coverage, or earning transaction commission may cross into licensed activity.
Receive and maintain the insurance intermediary business licence
After approval, the company may receive an Insurance Intermediary Business License or the current equivalent regulatory evidence. The licence states or supports the approved type and scope of business. The company should check all names, addresses, and business details immediately.
The licence may need to be displayed at the business premises and disclosed through online channels. The brokerage may also need to complete entries on regulatory reporting or intermediary registration systems before commencing operations.
Approval does not permit every insurance-related activity. The brokerage must stay within its authorised territory, business classes, and corporate scope. Reinsurance, nationwide operations, new branches, or a materially different online model may require further regulatory action.
Changes after licensing
Corporate changes can trigger prior approval, filing, or notice duties. Events that require review may include a new shareholder, transfer of control, capital reduction, change of legal representative, appointment or departure of senior management, new address, amendment of the business scope, merger, division, or branch opening.
The compliance function should maintain a regulatory calendar recording licence dates, reporting deadlines, management filings, training reviews, policy reviews, audits, and corporate renewals. Relying on one employee’s memory is risky, especially when that employee leaves.
Branches and operating territory
A brokerage approved for business within one province should not assume it can freely solicit and place customers across China. The registered territory, branch requirements, online distribution rules, and current supervisory policy must be checked.
Opening a branch generally involves more than renting an office. The brokerage may need to satisfy financial, staffing, management, filing, and premises requirements. A branch should have a named responsible person, reporting lines, controlled access to systems, and local complaint procedures.
Head office remains responsible for branch conduct. It should review sales files, financial records, advertising, insurer reconciliations, customer complaints, and data access. Branches should not create their own unapproved products or commission arrangements.
Customer treatment and sales standards
A brokerage should obtain enough customer details to recommend appropriate coverage. For personal insurance, relevant facts may include age, occupation, family position, health disclosures, existing cover, budget, and intended protection period. For commercial insurance, the broker may need asset values, revenue, locations, activities, loss history, contracts, and risk-control records.
The broker should explain premiums, deductibles, exclusions, waiting periods, policy periods, cancellation rights, renewal conditions, and the customer’s disclosure duties. Material restrictions should not be hidden in a long attachment or presented only after payment.
Comparisons must be fair. A cheaper policy may carry a higher deductible or narrower cover. A policy with a higher stated benefit may exclude the customer’s main risk. Price alone rarely provides a sound comparison.
Sales records should show what the customer requested, what the broker recommended, and why. If the customer rejects advice and selects a different option, the brokerage should record that instruction without using the record as an excuse to pressure the customer.
Handling premiums and customer funds
If the brokerage is permitted to receive premiums or other customer money, it needs strict accounting and reconciliation procedures. Funds should move through authorised accounts and reach the intended insurer within the required period.
Customer money should not be mixed with operating cash or used to cover payroll and rent. Daily or frequent reconciliation can identify missing payments, duplicate transactions, incorrect references, and delayed transfers.
Receipts and invoices must state the nature of each payment accurately. Finance staff should reconcile insurer statements with policy records and investigate differences promptly.
Complaints, claims, and incident management
Customers need a clear route for complaints by telephone, email, online form, or written submission. The brokerage should record each complaint, assign an owner, set response dates, preserve evidence, and inform the customer of the result.
Complaint analysis can expose recurring sales problems. Several complaints about one exclusion may indicate poor staff training or misleading advertising. Repeated delays from one insurer may justify a review of that commercial relationship.
Claims support should follow the brokerage agreement. Staff may help notify the insurer, gather documents, explain the process, and track progress. They should not alter facts, conceal relevant evidence, or promise payment.
Serious incidents should be escalated. Examples include suspected fraud, missing premium money, widespread mis-selling, a major data breach, falsified customer signatures, or unauthorised policy issuance. Management should assess whether a report to the NFRA, police, cybersecurity authorities, or another agency is required.
Personal information and cybersecurity
Insurance brokerage often involves identity records, contact details, bank details, medical data, family data, employment records, property values, travel plans, and claims histories. Some of this may qualify as sensitive personal information under the Personal Information Protection Law.
The brokerage should identify what data it collects, why it needs the data, where it stores it, who receives it, and when it will be deleted. Collection should remain proportionate to the stated purpose.
Consent wording should be clear and separated where separate consent is legally required. Health records and cross-border transfers demand particular care. Employees should not send customer files through personal email accounts or unapproved messaging applications simply because it is convenient.
Cross-border data transfers
A foreign-funded broker may wish to use a parent company’s customer-management system, regional call centre, analytics service, or cloud platform outside mainland China. Such arrangements can involve cross-border personal information transfers.
Depending on the data volume, data category, operator status, and current rules, the company may need a government security assessment, standard contractual filing, certification, or another lawful transfer mechanism. A personal information protection impact assessment may also be required.
The company should check data transfer requirements before connecting the Chinese operation to an overseas system. Retrofitting compliance after customer records have already left China is rarely straightforward.
Online insurance distribution
An online broker remains subject to insurance conduct rules. Websites, mobile applications, social-media accounts, mini programs, and automated chat functions should identify the licensed entity and present accurate product material.
Customers should be able to read policy terms before purchase. Material exclusions should receive suitable prominence, and preselected answers should not distort health declarations or risk questions. Electronic consent and signature procedures should generate reliable records.
Automated recommendation tools need human supervision. The company should know what data the model uses, how products are ranked, and whether commission affects the ranking. Testing should look for unsuitable recommendations, discriminatory results, and changes caused by software updates.
Online advertising partners require monitoring. Influencers, affiliates, and media buyers may make exaggerated claims to increase conversions. The brokerage should approve scripts and advertisements, retain copies, and remove non-compliant material promptly.
Agreements with insurers and business partners
A brokerage agreement with an insurer should state the permitted insurance classes, quotation process, application procedure, policy issuance method, commission, payment timing, data responsibilities, customer service, claims contacts, audit rights, confidentiality, and termination arrangements.
The contract should also address policy errors, cancelled transactions, commission clawbacks, customer refunds, premium reconciliation, and records after termination. Vague agreements tend to become less charming when money goes missing.
Outsourcing contracts should define service standards, confidentiality, data security, access rights, incident reporting, subcontracting, audit rights, and exit support. The brokerage should conduct due diligence before appointing call centres, software providers, cloud operators, document processors, or claims administrators.
Accounting, tax, and financial controls
Brokerage revenue may include insurer-paid commission, customer-paid fees, and lawful consulting income. Each revenue stream needs correct contractual support, accounting treatment, invoicing, and tax analysis.
Chinese value-added tax rules and invoicing requirements should be reviewed with a local accountant. The company should distinguish its own income from premiums or other funds held for another party.
Monthly reconciliation should compare accounting records, insurer statements, issued policies, cancelled policies, commissions, refunds, and bank transactions. Related-party payments should receive independent review and supporting documentation.
The annual budget should include compliance expenditure. Training, audits, cybersecurity testing, legal advice, data storage, complaint handling, and regulatory reporting are operating costs, not optional extras to be added after sales begin.
Reinsurance brokerage
Reinsurance brokerage serves insurers and other professional counterparties rather than ordinary policyholders. The broker may assist an insurer in transferring part of its accepted risk to reinsurers.
This work requires knowledge of treaty and facultative placements, slips, wordings, premium flows, claims cooperation, counterparty review, and international market practice. Cross-border payments, sanctions screening, foreign exchange, and data transfers may also arise.
An applicant intending to conduct reinsurance brokerage should state that intention clearly in its application. It should appoint personnel with relevant experience and confirm that its permission covers the proposed activity. Experience in retail insurance does not, on its own, prepare a team for reinsurance placement.
Common licensing and operating errors
Starting sales before approval is one of the most serious errors. Advertising a policy, gathering completed applications, recommending cover, collecting premiums, or receiving commission may show that regulated business has begun.
Another error is placing an unlicensed company between customers and the licensed broker. If a consulting or technology affiliate controls the customer relationship, gives advice, and earns most of the transaction income, regulators may examine which entity truly conducts the brokerage.
Applicants also run into trouble through unclear ownership, borrowed capital, weak managers, copied policy manuals, and unrealistic forecasts. Foreign investors sometimes underestimate translation, authentication, tax, and data-transfer work.
After licensing, common problems include unapproved branch activity, poor customer files, misleading online advertisements, uncontrolled referral partners, late regulatory filings, and failure to report management or shareholder changes.
A practical application sequence
A new applicant should begin with a written regulatory assessment covering services, customers, products, territory, revenue, sales channels, ownership, and data flows. It should confirm whether brokerage permission is required and which NFRA office will handle the application.
The investors can then confirm capital requirements, complete shareholder due diligence, select the company structure, and identify qualified management. Foreign corporate documents should be prepared early because authentication and translation can take time.
The next phase covers the business plan, financial forecast, articles of association, office arrangements, technology, staffing, insurer discussions, and operating manuals. Each document should describe the same proposed business.
After forming the company at the proper stage, the applicant submits its regulatory materials and answers follow-up questions. No regulated sales should begin before authorisation.
Once approved, the brokerage should start with a manageable product range and a trained team. Management can test sample files, advertising approvals, complaints, commission reconciliation, premium handling, and data controls before increasing volume or opening branches.
Ongoing compliance after approval
Becoming licensed is the start of the regulated operation. The brokerage must maintain capital, qualified management, accurate records, customer safeguards, reporting procedures, and compliant systems throughout its business life.
Internal reviews should test customer files, sales calls, advertisements, insurer payments, branch activity, referral partners, access permissions, and complaint outcomes. Findings should lead to recorded corrective action and follow-up.
The company should monitor NFRA notices, legislative changes, local supervisory guidance, data rules, tax developments, and company-law duties. Policies and training materials should be revised when rules or business processes change.
A person asking how to become an insurance broker in China should therefore think in terms of forming and licensing a regulated company. The project requires eligible ownership, genuine capital, competent management, working controls, a viable business plan, and continuing supervision. Early legal and regulatory advice is particularly useful for foreign-funded companies, nationwide operations, online distribution, customer-money handling, and reinsurance.