PublicAdjust.ing Knowledge Base
Overview States Guides Resources Carriers Templates Reference

State guide

How to become a public adjuster in Texas

Texas requires a public adjuster license. Fees are capped at 10% of the settlement; the surety bond is $10,000; the governing law is Tex. Ins. Code ch. 4102.

The pathway

Getting licensed in Texas

The license is the Public Insurance Adjuster. It is its own license, so make sure any course or exam you book is the public adjuster one and not the company or independent adjuster version. Issued by the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) under Insurance Code Chapter 4102; separate from the Chapter 4101 all-lines / property-casualty adjuster license.

Official sources

Gathered from these sources on August 28, 2026. Fees and hours change with the legislative calendar, and this page may be out of date. The regulator’s own page is the only current authority.

  1. Schedule and pass the Public Insurance Adjuster exam with Pearson VUE ($39, 100 questions, 2 hours).

  2. Start the application on TDI's online initial application and fingerprint portal and get fingerprinted at IdentoGO; keep the receipt.

  3. Buy a $10,000 surety bond naming you as sole principal.

  4. Prepare your client contract on TDI Form FIN535 (or an equivalent TDI-approved form).

  5. Apply through Sircon, upload the bond, contract and fingerprint receipt, and pay the $50 fee.

  6. Every two years complete 24 hours of CE (3 ethics) and renew through Sircon for $50 before your expiration date.

Who can apply
At least 18 years old · Residents and non-residents Resident license under § 4102.053; nonresident license under § 4102.054 for applicants with an active home-state public adjuster license in good standing.
Prelicensing course
Not required No prelicensing course is required for the public insurance adjuster license; Chapter 4102 and the Pearson VUE handbook impose only the exam.
State exam
Pearson VUE · 100 questions · 120 minutes · $39 per attempt Exam waived for applicants holding a resident or nonresident public adjuster license in a state that requires a written exam and has a reciprocal agreement with Texas (§ 4102.058). A license application must be filed within 12 months of passing.
Application
Sircon (www.sircon.com/texas) · $50 application fee State exam $39; Sircon transaction fee charged separately. NIPR does not accept Texas adjuster applications. Application must include the proposed public adjuster contract (Form FIN535 or equivalent) and proof of the surety bond; nonresidents also file a service-of-process appointment.
Background check
Fingerprint criminal-history check through IdentoGO by IDEMIA (DPS and FBI) for all resident applicants and all nonresident public insurance adjuster applicants; receipt must accompany the application.
Surety bond
$10,000 Surety bond of not less than $10,000 under 28 TAC § 19.705, implementing Insurance Code § 4102.105; the applicant must be the sole principal on the bond.
Renewal
Every 2 years · $50 Renewal application, CE evidence and fee due not later than the 30th day before the second anniversary of the license (§ 4102.064); $25 late fee if not paid by midnight CT on the expiration date. An updated public insurance adjuster contract must be submitted with each renewal.
Continuing education
24 hours · Every 2 years · 3 in ethics Insurance Code § 4102.109 and 28 TAC § 19.1003: 24 hours per two-year period including 3 hours of ethics/consumer protection; at least 12 hours must be classroom or classroom-equivalent. $50 fine per missing hour, capped at $500.
Already licensed elsewhere?
Reciprocity available Nonresident license issued to applicants with an active home-state public adjuster license in good standing; exam waived where the home state requires a written exam and has a reciprocal agreement with Texas.

Not stated in these sources

These points were not stated in the sources listed, so we have left them blank rather than guess. Ask the regulator directly:

  • ·Application fingerprint fee: TDI's fingerprinting page does not publish the IdentoGO fee; third-party sites cite $39.70 but no primary source was found.
  • ·Exam passing score: Pearson VUE handbook describes scaled scoring; 70% is the conventional figure but the handbook text extracted did not state the cut score explicitly.

Texas in the reference tables

Each table answers one question for all 50 states and DC, with the citation. Open one and find the Texas row.

See how a claim runs in Texas, stage by stage Associations covering Texas

Texas law in the library

46 primary-source documents for Texas: statutes, regulations, bulletins and consumer guides, stored as published. Sign in to open them.

  • 28 Texas Administrative Code, Chapter 19, Subchapter H. Licensing of Public Insurance Adjusters (§§19.701, 19.708, 19.713) Texas Department of Insurance
  • 28 Texas Administrative Code, Part I, Chapter 21, Subchapter C. Unfair Claims Settlement Practices (28 TAC §§21.203-21.205) Texas Department of Insurance
  • TDI Adopted Section — 28 TAC §21.2819, Subchapter T, Submission of Clean Claims (health plan prompt payment, catastrophe extensions) Texas Department of Insurance (TDI)
  • TDI Adoption Order 2021-7021 — 28 TAC Chapter 21, Trade Practices, Adopted Sections Texas Department of Insurance
  • TDI Commissioner's Order No. 2799 — Adopted Sections, 28 TAC Chapter 19 Subchapter H, Licensing of Public Insurance Adjusters Texas Department of Insurance
  • Texas Business and Commerce Code, Title 2, Chapter 17. Deceptive Trade Practices Texas Legislature
  • Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code, Title 2, Chapter 16. Limitations Texas Legislature
  • Texas Insurance Code Chapter 1813 — Appraisal of Disputed Losses Texas Legislature