2020-04-30
Added · Updated
The Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo has issued a regulation establishing comprehensive criteria and procedures for licensing insurance and reinsurance intermediaries, including agents, brokers, brokerage companies, banks, travel agencies, and foreign branches. The framework mandates specific eligibility requirements such as professional exams, minimum charter capital of €5,000 for agents and €10,000 for brokers, valid professional liability insurance, clean criminal records, and approved business plans. It further outlines the standardized application process, required documentation, governing body approvals, and operational conditions necessary for intermediaries to legally conduct insurance intermediation activities in Kosovo.
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BANKA QENDRORE E REPUBLIKËS SË KOSOVËS
CENTRALNA BANKA REPUBLIKE KOSOVO
CENTRAL BANK OF THE REPUBLIC OF KOSOVO
Pursuant to Article 35, paragraph 1, subparagraph 1.1. of the Law No. 03/L-209 on the Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo (Official Gazette of the Republic of Kosovo, No. 77/16 August 2010), in accordance with Article 4, paragraph 3, Article 118 paragraph 1,
Article 119 paragraph 2 and Article 120 paragraph 9 of the Law No. 05/L-045 on Insurances
(Official Gazette of the Republic of Kosovo/No. 38/24 December 2015), the Board of the Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo, at the meeting held on 30 April 2020, approved the following:
REGULATION ON LICENSING OF INSURANCE INTERMEDIARIES
Article 1
Purpose and Scope
1.5. Insurance agent -shall mean a natural person, licensed by the CBK and contracted
by the insurer under an intermediation contract, to perform insurance intermediation activities on behalf of the insurer. Additionally, an insurance agent is also considered a natural person who is in regular employment relationship with an agent company, bank or travel agency, licensed for insurance intermediation activities, to act on behalf of the insurers.
1.6. Agent Company -shall mean a legal entity licensed by the CBK, and contracted by
one or more insurers to engage in insurance intermediation activities on behalf of the insurer.
1.7. Insurance Broker - shall mean a natural person licensed by CBK to conduct
insurance intermediation activity and act on behalf of the insured persons. The broker intermediates between the insured and one or more insurers with whom he/she has a contractual relationship. Additionally, a natural person in regular employment relationship with the brokerage company or the bank licensed for insurance intermediation activities is also considered as an insurance broker.
1.8. Brokerage Company - shall mean a legal entity licensed by CBK to engage in
insurance intermediation activities on behalf of insured persons. The brokerage company intermediates between the insured and one or more insurers with whom he/she has a contractual relationship. 1.9.Senior Manager - shall mean Chief Executive Officer, Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer of the Insurance Intermediation Company. 1.10.Director -shall mean the member of the Board of Directors of the insurance intermediation company.
Article 3
Insurance intermediation activity
The insurance intermediation activity shall be exercised in accordance with Chapter XIX
of the Insurance Law.
The insurance intermediation activity shall be exercised by insurance agents, agent
companies, insurance brokers and brokerage companies.
In addition to paragraph 2 of this Article, insurance intermediation activity may also be
exercised by banks operating in the Republic of Kosovo, after they are licensed by the CBK for conducting insurance intermediation activities under the requirements of this Regulation, and travel agencies, only with regard to travel health insurance products. A travel agency cannot be licensed for brokerage activities.
Agent companies may be licensed for exercising life and non-life insurance
intermediation activities simultaneously, provided that these activities are exercised separately by agents licensed to intermediate life insurance, and non-life insurance respectively.
Banks licensed as insurance intermediaries may be licensed to provide intermediation
activities in life and non-life insurance at the same time, provided that these activities are exercised separately by bank employees licensed as insurance agents to intermediate life and non-life insurance respectively.
Banks licensed to conduct insurance agent activities may intermediate for more than one
insurer at the same time, provided that the insurance classes being intermediated are not the same. In such cases, the bank must obtain the approval of CBK.
Insurance agents licensed as natural persons are not allowed to simultaneously
intermediate for different insurers.
Agent companies may intermediate for more than one insurer at the same time, provided
that the insurance classes being intermediated are not the same. In such cases, the agent company should obtain the approval of CBK.
Brokers and brokerage companies may be licensed to engage in life and non-life
insurance intermediation activity simultaneously.
Article 4
Criteria for licensing agents as insurance intermediaries
A natural person seeking to be licensed as an insurance agent must meet the following
criteria:
1.1. have completed at least secondary education;
1.2. have passed the professional exam for an agent;
1.3. have a professional liability insurance policy pursuant to the provisions of Article 12
of this Regulation;
1.4. not be convicted by a final court decision for a criminal offense, with six (6) months
of imprisonment or more;
1.5. not be an employee an insurance company;
1.6. have a pre-contract with an insurance company to act as its agent;
1.7. be a resident of the Republic of Kosovo;
1.8. have knowledge of one of the official languages of Kosovo;
1.9. be registered as an individual business in the business register, in accordance with the
Law on Business Organizations;
1.10. have suitable facilities for performing intermediation activities;
1.11. pay the licensing fee under this Regulation.
It is not mandatory to submit the professional liability insurance policy to CBK at the
time of submitting the application;
In case of applications for licensing agents, who will act as employees of agent
companies, the criteria set out in sub-paragraphs 1.3, 1.6 and 1.9 of paragraph 1 of this
Article shall not apply.
The application for licensing under this Article shall be accompanied by appropriate
documentation attesting to the fulfilment of criteria set forth in paragraph 1 of this
Article.
The licensing application, and relevant documentation under this Article, shall be lodged
by the person applying for a license. In the case of licensing agents as employees of agent companies, banks or travel agencies, the licensing application must be made by the agent company, the bank or travel agency respectively.
During the review of the application for licensing under this Article, the CBK may, if
necessary, require additional supporting documentation.
Article 5
Criteria for licensing agent companies as insurance intermediaries
The legal entity submitting an application for licensing as an agent company shall fulfil
the following criteria:
1.1. be registered in the business register as a joint stock company or limited liability
company, in accordance with the law on business organizations;
1.2. its shareholders shall be in good financial condition and shall not have unpaid tax
liabilities in due time;
1.3. have full-time employees, at least one licensed agent;
1.4. pay and maintain, at all times, the equity in the amount of at least € 5,000. This equity
should be paid to one of the banks licensed by the CBK, and shall not be used for other purposes:
1.5. have a business plan, at least for the first three (3) years of activity, which should be
based on analysis and reasonable assumptions;
1.6. the proposed shareholders, directors (if applicable) and chief executive officer, shall
not be convicted by a final court decision for a criminal offense with six (6) months of imprisonment or more, and shall not have been a director or chief executive officer of any insurer during the last six (6) months from the moment of application;
1.7. shareholder of the agent companies cannot simultaneously be shareholders of the
insurer, regardless of the percentage they hold in the agent's and/or insurer's companies.
1.8. have a professional liability insurance policy according to the provisions of Article 12
of this Regulation;
1.9. have suitable facilities for exercising its activities according to requirements set forth
in this Regulation;
The following documentation must be attached to the application for licensing as an agent
company:
2.1. completed CBK application form;
2.2. business registration certificate;
2.3. the founding act and the statute;
2.4. the structure of the charter capital and its origin;
2.5. organizational structure;
2.6. a pre-contract concluded with the insurer, on behalf of whom, and on whose account
will conduct the activity;
2.7. complete biographies of shareholders, directors (if applicable) and proposed chief
executive officer, as well as shareholders' financial statements for the last three years, if applicable;
2.8. the foreseen business plan;
2.9.documents proving that the company has the appropriate environment and infrastructure to carry out its activity;
2.10. proof of professional liability insurance, according to provisions of Article 12 of this
Regulation;
2.11. copies of agent licenses;
2.12. proof of payment of charter capital;
2.13. proof of payment of fee for licensing under this Regulation;
2.14. other documentation confirming the fulfilment of requirements under paragraph 1 of
this Article;
3. In cases when the legal person applying to be licensed as an agent company is a
subsidiary of a foreign agent company licensed as an agent company in the country of origin, except for the documentation referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article, it must submit to the CBK the written consent of the responsible supervisory authority as well as the official approval by the responsible bodies of the foreign agent company.
4. It is not mandatory to submit the professional liability insurance policy to CBK at the
time of submitting the application.
5. During the review of the application for licensing under this Article, the CBK may, if
necessary, require additional supporting documentation.
Article 6
Criteria for licensing brokers as insurance intermediaries
1.11. should have an appropriate facility to exercise the intermediation activity, as defined
in this Regulation.
2. The application for licensing under this Article must be submitted in writing by the
person requesting to be licensed, and should be accompanied by appropriate documentation which proves the fulfilment of criteria set out in paragraph 1 of this
Article. In case of licensing brokers as employees of brokerage companies or banks, the
licensing application must be submitted by the brokerage company, namely the bank.
3. In case of brokers licensing applications, which will perform activities as employees of
the brokerage companies, the criteria set out in sub-paragraphs 1.7 and 1.9 of paragraph 1 of this Article shall not apply.
4. It is not mandatory to submit the professional liability insurance policy to CBK at the
time of submitting the application.
5. During the review of the application for licensing under this Article, the CBK may, if
necessary, require additional supporting documentation.
Article 7
Criteria for licensing brokerage companies as insurance intermediaries
The legal person submitting the application for licensing as a brokerage company must
meet the following criteria:
1.1. should be registered as a joint stock company or a limited liability company in
accordance with the Law on Business Organizations;
1.2. its shareholders should be in a good financial condition and not have unpaid tax
liabilities in due time;
1.3. proposed shareholders, directors (if applicable) and senior managers should not have
been sentenced by a final court decision for a criminal offense of six (6) months of imprisonment or more and should not have been a director or chief executive officer of any insurer during the last six (6) months from the moment of application;
1.4. shareholders of a brokerage company should not be shareholders of the insurer at the
same time, regardless of the percentage they have in the brokerage company and/or the insurer.
1.5. business plan for at least three (3) first years of activity, which should be based on
accurate analyses and reasonable assumptions;
1.6. should have full-time employees, at least one (1) licensed broker;
1.7. to pay and maintain at any time the charter capital in the amount of at least ten
thousand (10,000) Euros. This capital should be paid to one of the banks licensed by the CBK and cannot be used for other purposes;
1.8. should have professional liability insurance policy according to the provisions of
Article 12 of this Regulation;
1.9. should have an appropriate facility to exercise the intermediation activity, as defined
in this Regulation.
The following documentation must be attached to the application for licensing as a
brokerage company:
2.1 CBK form for application, completed;
2.2 business registration certificate;
2.3 full shareholders biographies, directors (if applicable) and its managers as well as
financial statements, if applicable;
2.4 the founding act and the statute;
2.5 the structure of the charter capital and its origin;
2.6 organizational structure;
2.7 business plan;
2.8 a document that certifies that the company has the environment/facility/object and
the infrastructure to operate as an insurance broker, including the installation of a computerized data reporting system at CBK;
2.9 proof of professional liability insurance, as defined in Article 12 of this Regulation;
2.10 copies of brokers licenses;
2.11 proof of charter capital payment;
2.12 proof of licensing fee payment according to this regulation;
2.13 other documentation confirming the fulfilment of requirements from paragraph 1 of
this Article.
When a legal person requesting to be licensed as a brokerage company is a subsidiary of a
foreign brokerage company licensed as a brokerage company in the country of origin, shall submit to the CBK, in addition to the documentation referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article, a written consent by the responsible supervisory authority as well as official approval by the responsible bodies of the foreign brokerage company for establishing a subsidiary in Kosovo.
It is not mandatory to submit the professional liability insurance policy to CBK at the
time of submitting the application.
During the review of the application for licensing under this Article, the CBK may, if
necessary, require additional supporting documentation.
Article 8
Licensing branches of foreign companies as insurance intermediaries
No foreign intermediary company may exercise insurance intermediation activities in the
Republic of Kosovo without a license by the CBK under this Regulation.
The foreign intermediary company that submits a request for licensing its branch in the
Republic of Kosovo must meet the following criteria:
2.1. should be licensed as an insurance intermediary company in the country of origin;
2.2. should have a written consent by the responsible supervisory authority of the country
of origin for establishing the branch in Kosovo, if such thing is required under legislation of the country of origin;
2.3. should have an official approval from the responsible bodies of parent intermediary
company for establishing the branch in Kosovo;
2.4. should provide a security letter by the parent intermediary company addressed to the
CBK, by which it accepts the legal obligation to pay all obligations of its branch in Kosovo;
2.5. should be registered in the businesses register of the Republic of Kosovo, in
accordance with the Law on Business Organizations;
2.6. the senior manager proposed should not have been sentenced by a final court decision
for a criminal offense with six (6) months of imprisonment or more and should not have been the director or Chief Executive Officer of any insurer during the last six (6) months prior to the moment of application;
2.7. the business plan for at least three (3) first years of activity, should be based on
accurate analysis and reasonable assumptions;
2.8. should have employed full-time at least one (1) agent, respectively a broker licensed
by the CBK;
2.9. should pay and maintain at all times the capital as a guarantee fund in the amount of
at least five thousand (5,000) EUR in the case of branches of foreign agents' companies and ten thousand (10,000) EUR in the case of foreign brokerage companies. This capital should be paid in cash to one of the banks licensed by the CBK and maintained at any time;
2.10. should have the professional liability insurance policy according to the provisions of
Article 12 of this Regulation;
2.11. should have facilities/objects suitable for exercising its activity as defined in this
Regulation;
2.12. should have a pre-contract signed with the insurer, under whose name and behalf he
or she will act.
3. In addition to the documentation certifying the fulfilment of criteria under paragraph 2 of
this Article, the foreign intermediary company requesting license to operate through a branch in Kosovo, shall submit the following documents to CBK:
3.1 Statute of the foreign intermediary company (parent company) or its equivalent;
3.2 Audited financial reports of the foreign intermediary company for the last three (3)
years.
4. It is not mandatory to submit the professional liability insurance policy to CBK at the
time of submitting the application.
5. During the review of application for licensing under this Article, the CBK may, if
necessary, require additional supporting documentation.
6. The application for licensing and documentation under this Article should be in one of the
official languages in Kosovo and should be in a certified original or copy from the notary.
7. For the purposes of reviewing applications under this Article, the CBK may also contact
directly with the responsible supervisory authorities of the foreign intermediary company.
Article 9
Governing bodies of Insurance intermediation companies
5.8.the professional liability insurance policy according to the provisions of Article 12 of this Regulation.
6. It is not mandatory to submit the professional liability insurance policy to CBK at the
time of submitting the application;
7. During the review of application for licensing under this Article, the CBK may, if
necessary, require additional supporting documentation.
Article 11
Exercise of agent activities as an insurance intermediary by travel agencies
liability insurance policy should be in the amount of two hundred and fifty thousand (250,000) euros for a single case and five hundred thousand (500,000) euros for all cases within one (1) year.
2. Intermediation companies, branches of foreign intermediation companies, licensed
banks for insurance intermediation activities and travel agencies licensed for insurance intermediation activities must have professional liability insurance policies according to paragraph 1 of this article on their behalf, and this policy covers all staff (natural persons) through which they perform insurance intermediation activities.
Article 13
Deadline for reviewing the application and licensing
Article 14
The continuous professional examination and education
undertake other punitive measures against the intermediary, as provided in the legislation in force.
5. In case of office relocation, the mediator must notify the clients in advance of the
relocation of the office as well as the new location, by announcing the notice and make it visible in the office premises, at least thirty (30) days (1 month) before the date proposed for relocation.
6. The CBK decides whether to approve or reject the request for opening or relocating
the office within thirty (30) calendar days (1 month) from the date of receipt of the completed request.
7. For the purposes of paragraph 6 of this Article, the date of receipt of the license
application shall be considered as the date of receipt of a complete application.
8. For the closure of branches and offices, intermediaries must notify the CBK at least 30
days before the proposed closing date.
Article 17
Facilities for exercising insurance intermediation activity
1.1.Changes to key shareholders that are equal to or exceed ten percent (10%), twenty percent (20%), thirty percent (30%) and fifty percent (50%) of voting rights or equity participation in the insurance intermediation company;
1.2. Amendments and supplements to the Statute;
1.3. Change of name;
1.4. Changes of Directors (when applicable) and Senior Managers;
1.5. External auditor;
1.6. Mergers and acquisitions.
Article 20
Temporary administration
In order to return the insurance intermediation company to a financially stable
situation, the CBK may take a decision to place the company under interim administration, in the following cases:
1.1. If the insurance intermediation company fails to comply with the CBK's orders
within the specified time limit;
1.2. Despite the specified measures by CBK's order, the intermediation company
fails to have a stable financial situation;
With the decision on the assignment of interim administration, the CBK also
specifies the period of interim administration.
The provisions of Chapter XVII of Law no. 05/L-045 on Insurances that regulate the
interim administration of insurers, apply equally to interim administration of insurance intermediation companies.
Article 21
Voluntary and mandatory liquidation
Should the owners or shareholders of the insurance intermediation company decide to
voluntarily liquidate the intermediation company in accordance with the Law on Business Organizations or any other law in force in the Republic of Kosovo, they shall submit the request for approval of voluntary liquidation to CBK, containing the data required by the CBK.
After assessing the data received, the CBK assesses whether creditor’s interests are
sufficiently protected, and may approve voluntary liquidation under the Law on Business Organizations or any other applicable law in the Republic of Kosovo.
If the CBK estimates that the interests of the creditors are not adequately protected, it
rejects the request for voluntary liquidation and may decide on the implementation of liquidation by the CBK appointed liquidator.
Before deciding on any of the methods of liquidation under paragraphs 2 and 3 of this
Article, the CBK revokes the license of the insurance intermediation company.
The provisions of Chapter XVIII of the Law no. 05 / L-045 on Insurance, regulating the
liquidation of insurers, are appropriately applied for the liquidation of insurance intermediation companies.
Article 22
Administrative measures, fines and suspension or dismissal of persons Any violation of this Regulation shall be subject to the measures provided for in Articles 124, 125 and 126 of the Law no. 05/L-045 on Insurances.
Article 23
Repeal
Upon the entry into force of this Regulation, the Regulation on Licensing of Insurance Intermediaries approved by the CBK Board on 31 August 2017 will be repealed, as well as any other act that contradicts this Regulation.
Article 24
Entry into force
This Regulation shall enter into force 15 days from the date of its approval and shall apply to applications received after the entry into force of this Regulation. Flamur Mrasori Chairman of the Board of the Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo
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Source: Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo — original document · Summary generated with machine assistance and reviewed before publication; the authoritative text is the regulator's original document. How RegAlert works