Every Economic Daily Reporter | Yuan Yuan
On 10 16, the Daily Economic News (hereinafter referred to as "the reporter") learned from relevant sources that the China Insurance Association has recently approved the "Measures for Building Credit Files for Insurance Sales Personnel" (hereinafter referred to as the "Measures"), which will officially take effect on 2027-1-1. This means that starting next year, every insurance sales professional—including employees of insurance companies, individual insurance agents, and practitioners at agency brokerage firms—will have a credit file covering their entire career.
The Measures stipulate that insurance sales personnel must uphold honesty and integrity, avoid crossing ethical lines; prioritize righteousness over profit, not solely pursue financial gain; act with prudence and stability, avoiding short-termism; embrace innovation while maintaining substance, steering clear of speculation; and operate in full compliance with laws and regulations, refraining from misconduct. They shall not provide false information or engage in improper guidance, nor commit violations such as deception, misleading marketing, or concealment of key requirements. These standards aim to foster a new industry culture centered on "credit for all, insurance for the people."
The Measures aim to strengthen self-regulation among insurance sales agents, standardize their professional conduct, and advance the construction of a credit system within the insurance industry.
The Measures apply to all insurance sales personnel, including employees of insurance institutions who have established labor or entrustment-agency relationships and completed professional registration to sell insurance products, individual insurance agents, and other forms of employment managed as sales personnel. This also covers personnel engaged in insurance agency work within insurance agencies and those conducting brokerage activities within insurance brokerages. The credit records referenced in the Measures are compiled through the collection, organization, storage, and processing of insurance sales personnel's credit information.
Based on the content, an insurance agent's credit file primarily includes four key areas: basic information, professional status information, credit evaluation information, and public credit information.
Specifically, basic information covers identity verification, education background, and contact details; professional status information includes work experience, practice jurisdictions, inter-organization mobility records, resignation compliance, training assessment results, and sales competency ratings; credit evaluation extends to insurer assessments and industry evaluations—for instance, insurers must record sales staff performance reviews, achievements, rewards, and penalties, explicitly tracking metrics such as "13-month policy persistency rates," long-term policy surrender rates, and complaint rates. This means the industry's previously unspoken "reputation" is now quantified into official records for the first time. Public credit information goes beyond the insurance sector itself, encompassing administrative awards, joint reward-and-penalty records, and other judicial or administrative data.
These four aspects build upon one another, progressing from an insurance agent's personal information to performance metrics and judicial records—effectively painting a complete picture of their professional credit profile.
The "Measures" stipulate that credit records for insurance sales personnel must be retained in accordance with applicable regulations. The retention period for such credit information shall not be less than five years after the termination of employment or agency relationships. Where laws or regulations provide otherwise, such provisions shall prevail.
The "Measures" stipulate that insurance institutions must adhere to four core principles when establishing credit files: 1) Compliance with national laws, regulations, and supervisory requirements while safeguarding public interests and the legitimate rights of insurance sales personnel; 2) Accurate and objective handling of credit information without selective collection, tampering, concealment, or destruction; 3) Adherence to information security standards to prevent privacy breaches during data collection, storage, and use; 4) Use of credit information closely tied to professional conduct and compliance performance, ensuring all data is timely, accurate, and valid.
Insurance institutions must sign a credit information sharing authorization agreement or letter with insurance sales personnel upon hiring or engaging them. The agreement or letter shall specify the scope of shared information, the duration of sharing, potential recipients, and usage restrictions. It shall be included in the credit file of the insurance sales personnel. Potential recipients may include, but are not limited to, insurance regulatory authorities and insurance industry associations. For insurance sales personnel already hired or engaged, insurance institutions shall obtain their authorization through supplementary agreements, letters, or other appropriate means.
Meanwhile, the Measures require insurance institutions to establish a social supervision and reporting system, publish contact channels for supervision and reporting, and release annual reports on the handling of such reports.
The Measures shall take effect on 2027/1/1. The China Insurance Association has established a self-discipline management system and mechanism to discipline members who violate these Measures.
"The Measures shift insurance sales from a 'mass personnel strategy' to 'trust-based governance.' By establishing files for all staff and recording four categories of information throughout their lifecycle—with full queryability and repairability—the rules enforce compliance." Long Ge, Deputy Director of the Center for Innovation and Risk Management at the University of International Business and Economics, told The Economic Daily. He noted that as a self-regulatory document, it initially relies on institutions managing themselves, with industry-wide sharing "gradually achieved," resulting in limited binding force. In the future, regulatory oversight, shared platforms, and consumer access are needed to make credit a genuine professional asset.
