What is the official title in Florida?

Sales associate. FREC and Chapter 475 do not use "salesperson." Brokers are a separate license after 24 months of active experience and the 72-hour FREC II course.

Does Florida accept a California or Texas license by reciprocity?

No. Mutual recognition is limited to the states FREC currently lists. Among this site's eight, only Georgia and Illinois qualify, and only for nonresidents who pass the 40-question law exam.

What if I skip the 45-hour post-license course?

The license becomes null and void. That is stricter than Georgia's lapse-and-reinstate postlicense rule and stricter than Texas SAE, which blocks renewal but does not use "null and void" language.

Florida Sales Associate License Requirements

Required education: 63-hour FREC I pre-license course
Exam fee: $36.75
Published fees: See fee table
Typical timeline: Often 8–14 weeks after starting the 63-hour course if DBPR and Pearson VUE seats cooperate

What to know first

Florida's entry license is a sales associate license, not a salesperson license and not a broker license. Chapter 475.17, Florida Statutes, and FREC's education rules are built around a short pre-license course, a Florida-written exam, and a post-license course that will void the license if you miss it. That last point is not rhetoric. FREC's own sales-associate requirements PDF states that whether the license is active or inactive, you must complete a FREC-approved 45-hour post-licensing course before the initial license expires. Fail that deadline and the license is null and void — you do not "renew late"; you start over. Texas SAE will block a renewal; Florida's 45-hour rule erases the credential.

The pre-license course is 63 classroom hours on the FREC I syllabus, with an end-of-course exam. The completion slip is valid for two years. An expired slip will not be accepted at the Pearson VUE site. Florida is unusual in letting you file the DBPR application before the 63-hour course is finished; you still cannot sit the state exam without a valid course completion slip (unless you hold a four-year real-estate degree, which FREC may exempt, or you are an active Florida Bar member in good standing, who is exempt from the prerequisite course). Age 18, high school diploma or equivalent, and a U.S. Social Security number are statutory. Electronic fingerprints go to DBPR through an FDLE-registered LiveScan provider.

The exam is a Florida exam delivered by Pearson VUE, not a national-plus-state split. Official FREC materials describe a 100-question sales-associate examination with a passing grade of at least 75, or a 40-question Florida law exam with a passing grade of at least 30 for mutual-recognition candidates. Time allotment on Pearson VUE's Florida fact sheet is 3.5 hours (210 minutes) for the salesperson exam. Mutual recognition is the other Florida-only door: FREC currently lists Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Mississippi, Nebraska, and Rhode Island — and only if you are not a Florida resident at application, hold an active license in good standing obtained by education and exam in that state, and pass the 40-question law exam with 30 points. California, Texas, New York, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina are not on the list. Colorado, Indiana, Oklahoma, and Tennessee agreements were dissolved years ago.

After you pass, DBPR issues the license inactive until a Florida broker activates it (form RE 11 or the broker's online account). Then the 45-hour clock starts toward first expiration (the initial term is commonly 18–24 months). Subsequent cycles are 14 hours of CE biennially: FREC's education PDF currently describes 8 hours specialty, 3 hours Florida law core, and 3 hours ethics and business practices. Confirm the live DBPR application fee at checkout — the current RE 1 form has listed $62.75 while some older DBPR pages still display $83.75. Pearson VUE's currently hosted Florida fact sheet lists $36.75 per sales-associate exam attempt. LiveScan is vendor-priced.

Your path to the license

Follow these steps in order. Deadlines and affiliation requirements can make a passed exam unusable if they are missed.

Complete the 63-hour FREC I course (or document an exemption)

Keep the completion slip. It expires in two years.
File the DBPR application, pay the current RE 1 fee, and get LiveScan

You may file before the course is done, but you cannot test without a valid slip. Confirm the live fee; older pages disagree with the current RE 1 form.
After DBPR approval, schedule Pearson VUE

100 questions, 3.5 hours, 75 to pass, currently $36.75 per attempt. Bring the course completion slip.
Have a Florida broker activate the license

RE 11 or the broker's online account. Inactive status does not pause the 45-hour post-license deadline.
Finish 45 hours of post-license education before first expiration

Miss it and the license is null and void. Then shift to 14-hour biennial CE.

Education and eligibility

Minimum age: 18 years old
Identification: A Social Security number is required. An ITIN is not confirmed as a substitute.
Residency and identification: Florida residency is not required for a standard license. Mutual-recognition applicants must not be Florida residents at the time of application.
Qualifying education: FREC-approved 63-hour sales-associate pre-license with an end-of-course exam. Course completion is valid for two years. A four-year degree in real estate may be exempted if you submit an original certified transcript. Active Florida Bar members in good standing are exempt from the prerequisite course.
Education or filing deadline: The 63-hour course is valid for two years from completion. An expired slip will not be accepted at the exam site. DBPR applications also carry a two-year window to pass the exam after the application is received.
After licensing: 45-hour FREC-approved sales-associate post-licensing course, with required exam(s), before the initial license expiration. Failure makes the license null and void. After that, 14 hours CE each biennial renewal.
Character review: Chapter 475 background review. Disclose criminal history on the DBPR application. Fingerprints are mandatory.
Background process: Electronic fingerprints through an FDLE-registered LiveScan provider using DBPR's real-estate ORI (commonly published as FL920010Z). Vendor sets the price. Results go to DBPR; stale prints can force a reprint before Pearson VUE.
Experience: No experience required for the sales associate license. A Florida broker must activate the license before you practice.
Broker affiliation: DBPR issues the license inactive until a Florida broker activates it using form RE 11 or the broker's online account. Unactivated licenses still owe the 45-hour post-license course.

Documents to prepare

63-hour course completion slip (valid 2 years)
DBPR application and fingerprint receipt

The licensing exam

The Florida sales-associate examination is a single Florida-written test, not a PSI national section plus a state section. FREC's Real Estate Associate Requirements PDF: pass with a grade of at least 75, or pass the Florida Real Estate Law Exam with a grade of at least 30 (the mutual-recognition path). Pearson VUE allots 3.5 hours. Candidate information booklets describe coverage of principles and practices, Florida and federal law, and math. Mutual-recognition candidates sit only the 40-question law exam (30 to pass). There is no DRE-style 150-question unified California paper and no TREC promulgated-contract case study.

Pearson VUE · Fee: $36.75

Part	Questions	Minutes	Pass
Florida sales associate examination	100	210	75%

Pearson VUE charges the exam fee per attempt (currently listed at $36.75 on the hosted Florida fact sheet). A 24-hour wait before rescheduling is the usual Pearson rule. Unlimited attempts within the application/course windows.

What to study

FREC sales associate requirements PDF

DBPR Division of Real Estate

63 / 45 / 75 and the null-and-void sentence.
Pearson VUE Florida Real Estate candidate information

Pearson VUE

Time limit, fee, and what to bring, including the course slip.

Application costs

These are commission or testing-vendor amounts we can cite. School tuition and optional preparation products are private-market prices.

Fee	Amount
Application	$62.75
Examination	$36.75

DBPR RE 1 currently lists $62.75; some DBPR support pages still show $83.75 — pay whatever MyFloridaLicense charges. Pearson VUE salesperson exam $36.75 on the currently hosted fact sheet. Fingerprints are vendor-priced (plan $50–$90). Renewal fees are set on the DBPR invoice; we do not invent an unverified dollar amount here.

Commission	Florida Real Estate Commission / DBPR Division of Real Estate 850.487.1395 Chapter 475, Florida Statutes; Rule 61J2, F.A.C.
Pre-licensing	63-hour FREC I pre-license course FREC-approved 63-hour sales-associate pre-license with an end-of-course exam. Course completion is valid for two years. A four-year degree in real estate may be exempted if you submit an original certified transcript. Active Florida Bar members in good standing are exempt from the prerequisite course. The 63-hour course is valid for two years from completion. An expired slip will not be accepted at the exam site. DBPR applications also carry a two-year window to pass the exam after the application is received.
Post-license education	45-hour FREC-approved sales-associate post-licensing course, with required exam(s), before the initial license expiration. Failure makes the license null and void. After that, 14 hours CE each biennial renewal.
Sponsoring broker	DBPR issues the license inactive until a Florida broker activates it using form RE 11 or the broker's online account. Unactivated licenses still owe the 45-hour post-license course.
Fingerprints	FDLE-registered LiveScan to DBPR before or with the application. Vendor-priced. Confirm the current ORI on the DBPR checklist.
CE / renewal	Initial term: 45-hour post-license (sales associate). After that, 14 hours biennially (FREC currently: 8 specialty, 3 Florida law, 3 ethics and business practices). Confirm the live renewal invoice in your DBPR account.
Recovery fund	Florida maintains a Real Estate Recovery Fund under Chapter 475 to compensate persons who obtain certain judgments against licensees. It is funded by license fees, not by a surety bond the associate posts. Confirm current claim limits in the statute before relying on a dollar figure from a prep book.

Mistakes that delay applicants

Expired 63-hour slip at the test center

The course is valid two years. Pearson VUE will not seat you on an expired slip even if DBPR already approved the application. Florida is apply-before-exam; California is exam-before-license. Do not mix the calendars.
The 45-hour post-license void

Active or inactive, first expiration is the deadline. FREC will not treat this like ordinary CE. Georgia lapses; Florida voids.
Mutual recognition while living in Florida

You must not be a Florida resident at application. Moving to Orlando and then claiming a Georgia mutual-recognition shortcut is how that file dies.

Reciprocity and recognition

Partner / path	Accepted exam	Conditions
Georgia	40-question Florida law exam (30 to pass)	Nonresident of Florida at application; active GA license in good standing obtained by education and exam; then subject to Florida post-license and CE.
Illinois	40-question Florida law exam (30 to pass)	Nonresident of Florida at application; active IL license in good standing obtained by education and exam. Illinois entry license is titled broker, not salesperson.

FREC also lists Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Kentucky, Mississippi, Nebraska, and Rhode Island. California, Texas, New York, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina are not mutual-recognition states. Agreements with Colorado, Indiana, Oklahoma, and Tennessee have been dissolved.

Renewal and staying active

Initial term: 45-hour post-license (sales associate). After that, 14 hours biennially (FREC currently: 8 specialty, 3 Florida law, 3 ethics and business practices). Confirm the live renewal invoice in your DBPR account.

Missing post-license education does not produce a late fee; it voids the license.

Applicant checklist

Finish the 63-hour course and photograph the completion slip
LiveScan with the current DBPR ORI
File MyFloridaLicense and pay the live RE 1 amount
Sit Pearson VUE only with a non-expired slip; score 75
Activate with a Florida broker
Enroll in the 45-hour post-license course immediately — do not wait until month 17

How Florida is different

Florida's 63-hour pre-license requirement is lighter than many large states, which is why applicants may focus on speed — and then discover the 45-hour post-license void rule. Georgia, which has mutual recognition with Florida, uses 75 prelicense hours, a PSI exam, and a 25-hour postlicense in year one that lapses (rather than voids) the license. Illinois, another mutual-recognition partner, has no salesperson title: you become an Illinois broker with 75 hours and 45 hours of post-license by first renewal. Texas is heavier up front (180 hours) and uses SAE rather than a void rule. North Carolina's 90-hour postlicensing in 18 months is the closest structural cousin, but NC issues a broker license (provisional) from day one. California and New York offer no mutual recognition with Florida.

Frequently asked questions

What is the official title in Florida?: Sales associate. FREC and Chapter 475 do not use "salesperson." Brokers are a separate license after 24 months of active experience and the 72-hour FREC II course.
Does Florida accept a California or Texas license by reciprocity?: No. Mutual recognition is limited to the states FREC currently lists. Among this site's eight, only Georgia and Illinois qualify, and only for nonresidents who pass the 40-question law exam.
What if I skip the 45-hour post-license course?: The license becomes null and void. That is stricter than Georgia's lapse-and-reinstate postlicense rule and stricter than Texas SAE, which blocks renewal but does not use "null and void" language.

Primary Sources

Regulatory requirements on this page are drawn from the official board, statute, and exam-provider materials listed below.

Verified 2026-09-02 · Next scheduled review 2026-12-01