Career Guide · Insurance Agents
Expungement for Texas Insurance License (TDI) Applicants
Insurance licensing has a wrinkle most applicants discover late: beyond TDI's fingerprint check, federal law (18 U.S.C. § 1033) restricts anyone with a felony involving dishonesty or breach of trust from insurance work without a special consent. Category matters more than age here.
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TDI screening and the 1033 overlay
TDI fingerprints applicants and weighs criminal history in licensing; dishonesty offenses carry the 1033 overlay, where a felony breach-of-trust conviction requires a written-consent process before working in the industry at all.
Clearing changes the inputs: an expunged arrest is removed from the record systems entirely, and dismissed or deferred outcomes — which are not convictions — often take an applicant outside 1033's trigger in the first place. Precision about what your record technically says is worth real money in this field.
Sealed records and carriers
Carriers and agencies run commercial checks; a nondisclosure order blocks those, while TDI as a regulator may still see sealed matters. The working sequence: expunge what qualifies, seal what can be sealed, and get accurate advice about whether anything remaining actually triggers federal restrictions.
Common questions
Does a deferred adjudication trigger the federal 1033 bar?
1033 keys off convictions for dishonesty felonies. Texas deferred adjudication is generally not a conviction — but the analysis is technical, and carriers sometimes over-read records. Cleaning up what the record shows is the practical fix.
Will TDI see my sealed misdemeanor?
Licensing review may still access sealed records; commercial appointment checks won't. Expunction, where your case qualifies, removes it from both.
Disclaimer: This page is general legal information about Texas law, not legal advice about your case, and reading it does not create an attorney‑client relationship. Eligibility depends on the complete details of your criminal history — get a free case review for a definitive answer.
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