IPA 2025 membership and licence renewals now open

Non-appointment taking licence

Eligibility – Requirements to hold a non-appointment taking IPA insolvency licence

To become an IPA licensed Insolvency Practitioner and carry out insolvency work under the Insolvency Act 1986, you must:

  • Be a member or apply for membership at the time of applying for a licence
  • Have passed the Joint Insolvency Exam (JIE)
  • Meet the minimum experience requirements (600 hours of higher insolvency experience over the three to five years prior to applying)
  • Have completed 25 hours of structured Continuing Professional Development (CPD) in the preceding 12 months
  • Have two referees: one referee must be an IP, but does not need to be a member of, or authorised by, the IPA. The second referee may also be an IP, or, if not, should work professionally in insolvency or a related field, for example law, accountancy, finance, insurance or creditor representation. If you are currently an Ordinary/Fellow Member and have previously supplied a reference, only provide one further reference from an IP to certify your experience
  • Have paid the appropriate fee

How to apply for a licence

Please ensure that you complete the form correctly and include information that is necessary for the IPA Regulation and Conduct Committee (R&CC) to consider your application.

Provide a Regulation 18 MLR 2017 firm wide risk assessment.

If you are transferring your licence from another RPB to the IPA, please forward your latest monitoring report together with any outcomes of findings, if appropriate, when submitting your application.


Period of licence

Licences are issued for twelve months ending on 31 December. Renewals can take place each year.

An applicant may specify a forward date on which he/she wishes his/her licence to be effective; but he/she may not act as an Insolvency Practitioner until his/her application has been granted. 

A licence cannot be backdated. 



Application process

Please take into consideration the following timeframe when applying for your licence. 

Applications are considered by our Regulation and Conduct Committee, which usually meets every 4-6 weeks.  Applications are submitted to the Committee a week prior to the meeting (if the application is all in order). If issues are disclosed this will need to be 2-3 weeks in advance of a meeting. Once the meeting has been held and the minutes have been approved by the Chair and confirmed to the Membership team, we will write to you to confirm the outcome of your application.

Process:

  • Application received and checked with other regulatory professional bodies – 2 weeks
  • Application considered by Regulation and Conduct Committee – a week prior to the meeting, meetings are held every 4-6 weeks
  • Minutes approved and outcome confirmed to Membership team – usual timeframe is 15 business days