Arkansas Administrative Code
Agency 235 - DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND LICENSING
Division 10 - Arkansas Real Estate Commission
Rule 235.10.20-002 - 4.6 Pre-Licensure Criminal Background Check and Waiver Request
Universal Citation: AR Admin Rules 235.10.20-002
Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 9, September, 2024
SECTION 4. APPLICATION AND EXAMINATION; EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS; AUTOMATIC LICENSURE FOR ACTIVE DUTY SERVICE MEMBERS, RETURNING MILITARY VETERANS, AND THEIR SPOUSES; AND, PRE-LICENSURE CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECK AND WAIVER REQUEST.
4.1
Applications; education; experience.
Applicants for original licensure as a broker or salesperson must apply on forms provided by the Commission, pay the application fee established by these Regulations, and meet the following requirements:
(a) Broker applicants must provide proof of
the following:
(1) Attainment of the age of
majority, which proof may consist of a birth certificate or copy thereof,
driver's license, or other document or proof of age which is satisfactory to
the Commission;
(2) Successful
completion within thirty six (36) months immediately preceding the date of the
application of a course or courses of instruction in real estate by actual
classroom attendance or completion of approved distance education of which at
least forty-five (45) hours are in a course developed by the Commission, for a
total of not less than sixty (60) classroom hours. Proof of completion of such
education requirement shall consist of the original certificate(s), or
certified copies thereof, from the school or organization or other
documentation satisfactory to the Commission;
(3)
(A)
Service by the applicant of an active bona fide apprenticeship by holding a
valid real estate salesperson's license issued by the Commission, or by holding
a valid real estate salesperson's license or broker's license issued by the
appropriate licensing agency of another state, for a period of not less than
twenty four (24) months within the previous forty eight (48) month period
immediately preceding the date of application, which proof may consist of the
official license records of the Commission or certified copies of licensure
records of the appropriate licensing agency of another state, plus such other
documentation as the Commission deems satisfactory to demonstrate that the
applicant has gained experience in the real estate business equal to that which
would be gained by a person engaged in the real estate business on a full time
basis during a minimum two year period of time; Listings, sales or other
licensed activities may be considered by the commission in determining whether
the applicant meets this qualification; Consideration shall be given to the
broker applicant's local real estate market and/or specialized area of real
estate practice. Any person whose application for broker license is denied by
the executive director may appeal such denial to the Commission provided the
request is in writing and received in the office of the Commission not later
than sixty (60) days following the date of denial by the executive
director.
(B) However, pursuant to
Section §
17-42-303(b)(2) the Commission may waive such experience
requirement for a real estate broker applicant who has held an active real
estate broker's license for a period of not less than eighteen (18) months or
who has experience acceptable to the commission in a field considered real
estate related for a period of not less than twenty-four months within the
previous forty-eight-month period immediately preceding the date of
application. Each request for such waiver shall be in writing and shall include
such proof as necessary to establish the applicant's eligibility for the
waiver. Such proof may consist of the official license records of the
Commission, certified copies of license records of the appropriate licensing
agency of another state, or such other documentation as the Commission deems
satisfactory;
(4) The
applicant's affidavit that he/she has no record of unprofessional
conduct;
(5) Any other information
or documents related to professional licenses held by the applicant; formal
disciplinary actions by regulatory agencies; or, pending lawsuits filed or
judgments entered against the applicant for fraud, deceit, dishonesty,
misrepresentation, or conversion of property including money belonging to
another.
(b) Salesperson
applicants must provide proof of the following:
(1) Attainment of the age of majority, which
proof may consist of a birth certificate or copy thereof, driver's license, or
other document or proof of age which is satisfactory to the
Commission;
(2) Successful
completion of a course or courses of instruction in real estate by actual
classroom attendance or completion of approved distance education courses of
not less than sixty (60) classroom hours, of which at least thirty (30) hours
must be in the basic principles of real estate; which proof shall consist of
the original certificate(s), or certified copies thereof, from the school or
other organization or other documentation satisfactory to the
Commission;
(3) The applicant's
affidavit that he/she has no record of unprofessional conduct;
(4) Any other information or documents
related to professional licenses held by the applicant; formal disciplinary
actions by regulatory agencies; or, pending lawsuits filed or judgments entered
against the applicant for fraud, deceit, dishonesty, misrepresentation, or
conversion of property including money belonging to another.
(c)
(1) The Commission may require each original
applicant for a salesperson or broker license, including nonresident applicants
applying pursuant to Arkansas Code Ann. §
17-42-305, using forms furnished
by and pursuant to instructions provided by the Commission to apply for a state
and federal criminal background check to be conducted by the Identification
Bureau of the Department of Arkansas State Police and Federal Bureau of
Investigation pursuant to Arkansas Code Ann. §
17-42-315.
(2) "Criminal background check" means a state
and nation-wide criminal records check conducted by the Arkansas State Police
and Federal Bureau of Investigation, including the taking of
fingerprints.
(3) Each such
applicant shall submit, prior to or with the Application for Real Estate
Examination, the form furnished by the Commission authorizing the release of
the applicant's criminal background check report to the Commission and shall
pay any applicable fees, associated with the State and Federal criminal
background checks, pursuant to written instructions provided by the Commission.
The release form shall authorize the Identification Bureau of the Arkansas
State Police to forward all criminal history information obtained concerning
the applicant in regard to any offense referred to in Arkansas Code Ann. §
17-42-315 to the Commission.
(4)
The criminal background check shall be completed within six months immediately
preceding the date the Application for Real Estate License Examination is
received in the Commission's office, and if not, the application shall be
returned to the applicant.
(5) Upon
request and proof of identification satisfactory to the Commission the
Commission may make the report of any criminal information available to the
applicant who is the subject of the report and shall provide the applicant a
reasonable time to challenge the accuracy or completeness of the information
therein, through the State Identification Bureau pursuant to Arkansas Code Ann.
§
12-12-211 and Arkansas Crime Information Center Regulation
7(F).
(6) Should an applicant
challenge his/her conviction report, he/she shall notify the Commission in
writing. After receipt of such notice, the Commission shall not determine
whether an applicant is qualified for the license applied for until the
applicant has had reasonable opportunity to challenge said conviction report
and shall not process the application until the challenge of said report is
resolved by the State Identification Bureau and/or Arkansas Crime Information
Center. The applicant shall notify the Identification Bureau to forward to the
Commission changes in the applicant's report as a result of any such
challenge.
(7) Except as provided
in Arkansas Code Ann. §
17-42-315(g), no person shall receive or hold a
license issued by the Commission if the person has been convicted by any court
in the State of Arkansas or of any similar offense by a court in another state
or of any similar offense by a federal court of an offense identified in Ark.
Code Ann. §
17-42-315(f).
(8)
After a hearing the Commission may waive a conviction identified in the
preceding paragraph, upon application of the applicant, pursuant to the
provisions of Ark. Code Ann. §
17-42-315(g).
(d)
(1)
Broker applicants who have previously held an Arkansas real estate license
shall not be required to:
(A) complete any
pre-license education previously completed by the broker applicant,
or
(B) demonstrate fulfillment of
the requirements of Regulation 4.1(a)(3)(A).
(2) Broker applicants who have previously
held an Arkansas real estate license shall be required to:
(A) pay the application fee established by
these Regulations;
(B) comply with
the requirements of subsection (c) of this section;
(C) provide an affidavit that he/she has no
record of unprofessional conduct and is not holding a suspended or probationary
professional license in any state; and
(D) provide any other information or
documents related to professional licenses held by the applicant; formal
disciplinary actions by regulatory agencies; or, pending lawsuits filed or
judgments entered against the applicant for fraud, deceit, dishonesty,
misrepresentation, or conversion of property including money belonging to
another.
(3) The
Executive Director may waive the requirement to complete the broker licensure
exam and may consider the following when granting a waiver under this
subsection:
(A) the length of time an Arkansas
real estate broker license was held; and
(B) the length of time since the applicant
held an Arkansas real estate broker license.
(4) Salesperson applicants who have
previously held an Arkansas real estate salesperson license shall not be
required to complete any pre-license education.
(5) Salesperson applicants who have
previously held an Arkansas real estate license shall be required to:
(A) pay the application fee established by
these Regulations;
(B) comply with
the requirements of subsection (c) of this section;
(C) provide an affidavit that he/she has no
record of unprofessional conduct and is not holding a suspended or probationary
professional license in any state; and
(D) provide any other information or
documents related to professional licenses held by the applicant; formal
disciplinary actions by regulatory agencies; or, pending lawsuits filed or
judgments entered against the applicant for fraud, deceit, dishonesty,
misrepresentation, or conversion of property including money belonging to
another.
(6) The
Executive Director may waive the requirement to complete all or part of the
salesperson licensure exam and may consider the following when granting a
waiver under this subsection:
(A) the length
of time an Arkansas real estate salesperson license was held; and
(B) the length of time since the applicant
held an Arkansas real estate salesperson license.
(7) Broker and salesperson applicants who
have previously held an Arkansas real estate license and have been exempted
from the exam pursuant to the above must submit proof of satisfactorily
completing nine (9) classroom hours or equivalent continuing education units of
approved continuing education for each year during which his or her license was
expired, not to exceed thirty (30) classroom hours.
(8) Except as provided in this subsection,
broker and salesperson applicants who have previously held an Arkansas real
estate license must comply with all other requirements of Regulation
4.1.
(e) All classroom
hours required by Regulation 4.1(a) and (b) shall be conducted by:
(1) An accredited postsecondary school
wherever situated; or
(2) A school
or organization licensed by the Commission.
(3) A school or organization approved by a
real estate licensing jurisdiction deemed equivalent by the
Commission.
(f) The
course or courses of instruction requirements of Regulation 4.1 may be
satisfied by successful completion of such distance education courses as the
Commission may by Regulation require, giving due consideration to the number of
hours necessary to provide instruction in basic competencies required for a
salesperson's or a broker's license.
(g) Both broker and salesperson applicants
shall also answer all questions and provide all information requested on the
examination application, and shall provide such other information or
documentation as the Commission may require.
(h) Applicants that have provided all
requirements of Regulation 4.1, may sit for the real estate examination,
provided that a state and federal criminal background check, as required by ACA
§
17-42-315, has been sent to the Identification Bureau of the Department
of Arkansas State Police for a state and federal criminal background check.
However no license shall be issued upon successful completion of the
examination, until receipt and approval by the Commission of the state and
federal criminal back ground check.
(i) All applications expire one (1) year
after the date of the application or upon successful completion of the
examination, whichever first occurs. Provided, however that the application of
an applicant who takes and passes either part of the examination within one (1)
year from the date of his application shall not expire until the six (6) months
allowed for retaking the failed portion pursuant to Regulation 4.2(c) has
expired.
(j) Application fees are
non-refundable.
4.2
Examinations; passing scores; reexaminations.
Applicants for original licensure as a broker or salesperson must pass a written examination to demonstrate competency to act as a real estate licensee in such a way as to safeguard the interests of the public. The examination shall consist of a general part and an Arkansas law part.
(a) For broker applicants a minimum score of
seventy (70) on the general part and seventy-five (75) on the Arkansas law part
are required. A person who is licensed as a broker may not apply and may not
take the examination. A person who has passed the Arkansas real estate broker's
examination but who is not licensed as a broker may apply. However, in addition
to meeting other requirements, such a person must furnish an affidavit stating
the reason for applying. Such a person may take the examination only with
written permission from the director or the director's designee.
(b) For salesperson applicants a minimum
score of seventy (70) on the general part and seventy (70) on the Arkansas law
part are required. A person who is licensed as a salesperson or as a broker may
not apply and may not take the examination. A person who has passed the
Arkansas real estate salesperson's examination but who is not licensed as a
salesperson may apply. However, in addition to meeting other requirements, such
a person must furnish an affidavit stating the reason for applying. Such a
person may take the examination only with written permission from the director
or the director's designee.
(c) An
applicant who takes the examination in Arkansas and passes either the Arkansas
law part or the general part but fails the other need not again take the part
passed if within six (6) months of such initial examination the applicant
retakes and passes the part failed. Otherwise, the applicant must retake the
entire examination, and must also make new application if more than one (1)
year has elapsed since the date of the original application.
(d)
(1) An
applicant who meets all three (3) of the following requirements will be
required to take only the Arkansas law part of the examination:
(i) Has passed a uniform, general, or
multi-state part of an examination for a real estate license in another state
in which the examination is determined by the Commission to meet generally
acceptable standards of real estate testing, and
(ii) The other state requires a minimum
passing grade no lower than that required for the general part of the Arkansas
examination, and
(iii) The
applicant at the time of taking the Arkansas examination is licensed in the
other state.
(2) If an
applicant meets the first two (2) requirements above, but not the third, the
applicant will be required to take only the Arkansas law part of the
examination provided that the applicant passed the uniform, general, or
multi-state part of the examination in the other state within six (6) months
prior to the month in which the applicant takes and passes the Arkansas law
part.
(3) An applicant seeking
licensure under this Regulation 4.2(d) must furnish such documentation of
entitlement thereto as the Commission may require.
4.3
Examinations;
application procedure; time requirements.
(a) The Commission shall announce from time
to time the dates and locations of examinations. All applications should be
received in the Commission office at least ten (10) days before the examination
for which the applicant desires to sit. However, regardless of the date on
which the application is received by the Commission, it shall be processed as
expeditiously as possible under the circumstances. Once the application is
processed, the Commission will send to the applicant a "Certificate of
Examination Eligibility." The certificate will include instructions for making
examination reservations and will be required for admission at the test
center.
(b) An examination fee
which shall equal the actual cost of the examination as established by the
testing service engaged by the Commission will be collected at the test center.
The examination fee shall be made payable to the testing service unless the
applicant is otherwise notified by the Commission. The examination fee shall be
charged each time an applicant applies to take an examination and is
non-refundable.
(c) An applicant
shall receive notice upon passing the examination. Each successful broker and
salesperson applicant shall pay to the Commission, within ninety (90) days from
the date of the successful completion of the examination, the appropriate
license fee and recovery fund fee. However, the payment of the recovery fund
fee shall be waived for any successful applicant who has previously paid such
fee. If a successful applicant shall fail to pay the prescribed fee(s) within
ninety (90) days following the date of the examination, the examination results
shall be null and void, and the applicant shall be required to make new
application and retake the examination, as an original applicant. If the
Federal criminal background check has not been received by the commission
within ninety (90) days of the date of the examination, the date may be
extended by the commission until receipt of the Federal criminal background
check.
4.4
[Repealed.]
4.5
Automatic licensure for active duty service members, returning military
veterans and their spouses.
As used in this subsection, "returning military veteran" means a former member of the United States Armed Forces who was discharged from active duty under circumstances other than dishonorable and "automatic licensure" means the granting of occupational licensure without an individual's having met occupational licensure requirements provided under this title or by the rules of the occupational licensing entity.
(a) The Commission shall grant automatic
licensure for a broker or salesperson to an individual who holds a
substantially equivalent license in another U.S. jurisdiction and is:
1. An active duty military service member
stationed in the State of Arkansas;
2. A returning military veteran applying for
licensure within one (1) year of his or her discharge from active duty;
or
3. The spouse of a person under
(a) 1 or 2 above.
(b)
The Commission shall grant such automatic licensure upon receipt of all the
below:
1. Payment of the initial licensure
fee;
2. Evidence that the
individual holds a substantially equivalent license in another state;
and
3. Evidence that the applicant
is a qualified applicant under Section (a).
4.6
Pre-Licensure Criminal Background
Check and Waiver Request
(a)
(1) Pursuant to Act 990 of 2019, an
individual may petition for a pre-licensure determination of whether the
individual's criminal record will disqualify the individual from licensure and
whether a waiver may be obtained.
(2) The individual must obtain the
pre-licensure criminal background check petition form from the
Commission.
(3) The Commission will
respond with a decision in writing to a completed petition within thirty (30)
days of receipt.
(4) The
Commission's response will state the reason(s) for the decision.
(5) All decisions of the Commission in
response to the petition will be determined by the information provided by the
individual.
(6) Any decision made
by the Commission in response to a pre-licensure criminal background check
petition is not subject to appeal.
(7) The Commission will retain a copy of the
petition and response and it will be reviewed during the formal application
process.
(b)
(1) If an individual has been convicted of an
offense listed in A.C.A. §
17-3-102(a), except those permanently
disqualifying offenses found in subsection (e), the Commission may waive
disqualification of a potential applicant or revocation of a license based on
the conviction if a request for a waiver is made by:
(i) An affected applicant for a license;
or
(ii) An individual holding a
license subject to revocation.
(2) The Commission may grant a waiver upon
consideration of the following, without limitation:
(i) The age at which the offense was
committed;
(ii) The circumstances
surrounding the offense;
(iii) The
length of time since the offense was committed;
(iv) Subsequent work history since the
offense was committed;
(v)
Employment references since the offense was committed;
(vi) Character references since the offense
was committed;
(viii) Other
evidence demonstrating that licensure of the applicant does not pose a threat
to the health or safety of the public.
(c) A request for a waiver, if made by an
applicant for original licensure as a broker or salesperson, must be in writing
and accompany the completed application and fees.
(d) The Commission will respond with a
decision in writing and will state the reasons for the decision.
(e) An appeal of a determination under this
section will be subject to the Administrative Procedures Act §
25-15-201
et. seq.
Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. Arkansas may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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