ModelPhase 1
Underwriting agency or intermediary?
We analyze your model: underwriting risks on behalf of an insurer under a power of attorney is not the same as distributing insurance as an agent or broker.
Different roles, different rules.
Underwriting Agency (MGA) Authorization in Spain (DGSFP)
An underwriting agency underwrites risks in the name and on behalf of one or more insurers, under a power of attorney from each of them. To operate, it needs authorization from the DGSFP (Dirección General de Seguros y Fondos de Pensiones — Spain’s insurance supervisor). We prepare the application: company, powers of attorney, program of activities, fit and proper requirements and liability insurance.
Setting up an underwriting agency? Free assessment
Tell us which insurers you want to underwrite for and in which classes of insurance, and we will tell you what you need.
- Reply within 24 h
- No commitment
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How we help
Your underwriting agency, authorized and ready to operate
We support founders and insurers through the whole process: from the company structure and the powers of attorney to DGSFP authorization and its extensions.
CompanyPhase 2
Company and corporate purpose
We incorporate or adapt the commercial company, with a corporate purpose that covers the activity of an underwriting agency.
An entry requirement.
PowersPhase 3
Power of attorney agreements
We negotiate and draft the power of attorney from each insurer: risks, classes of insurance, underwriting limits, and reporting and control obligations.
The heart of the business.
ProgramPhase 4
Program of activities and internal control
We draft the program of activities, covering the risks, the insurers and the underwriting terms, the organizational structure and the internal control procedures.
What the DGSFP reviews.
Fit and properPhase 5
Shareholders, management and liability insurance
We prepare the suitability documentation for significant shareholders, the evidence of management’s good repute and competence, and the required liability insurance.
People and safeguards.
AfterPhase 6
Extensions and changes
We handle extensions of the authorization for new insurers or new risks, and changes in qualifying holdings.
An authorization that grows with you.
Scenarios
When you need authorization
The authorization is tied to the insurers and the risks you underwrite for, not just to the company.
New agency
You start underwriting on behalf of an insurer
A Spanish legal entity that will underwrite risks in the name and on behalf of an insurer needs prior authorization from the DGSFP.
New insurer
You add another insurer
Operating for insurers other than those authorized requires an extension of the administrative authorization.
New risks
You expand classes of insurance or risks
Underwriting risks other than those authorized, with an insurer you already work with, also requires an extension.
Change of shareholders
A significant shareholder joins or leaves
The rules on qualifying holdings apply to underwriting agencies when insurers, intermediaries or other agencies are involved.
What the law requires
The underwriting agency in figures
Figures from Law 20/2015 on the Regulation, Supervision and Solvency of Insurance and Reinsurance Undertakings (LOSSEAR) and from its implementing Regulation, approved by Royal Decree 1060/2015.
Art. 60 LOSSEAR
Prior authorization
An underwriting agency may start its activity only after obtaining administrative authorization from the DGSFP.
Time limit
3 months
The DGSFP must decide on the application within three months of its submission.
Professional indemnity
€1.5 million / €2 million
Minimum cover of €1.5 million per claim and €2 million for all claims in a year, across the whole European Economic Area.
Accounts
1 per insurer
A separate account for each insurer that has granted a power of attorney, used only to manage that insurer’s funds.
Name
Reserved
The name “underwriting agency” (agencia de suscripción) is reserved and must be stated, together with the insurers, in documents and advertising.
Complaints
Resolved by the insurer
The insurers’ customer service departments resolve complaints and claims about the agency’s conduct.
Want to underwrite risks on behalf of an insurer?
We help you structure the agency, negotiate the powers of attorney and file a complete application with the DGSFP.
Frequently asked questions
Underwriting agencies: common questions
What is an underwriting agency?
It is a Spanish legal entity that, under a power of attorney agreement (contrato de apoderamiento), underwrites risks in the name and on behalf of one or more insurers. It is governed by Article 60 of Law 20/2015 (LOSSEAR). In the international market it is often known as an MGA (managing general agent).
Who authorizes an underwriting agency?
The Directorate-General for Insurance and Pension Funds (DGSFP). Autonomous communities with powers over insurance have authority over agencies that act exclusively on behalf of insurers under their supervision.
What requirements must be met?
Being a commercial company with a corporate purpose that covers the activity; submitting a program of activities setting out the risks, the insurers and the terms, together with the powers of attorney; identifying the shareholders with qualifying holdings, who must be fit and proper; being run by people of good repute and competence; and having a separate account for each insurer (Article 35 of Royal Decree 1060/2015).
Does it need liability insurance?
Yes. It must have professional indemnity insurance or another financial guarantee covering the whole European Economic Area for at least €1.5 million per claim and €2 million for all claims in a year.
How long does the DGSFP take?
The Regulation sets a time limit of three months from submission of the application. The application is refused if compliance with the requirements is not proven, so it is best to file it complete.
Can I work with several insurers?
Yes, but you need a power of attorney from each one, and the authorization must cover them. To operate with insurers other than those authorized, or in risks other than those initially authorized, you must apply for an extension of the authorization.
How is it different from an insurance agent or broker?
Agents and brokers are insurance intermediaries: they distribute insurance and are entered in the register of insurance and reinsurance distributors. An underwriting agency, by contrast, underwrites risks on behalf of the insurer under a power of attorney and needs a specific authorization.
Can the authorization be revoked?
Yes. The DGSFP may revoke it in the cases provided for by law, including actual inactivity, which, for an agency, occurs when all the powers of attorney it held have been revoked. The rules on infringements and penalties are those of the LOSSEAR.
Practical guide
How to prepare the authorization
The DGSFP looks at the company, the people and the powers of attorney at the same time. An application that is consistent on all three fronts is the one that moves forward without requests for information.
Define risks and insurers
Which risks you will underwrite, for which insurers and with which limits: that determines the program of activities and the scope of the authorization.
Well-negotiated powers of attorney
The power of attorney agreement sets what you can underwrite and how you report to the insurer. It is the document the whole business rests on.
People and internal control
Fit and proper shareholders, management with good repute and competence, and internal control procedures that really work.
The underwriting agency in 10 steps
- Define the risks, the classes of insurance and the insurers you will work with.
- Incorporate or adapt the commercial company, with a corporate purpose that covers the activity of an underwriting agency.
- Negotiate and sign the power of attorney agreement with each insurer.
- Draft the program of activities, with the organizational structure and the internal control procedures.
- Identify the shareholders with qualifying holdings and document their suitability.
- Evidence the good repute and competence of the people who effectively run the agency.
- Open a separate account for each insurer that has granted a power of attorney.
- Take out professional indemnity insurance with the required minimum cover.
- File the application with the DGSFP and respond to its requests for information.
- After authorization, identify yourself as an underwriting agency and apply for an extension before adding insurers or risks.
Sources: Law 20/2015 (Articles 19 and 60), Royal Decree 1060/2015 (Article 35 and Seventeenth Additional Provision) and the DGSFP application guide.
Working glossary
Key underwriting agency concepts
These terms appear in the application to the DGSFP and in the agreements with insurers.
DGSFPAuthority
Directorate-General for Insurance and Pension Funds
The authority that authorizes and supervises underwriting agencies.
The decision-maker.
LOSSEARLaw
Law 20/2015
Law on the Regulation, Supervision and Solvency of Insurance and Reinsurance Undertakings. Its Article 60 governs underwriting agencies.
The legal basis.
ROSSEARRegulation
Royal Decree 1060/2015
The Regulation implementing the LOSSEAR, which sets the requirements and the authorization procedure.
Article 35.
Power of attorneyAgreement
Power of attorney agreement
The power an insurer grants so that the agency can underwrite risks in its name and on its behalf.
One per insurer.
MGAMarket
Managing general agent
The usual name in the international market for entities with delegated underwriting authority.
A market term.
ProgramDocument
Program of activities
Risks to be underwritten, insurers, terms, organizational structure and internal control.
The core of the application.
Qualifying holdingShareholders
Qualifying holding
A significant stake in the share capital, subject to a fit and proper review of the shareholder.
Articles 85–88 of the LOSSEAR.
Separate accountFunds
Separate account per insurer
An account used only to manage the funds of each insurer that has granted a power of attorney.
One per insurer.
IntermediaryDifferent role
Insurance intermediary
An agent or broker who distributes insurance and is entered in the register of distributors.
Not the same thing.
Playbook
Underwriting agency or insurance agent: what changes
What it does
Underwriting agency: underwrites risks in the name and on behalf of the insurer.
Insurance agent: distributes insurance on behalf of one or more insurers.
Legislation
Underwriting agency: Article 60 of Law 20/2015 and Article 35 of Royal Decree 1060/2015.
Insurance agent: Book Two of Royal Decree-law 3/2020.
Access
Underwriting agency: administrative authorization from the DGSFP.
Insurance agent: entry in the register of insurance and reinsurance distributors.
Legal form
Underwriting agency: Spanish legal entity in the form of a commercial company.
Insurance agent: individual or legal entity.
Supervision
Underwriting agency: DGSFP, or the autonomous community if it acts only for insurers under that community’s authority.
Insurance agent: DGSFP or autonomous community, depending on the register in which it is entered.
Mistakes that delay authorization
Avoiding them shortens the DGSFP process.
- Submitting a generic program of activities, with no specific risks or limits.
- Powers of attorney that do not match what you are asking to have authorized.
- Significant shareholders or managers without complete fit and proper documentation.
- Forgetting the separate accounts per insurer or the liability insurance.
- Starting to underwrite new risks before obtaining the extension.
Contact
Book a call
Tell us which risks you want to underwrite and with which insurers, and we will tell you what you need for DGSFP authorization.
Underwriting agencies in Spain: legal regime and authorization
An underwriting agency is a Spanish legal entity that underwrites risks in the name and on behalf of one or more insurers under a power of attorney agreement. It is governed by Article 60 of Law 20/2015 (LOSSEAR) and implemented by Article 35 of its Regulation, approved by Royal Decree 1060/2015 (ROSSEAR).
DGSFP authorization
The agency may start its activity only after obtaining administrative authorization from the Directorate-General for Insurance and Pension Funds. It also needs authorization to operate with other insurers or to underwrite risks other than those authorized. The application is decided within three months of its submission and is refused if the requirements are not proven.
Requirements
The agency must be a commercial company with a corporate purpose that covers the activity; submit a program of activities setting out the risks, the insurers and the underwriting terms, together with the powers of attorney, the organizational structure and internal control; prove the suitability of its significant shareholders and the good repute and competence of its management; and have a separate account for each insurer. It must also have professional indemnity insurance of at least €1.5 million per claim and €2 million per year.
Operating obligations
The name “underwriting agency” (agencia de suscripción) is reserved, and the agency must state its nature and the insurers that have granted it powers of attorney in its documents and advertising. Complaints and claims about its conduct are resolved by the insurers’ customer service departments. It is subject to the rules on qualifying holdings, the special control measures and the LOSSEAR penalty regime.
Underwriting agencies, intermediaries and insurers
An underwriting agency is not an intermediary: agents and insurance brokers distribute insurance under the insurance distribution rules. Nor is it an insurer, which needs its own authorization as an insurance company. Choosing the right structure is the first step in any delegated underwriting or insurtech project.
Official sources
Key legislation, linked to the official text:
- Law 20/2015 of July 14 on the Regulation, Supervision and Solvency of Insurance and Reinsurance UndertakingsBOE · consolidated text
- Royal Decree 1060/2015 of November 20 on the Regulation, Supervision and Solvency of Insurance and Reinsurance UndertakingsBOE · consolidated text
- Royal Decree-law 3/2020 of February 4 on urgent measures transposing various European Union directives into Spanish lawBOE · consolidated text
Legislation and links reviewed in .