What is the exam-ready distinction?
| Decision point | Active | Inactive |
|---|---|---|
| License condition | Current and authorized for the licensed role | Current nonpracticing status |
| Affiliation | Salesperson, associate broker, and CAM operate under one active Georgia broker | No active brokerage authority through a firm |
| Brokerage activity | Permitted within license, supervision, and law | Prohibited except on real estate owned solely by the inactive licensee |
| Brokerage compensation | Paid through the proper broker channel | May not be earned for performing brokerage activity |
| Renewal education | Current active-renewal CE applies, including license-law requirements and broker-specific CE where applicable | CE is not required merely to renew inactive, but missed active-status CE must be addressed before reactivation |
| Renewal fee | Required on time | Required on time to avoid lapse |
| First-year salesperson post-license | Inactive status does not supply a blanket pause for the 25-hour deadline | |
The Rule
Status, renewal, education, and affiliation are separate dimensions. A license may be inactive and current, active and later lapsed for a missed requirement, or inactive and later reactivated only after the Commission's requirements are satisfied.
Decision rule
What inactive status permits and prohibits
Rule 520-1-.05 says inactive licensees may not perform brokerage activity on real estate other than real estate owned solely by the inactive licensee. Brokerage includes sales, leasing, property management, community association management, referrals that constitute brokerage, and the other activities in Georgia's broker definition.
An inactive licensee may work as support personnel, but only within the limits imposed on support personnel. The person may not present themselves as actively licensed, negotiate, explain contracts to outsiders, collect trust funds, discuss property attributes with a prospect, or give brokerage advice.
Continuing education while inactive
The earlier version of this page said renewal requirements were identical in both statuses. That was too broad. Georgia's 36-hour CE requirement applies to renewal of an active license. A licensee may renew inactive without completing active-status CE, but Rule 520-1-.05 requires the education that would have applied during the inactive period before reactivation, unless the licensee already completed it or uses another permitted requalification route.
Brokers have an additional current course-composition rule. For active broker renewals on or after July 1, 2025, 18 of the 36 hours must be approved broker education, with the license-law requirement included within the total as the current rules provide. Check GREC before renewal because course approvals and personal exemptions matter.
How an inactive license becomes active
A salesperson, associate broker, or CAM needs proper affiliation with an active Georgia broker and must complete the Commission's status-change process. An inactive broker who will operate a sole proprietorship or qualify a firm must receive the appropriate broker authority. The person may not begin brokerage work merely because a form was sent. Current Rule 520-1-.05 requires the applicable certificate of licensure to be received before work begins.
Start with choosing a Georgia broker, then confirm the current application and document path directly with GREC.
Worked example
Scenario. A Georgia salesperson renews the license inactive, accepts no brokerage work for two years, then affiliates with a broker and wants to show property immediately.
Reason it through. Timely inactive renewal kept the license from lapsing, but it did not create active authority. The salesperson must satisfy the education that would have applied during the inactive period, complete the status-change and affiliation process, and wait until the broker has received the active certificate required by the rule.
Answer. The salesperson cannot begin showing property merely by agreeing to join the firm.
Common exam traps
- Treating inactive and lapsed as synonyms.
- Calling inactive status a referral-only license.
- Saying continuing education is required to renew inactive, without separating renewal from later reactivation.
- Assuming joining a brokerage activates the license instantly.
- Forgetting the narrow solely-owned-property exception.
- Assuming inactive status pauses the first-year salesperson post-license deadline.
Original practice questions with detailed explanations
Question 1Which activity may an inactive Georgia licensee perform under the specific GREC rule exception?
- A. List a neighbor's property for a fee
- B. Negotiate leases for an unlicensed employer
- C. Perform brokerage activity only on real estate owned solely by the inactive licensee
- D. Earn referral fees without affiliation
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: Perform brokerage activity only on real estate owned solely by the inactive licensee
Rule 520-1-.05 prohibits inactive licensees from brokerage activity except on real estate owned solely by that licensee. It does not create a referral-only or property-management license.
Question 2What must an inactive licensee generally address before reactivation?
- A. Only a business-card change
- B. Affiliation or broker authority, the Commission process, and missed active-status education requirements
- C. A new fair-housing exemption
- D. Automatic activation upon joining a professional association
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: Affiliation or broker authority, the Commission process, and missed active-status education requirements
Reactivation is a Commission status change. Salespersons, associate brokers, and CAMs need proper broker affiliation, and the education that would have applied while active must be satisfied unless another rule route applies.
Question 3Which statement correctly separates inactive from lapsed status?
- A. Inactive means revoked
- B. Lapsed means active under a broker
- C. Inactive is a maintained nonpracticing status; lapsed means the license is no longer current because a requirement was missed
- D. The words are exact synonyms
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: Inactive is a maintained nonpracticing status; lapsed means the license is no longer current because a requirement was missed
Inactive licensees remain in a recognized status but cannot practice. A lapsed license cannot be used and must follow the applicable reinstatement or requalification path.
Ready to move on?
- I can separate active, inactive, and lapsed status without notes.
- I can state what brokerage work an inactive licensee may not perform.
- I remember the solely-owned-property exception without expanding it.
- I can explain why inactive renewal and later reactivation have different education questions.
- I can state when an affiliated licensee may begin brokerage work after reactivation.
- I can reject referral-only, instant-activation, and paused-post-license distractors.
Recommended next lesson
Continue with Commingling Versus Conversion. It moves from license status to the trust-account conduct GREC expects an active licensee and broker to classify correctly.