Four states run seller of travel programs: California, Florida, Hawaii, and Washington. Registration is separate from any business license, and it is triggered by selling to residents of that state — which is why an agent in Ohio can end up registering in California.
What follows is general information, current as of writing, and program requirements change. Confirm with the state agency before you rely on it.
California
Administered by the Attorney General under the Seller of Travel Law. It applies to anyone selling air or sea transportation to California consumers, including out-of-state sellers.
Registration comes with a trust account or bond requirement for client funds, a registration number that must appear in your advertising, and specific disclosure language in your contracts. Sellers participating in the state's restitution fund pay into it per transaction.
Independent agents working under a registered host are often covered by the host's registration, but that depends on the arrangement. Confirm it rather than assuming.
Florida
Administered by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Registration applies to sellers of travel doing business in Florida, including out-of-state sellers reaching Florida consumers.
A performance bond is generally required, with the amount tied to how you handle client funds and how long you have operated. Florida offers an exemption for sellers who have operated for five or more consecutive years under the same ownership with no unresolved complaints, and independent agents affiliated with a registered seller may register under a lower-cost category.
Registration renews annually and the number must appear in advertising.
Hawaii
Hawaii requires travel agencies to maintain a client trust account and follow specific handling rules for client funds. The requirement centers on how money is held rather than on a registration certificate in the California sense.
Washington
Administered by the Department of Licensing. Sellers of travel must register, maintain a trust account for client funds, and follow rules on how quickly funds move.
Registration renews annually. Out-of-state sellers reaching Washington consumers are within scope.
Where insurance fits
Registration and insurance answer different questions, and agents mix them up constantly.
A bond and a trust account protect client money. If you take a deposit and fail to pay the supplier, that is what they exist for.
Errors and omissions insurance protects against a mistake in your professional work — the wrong date, the missed deadline, the detail never disclosed. No amount of bonding responds to that, and no E&O policy responds to misappropriated funds.
States do not generally require E&O as a condition of registration. Host agencies and suppliers do require it, which is usually what prompts an agent to buy.
The practical order
If you sell to consumers in any of these four states, work through it in this order:
- Check whether your host's registration already covers you, in writing
- If not, register directly with each state where you sell
- Set up whatever trust account or bond that state requires for client funds
- Put your registration numbers in your advertising, website, and contracts
- Carry your own E&O, which the states do not require but your partners will
Missing registration is the expensive one. Penalties run per transaction in some states, which turns a paperwork oversight into a number that scales with how well the year went.