Solvency II and intermediaries: which requirements apply to agents and brokers

The European Solvency II regime is often called "the standard for the entire insurance market", including intermediaries. That is not accurate. Directive 2009/138/EC (Solvency II) is addressed to insurance and reinsurance undertakings. The work of agents and brokers in the EU is governed by a different document — Directive (EU) 2016/97 on insurance distribution (Insurance Distribution Directive, IDD), which has applied since 1 October 2018. But the two regimes are closely linked, and an intermediary feels the effect of both.

What Solvency II requires of an insurer and how it reaches the intermediary

Solvency II rests on three pillars: capital requirements, governance system requirements and reporting requirements. The second pillar matters for intermediaries: through it, the requirements placed on the insurer pass on to its sales and claims settlement partners.

• System of governance. The insurer must build risk management and internal control across the entire chain, including sales channels.
• Fit & proper. Qualification and business reputation requirements apply to the insurer's managers and to those responsible for key functions. Intermediaries are subject to separate IDD requirements.
• Outsourcing. If an insurer delegates important functions to an intermediary (underwriting, claims settlement, contract administration), responsibility to the supervisor remains with the insurer. Agencies and brokers with such powers therefore undergo audits, submit reports and assume contractual obligations.
• Distribution oversight. The insurer is responsible for who sells its products and how. These rules are set out in detail in the IDD.

What the IDD requires of intermediaries

• Registration. Agents, brokers and those who sell insurance as an ancillary service are entered in a national register.
• Professional competence. At least 15 hours of training or professional development per year for employees who sell insurance directly and for managers responsible for sales. Countries may raise the bar: Italy, for example, requires 30 hours.
• Conduct of business rules. Act honestly, fairly and professionally in the best interests of the client, and identify the client's demands and needs before the contract is concluded.
• Conflicts of interest and remuneration. The intermediary discloses the form in which it is remunerated: commission, fee, another form or a combination. Stricter rules on conflicts of interest and inducements apply to insurance-based investment products.
• Product oversight and governance (POG). The product manufacturer defines the target market, while the distributor sells within it and receives the necessary information from the manufacturer. An intermediary that is actually involved in designing a product is itself considered a manufacturer.

Solvency II review: what has been adopted and when it takes effect

Directive (EU) 2025/2 amending Solvency II was adopted on 27 November 2024 and published in the Official Journal of the EU on 8 January 2025. According to EIOPA, the new rules start to apply from 30 January 2027. The details are contained in Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/269 of 29 October 2025, published on 18 February 2026.

Main changes:

• new criteria for small and non-complex insurers and lighter requirements for them;
• a more lenient capital regime for long-term equity investments;
• detailed requirements for taking ESG risks into account and for liquidity management;
• a lower cost of capital;
• the supervisor's right to temporarily restrict dividends and share buybacks.

At the same time, Directive (EU) 2025/1 on the recovery and resolution of insurance undertakings (IRRD) was adopted; it entered into force on 30 January 2025.

Both directives are addressed to insurers. They affect intermediaries indirectly, through what insurers require of their outsourcing and sales partners.

What of this is relevant for Kazakhstan

In February 2026, the ARDFM approved the "Main Priorities of Supervisory Policy for the Insurance Sector for 2026". The document announces a transition to an integrated supervisory model based on the Insurance Core Principles, Solvency II requirements and the IFRS 17 standard. For the first time, the annual risk assessment of insurers under the SRES system will take client complaints into account.

At the Kazakhstan Insurance Forum in September 2026, the regulator presented the main directions of the new law "On the Insurance Market", which is to replace the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan "On Insurance Activity" of 2000. They include risk-based supervision, adaptation of Solvency II and IFRS 17 principles and changes to the rules for intermediaries. For now this is a draft: the text and the timeline for adoption have not been published.

EU experience suggests what to expect. Insurer solvency and sales rules are regulated separately, but the requirements placed on insurers regarding outsourcing and sales oversight inevitably reach agents and brokers. Market participants should closely follow the section on intermediaries in the future law.