1.1 Licensing Eligibility, Application, and Education Requirements

1.1 Licensing Eligibility, Application, and Education Requirements

Exam focus: Do not turn the two qualification routes into an “either school or experience” rule. Under Texas Occupations Code § 1802.052, the approved 80-hour auction-school program is required. The applicant must also qualify through the examination route or the licensed-associate route.

When a License Is Required

Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) administers Occupations Code Chapter 1802 and the Commission's rules in 16 TAC Chapter 67. The statutory definition centers on a person who, for compensation or other value, sells or offers property by competitive bid. Calling bids, holding oneself out as an auctioneer, and conducting a compensated auction are core licensed activities.

Start every licensing problem with two questions:

1. Does the conduct fit the statutory auctioneer activity?
2. Does a specific exemption apply?

The exemptions are collected in § 1802.002. They cover defined situations such as certain judicial or court-ordered sales, sales under a deed of trust or other lien, sales by public officers in the manner required by law, and a qualifying charitable auction conducted without compensation. The exemption belongs to the transaction and the person described in the statute; it is not a broad permission for an unlicensed person to operate a commercial auction business. A person paid to call bids at an ordinary consignment sale should assume licensure is required.

The § 1802.052 Applicant Checklist

An individual applicant must satisfy each baseline element:

• be at least 18 years old;
• be a United States citizen or a legal alien;
• hold a high school diploma or an equivalent credential; and
• complete at least 80 hours of classroom instruction at an auction school approved by TDLR.

After the school requirement, the statute supplies two ways to establish professional qualification. The ordinary route is passing the licensing examination. The experience route applies to a person who has held an associate auctioneer license during the preceding two years and participated in at least 10 auctions during that period. The word and is crucial: the 80-hour curriculum remains part of the application requirements under either route.

An associate auctioneer works under the sponsorship and supervision structure established by Chapter 1802 and Rule 67.72. Associate status is not an independent license to conduct an auction without the responsible auctioneer.

Application Costs and Criminal History

The current TDLR application identifies a $50 license application fee and a $50 Auctioneer Education and Recovery Fund fee, for $100 submitted with the initial license application. The PSI examination fee is separate.

TDLR evaluates criminal history under Occupations Code Chapter 53 and the department's criminal-conviction guidelines. A conviction is not accurately described as an automatic lifetime bar. The agency considers the governing standards and the facts of the record. A prospective applicant who wants an advance assessment may request a Criminal History Evaluation Letter. The current auctioneer program fee for that request is $25. The letter is useful before the candidate spends money on school and testing, but the candidate must provide complete and accurate information.

The Current PSI Examination

The candidate bulletin separates the testing session into:

The fee is $52 for each examination appointment. The required score is 75% of the scored questions. Because 75% of 75 equals 56.25 and partial questions do not exist, the smallest passing whole-number result is 57 correct scored answers. The candidate cannot identify the five unscored items, so every item should receive the same care.

The current outline has 11 domains. Its largest are Chapter 1802 and Chapter 67 rules (16 scored items), General Auction Practices (12), Business & Commerce Code (9), and Real Estate (8). A candidate should not rely on an older outline that lists a separate trust-funds domain or assigns 18 questions to the Auctioneer Act.

From Approval to Lawful Practice

Passing the test alone is not authority to practice. The applicant must complete the TDLR process and receive an active license. Before accepting an engagement, verify the license status, define the seller relationship in writing, and determine whether the property triggers another regulatory system—for example, TREC rules for real property, TxDMV rules for vehicles, or federal rules for firearms.

Memory Rule

Think BASE + SCHOOL + ROUTE:

• BASE: 18, lawful status, high school or equivalent;
• SCHOOL: 80 approved hours for every applicant;
• ROUTE: pass the exam, or meet the two-year licensed-associate and 10-auction route.

Then remember the exam numbers as 75 + 5 / 120 / $52 / 57.