California professionals can now benefit from temporary financial relief through Governor Gavin Newsom’s Executive Order N-15-25. The order allows professionals to postpone their Department of Consumer Affairs license renewal fees until 2026 if their licenses expire between January 1, 2025, and June 30, 2025.

The program offers a fee deferral option rather than a complete waiver. Eligible licensees must reside in specific zip codes affected by recent events to qualify for this postponement. Professional license holders should understand these DCA license renewal changes thoroughly. This piece explains your license renewal eligibility and the postponement’s impact on your California professional license.

Key Dates and Deadlines

The California fee postponement program’s key dates and deadlines started with Executive Order N-15-25, issued on January 29, 2025.

This program impacts licenses that expire between January 1, 2025, and June 30, 2025. Professionals need to complete their renewal process by their original expiration date, though they don’t need to pay at that time.

The postponement schedule works this way:

• Licenses expiring in Q1 2025 will have fees due in Q1 2026
• Licenses expiring in Q2 2025 will have fees due in Q2 2026
• All renewals must maintain their original expiration date schedule

To name just one example, if your license expires on March 31, 2025, you’ll need to complete the renewal process by that date, but won’t pay the fee until March 2026. The Department of Consumer Affairs has set up its renewal system to show $0.00 due at renewal time for eligible licenses.

Each professional’s payment due date aligns with their original license expiration date, moved forward by one year. The Department has identified qualifying licenses within the affected zip codes and adjusted their renewal requirements automatically in the system.

Note that missing your original renewal deadline could affect your eligibility, so tracking these dates is vital for your California professional license status.

Affected Zip Codes:

• 90041
• 90049
• 90265
• 90272
• 90290
• 90402
• 91001
• 91024
• 91103
• 91104
• 91107
• 91367
• 93536

Managing Your Postponed Fees

Under the fee postponement program, professionals can manage their license renewals in several ways. The Department of Consumer Affairs offers both online and paper-based renewal systems.

The system shows $0.00 due automatically for eligible California professional license renewals. If you live in the affected zip codes, you can complete your renewal without paying now.

The Department has already identified qualifying licenses to make the process easier. If the system shows you owe money but you think you qualify, contact your licensing board for help.

You have flexibility with payments. Postponing fees are optional—you can pay them during your regular renewal time. However, anyone who chooses to postpone will need to pay the full amount in 2026.

The DCA Disaster Help Center helps fire-affected licensees with their postponed fees. Your licensing board’s support team can also answer specific questions about renewing your professional license.

Conclusion

Understanding California’s fee postponement program can help professionals make better decisions about their license renewals. The program provides financial flexibility, and professionals must complete their renewal process by the original deadlines even though payments can wait until 2026.