Security licensing ยท California
California guard card renewal: BSIS rules for employers
California gives guards very little slack. A registration that is not renewed within 60 days after it expires is cancelled, and an expired firearms permit cannot be renewed at all.
Who issues the guard card
The Bureau of Security and Investigative Services (BSIS), part of the California Department of Consumer Affairs, registers security guards. Guards can renew online through the BreEZe system, which BSIS says can cut processing time by up to two weeks compared with mailing a paper form (BSIS security guard fact sheet).
When a registration expires
Under Business and Professions Code §7583.20, a registration "expires at midnight on the last day of the month two years following the date of issuance unless renewed" (B&P 7583.20). The same section says a guard seeking to renew must send the completed application and fee at least 60 days before expiration.
BSIS mails a renewal form about 90 days before the expiration date (BSIS fact sheet). Do not file too early, either. The current renewal form says applications received more than 120 days before expiration will be returned (BSIS renewal application), and another BSIS page says renewals received more than 90 days out cannot be processed (BSIS processing page). Filing between 90 and 60 days before the date satisfies all of these.
Renewal fees and the 60-day cutoff
| When renewed | Fee |
|---|---|
| Before expiration | $44 |
| Up to 60 days after expiration | $69 ($44 renewal plus $25 delinquency fee) |
| More than 60 days after expiration | Cannot renew. A new initial application is required. |
Sources: BSIS fee schedule and the renewal application. BSIS states that guard registrations not renewed within 60 days of expiration are canceled (BSIS fact sheet).
Working during that window is not allowed. "A person is prohibited from performing the duties of a security guard with an expired registration" (B&P 7583.20(c)). Once BSIS approves a renewal, the guard may work with a printout of the approved registration from the DCA License Search website while waiting for the new card (renewal application).
Training: initial and annual
- Before the registration is issued: a course in the power to arrest and appropriate use of force, approximately eight hours long (B&P 7583.6; 7583.7).
- After issuance: 32 hours of security officer skills training, with 16 hours within 30 days and all 32 within six months (7583.6(b)).
- Every year: eight hours of "specifically dedicated review or practice of security officer skills" (7583.6(e)).
At renewal, the guard certifies completion of the 32 hours and the annual training (7583.20(e)). A licensee (private patrol operator) must keep a record for each guard verifying the training at its principal place of business or branch office (7583.6(g)(2)). As of January 1, 2026, weapons of mass destruction and terrorism awareness is an elective topic only (7583.7).
Firearms and baton permits run on their own clocks
- Firearms qualification card: expires two years from issuance, and "an expired firearms qualification card may not be renewed" (B&P 7583.32). To renew, the holder needs two range qualifications in each 12-month period of the permit's term, at least four months apart, with a two-hour use-of-force review before each (BSIS firearms fact sheet). The renewal fee is $126 (BSIS fees).
- Baton permit: expires two years from issuance and cannot be renewed once expired (B&P 7584.5). Renewal is $44.
The range schedule is the part that slips. Four qualifications spaced at least four months apart cannot be squeezed into the last few weeks, so they need to be on the calendar from the day the permit is issued.
Employer duties and fines
The statutes below place these duties on licensees, meaning licensed private patrol operators.
- A licensee "shall not permit an employee to perform the functions of a security guard without confirming that the person holds a current and valid security guard registration" (B&P 7583.8).
- Failing to certify proof of current registration for each guard (7583.2(d)) can bring a fine of up to $5,000 per violation (7587.15).
- Guards must carry a valid registration card on duty (7583.3). The fine is $150 per violation (7587.9).
- A licensee must give employees information on how to renew (7583.20).
To check a guard's status, use the BSIS Verify a License page.
What to track for each California guard
- Guard registration expiration, with a reminder at 90 days so the application goes in before the 60-day mark.
- The date of the last eight-hour annual training.
- For armed guards, the firearms permit expiration and each range qualification date.
- Baton permit expiration, if the guard carries one.
Rules change. This guide summarizes public sources and is not legal advice. Confirm current requirements with the Bureau of Security and Investigative Services before acting on them.