NOTICE: Planning to switch from active to inactive status? You must submit your Application for Transfer to Inactive by December 1, 2024, and the effective date must be on or before December 31, 2024, to qualify for the inactive fee in 2025.
See Notice on 2025 Fee Cycle Changes.
Please follow the instructions below to properly notify the State Bar of changes in your status:
Only licensees on voluntary inactive status may transfer to active status by submitting the required Request to Transfer to Active Status form. While suspended, a licensee cannot change license status. If you are currently on Not Eligible status, please fill out the Licensee Records and Compliance Inquiry form for reinstatement information.
If you wish to transfer to active status, please submit the Request to Transfer to Active Status form.
Please note, under California Rule of Court 9.9.5, all inactive licensed attorneys must be fingerprinted prior to being placed on active status. As such, before you submit your Request to Transfer to Active Status form, please review and complete the fingerprinting rule requirements. This is a one-time requirement. See the full fingerprinting rule requirements information.
A status change to active will be effective upon the State Bar’s receipt of the Request to Transfer to Active Status form and compliance with the fingerprinting requirement. Additionally, if applicable, once the annual fees have been adjusted, payment will be expected promptly.
Only active licensees may transfer to a voluntary inactive status. While suspended, a licensee cannot change license status. If you are currently on Not Eligible status, please fill out the Licensee Records and Compliance Inquiry form for reinstatement information.
If you wish to transfer to inactive status, please submit the Application for Transfer to Inactive Status. Unless a different effective date is entered on the form, a status change to inactive will be effective upon the State Bar’s receipt of the Application for Transfer to Inactive. To qualify for the inactive fee in the following year, you must formally transfer to inactive status by submitting the required form no later than December 1, 2024 and the effective date of the transfer must be on or before December 31. Transfers to inactive status forms submitted after December 1, 2024 or with an effective date after December 31 will not reduce active fees owed for the following year. You may submit a form to transfer to inactive status after December 1, 2024, or with an effective date after December 31; however, you must pay annual fees at the active rate and will not be entitled to a refund because of the change to inactive status.
The State Bar does not have a retired status option; the only voluntary statuses are active, inactive, or resigned. If you simply stop paying annual fees, your license will be suspended. Notification of retirement is also not sufficient to change your status.
Please remember that annual license fees are waived for licensees on inactive status who are 70 years of age on March 30 and will continue to be waived for subsequent years, as long as they remain inactive. Resignation, however, should be considered a permanent step, for attorneys who are certain they would not wish to practice law in California again. Re-admission after resignation would require a reinstatement petition in the State Bar Court, an expensive and time-consuming process which usually entails re-taking most of the bar exam.
If you would like to change your status to resigned, log in to My State Bar Profile, select “Bar Card, Payment Receipt(s), and Other Documents.” Next, scroll down and select the Voluntary Resignation link. Please take a moment to carefully review the information provided regarding resignation. If resignation is still your choice after you review the information, please print the Voluntary Resignation Form and follow the instructions for final submission.
Please submit a Name Change Form to process your name change request. In order to change an official name, your request must accompany copies of four identity documents; two identity documents showing your former name and two identity documents showing your new name. Please find further detailed instructions on the Name Change Form. If you are changing your name with the State Bar following a gender identity transition, you can indicate this on the form.
To notify the State Bar that an attorney is no longer practicing law in the field of Estate Planning and has transferred estate planning documents, please submit one of the following forms:
For questions, please fill out the Licensee Records and Compliance Inquiry form.