Yes and no. The statutes indicate that is you are a registered nurse and your employer asks you to conduct an investigation for their business, then no - you do not need a PI License. If your employer is an insurance company and they assign you an investigation, then you do not need a PI License. If an attorney employs you to conduct a medical investigation of nursing home abuse because he/she has a client who suspects abuse, then you do not need a PI License.
The issue is outside solicitation of your services or no outside soliciation. If you wish to advertise for numerous clients, then seek either to own your agency (which does not require owners to have experience, but at least one of their investigators must qualify), or seek to gain your experience by applying for your CC License (Internship).
In addition to the answer above, there are many areas you can serve as an independent contractor without a PI License. Most trainees can call themselves CASE EXAMINER while building experience. Union Members also have free access to the OBTAIN YOUR LICENSE FORUM where details and help will provide you with either assignments within the law or help you set up your own agency without any personal experience.
Most experience can be counted toward a state PI License,k regardless of who employed you. The requirement is to have the proof ready when you apply for the license. Keep good records, including dates, hours, earnings, employers, etc.. Remember too, all state licensing boards have an appeal process that goes before their board of directors. If you feel your experience is not being counted, chances are very good to have it counted at the appeal stage (if needed), as long as your records are solid.
Another item to remember is that other PI Agencies will give you MORE credit toward all experience you gain. And these same agencies that you work assignments for are in a better position to sponsor your PI License.
You too??
Concentrate on getting trained and if there is a licensing question, ask the employer if they require it for their specific assignment. But as long as you live in the state, print off your statutes and refer to them once in a while to become educated about what they mean. It takes time, but that is what a professional career requires.
Sorry, we do not recognize any authority other than what is written in the Florida Statutes. Even if someone called the state licensing board and said something over the phone, it must be exactly what is already posted in the state website for the statutes.
This is untrue. That is why we do not permit guests and members to be informed without the full benefit of all of the statutes. A practicing private investigator does not need a state PI license if their practices fall within the posted exemptions of the statutes (see page 1 of this topic). Therefore, your friend should have said that "some" practicing private investigators should get licensed.
This is good advice, especially for someone who is trying to use a medical background to qualify for a state PI License.
Also, please review the Mission Statement you agreed to when you registered here:
http://www.ipiu.org/forums/showthrea...threadid=13864
(It better explains why IPIU sustains and supports all licensing authorities and how we educate members about their authority and the statutes they are required to interpret)