California Life & Health
Insurance Exam

To pass the California insurance licensing exam on your first attempt, follow this proven strategy: First, complete the required 12 hours of Ethics and California Insurance Code coursework. Second, study the key content areas systematically — life insurance, health insurance, annuities, and California-specific regulations. Third, complete at least 300+ practice questions until you consistently score 80% or higher, well above the 60% passing threshold. Fourth, focus extra time on California-specific laws including the Insurance Code, anti-fraud provisions, free-look periods, and replacement regulations. Finally, take full-length timed practice exams (150 questions in 3 hours) to build stamina and confidence. Students who follow this approach have a significantly higher first-attempt pass rate.

The combined California Life, Accident & Health insurance exam has 150 multiple-choice questions with a 3-hour time limit. You need a score of 60% to pass, meaning at least 90 correct answers out of 150. California also offers separate exams: Life-Only (75 questions, 90 minutes) and Accident & Health-Only (75 questions, 90 minutes), both requiring 60% to pass. While 60% may seem low, the exam is challenging — the overall pass rate is approximately 64.8%. We recommend aiming for 80%+ on practice tests to give yourself a comfortable margin on exam day.

The California Life, Accident & Health exam covers several major content areas. For life insurance: policy types (term, whole, universal, variable), beneficiary designations, settlement options, and group life plans. For health insurance: individual and group medical expense coverage, the Affordable Care Act, disability income insurance, long-term care, and Medicare/Medigap plans. Annuities are heavily tested: fixed, variable, indexed, immediate, and deferred annuities, including taxation rules. California-specific content includes the Insurance Code, ethics and fiduciary duties, anti-fraud provisions, replacement regulations, and free-look periods. Approximately 15-20% of questions focus on California state law.

The California insurance exam fee is $88, paid to the California Department of Insurance. There is an additional convenience fee of $33 for in-person testing or $43 for remote/online proctored testing, making the total cost $121 (in-person) or $131 (remote). The exam is administered exclusively by PSI Services LLC. You can take it at a PSI testing center in California or remotely via PSI's online proctoring system from your home or office. To schedule, visit the PSI website or call (833) 518-7456. If you fail and retake, you pay the full fee again each time.

As of January 1, 2026 (under AB 943), the 20-hour line-specific pre-licensing course is no longer required, though it is still recommended for exam preparation. However, you must complete 12 hours of coursework covering Ethics and the California Insurance Code, which includes 1 hour of mandatory anti-fraud training. This must be completed before a license can be issued. Additional requirements include: you must be 18 years of age or older, submit fingerprints via Capital Live Scan (CDI's approved vendor), and bring a valid government-issued photo ID on exam day. After passing, apply for your license online through Sircon or NIPR.

If you fail the California insurance exam, you can retake it up to 10 times within a 12-month period. The retake schedule includes waiting periods: attempts 1 and 2 have no waiting period (can retake after 24 hours), attempt 3 requires a 30-day wait, attempt 4 has no wait, and attempt 5 requires a 60-day wait. Each retake requires paying the full exam fee ($88 plus the convenience fee). After 10 failed attempts, you are banned from retaking for one year from the date of your last attempt. You'll receive a diagnostic score report showing your strengths and weaknesses by section — use this to focus your additional study on the areas you missed. We recommend upgrading to our premium question bank for targeted practice on your weak areas.