California Insurance License in 2026: The New 12-Hour Rule Explained

What changed on January 1, 2026

AB 943 took effect on January 1, 2026 and repealed the 20-hour prelicensing course that each line used to require for the property, casualty, personal lines, life and accident and health producer licenses. Under the old rule, a candidate who wanted several lines could face a separate course for each one.

What remains is a one-time, 12-hour course on ethics and the California Insurance Code. One of those 12 hours must be on insurance fraud (Insurance Code 1749). One course covers every license in the group, so a candidate applying for property, casualty and life at once completes it only once.

The repeal did not reach every license. According to CDI, bail agents and public insurance adjusters still need 20 hours of prelicensing education. If you are pursuing one of those licenses, the old structure still applies to you.

When to take the 12-hour course

The course must be completed before the license is issued. CDI sets the exact timing and approves the course providers, so confirm the current rules with CDI before you book the exam if you want to be sure of the order.

Two time limits are worth knowing. A prelicensing certificate expires three years after the course is completed, whether or not a license has been issued. And the commissioner may issue a permanent license only if the exam was passed within the 12 months before the license is issued (Insurance Code 1676). Planning the course and the exam close together keeps you well inside both limits.

Because CDI approves providers, take the course from one it lists. A course from an unapproved source may not count, and you would have to take it again.

The five exams at a glance

CDI offers five exams for the common selling licenses. Life, Accident and Health or Sickness is the combined life and health exam. Property and Casualty Broker-Agent is its counterpart on the property side. Life-Only Agent and Accident and Health or Sickness Agent are the two halves of the combined exam, and Personal Lines Broker-Agent is a narrower property and casualty license.

California does not issue a single property and casualty license. One 150-question exam qualifies you for two licenses: Property Broker-Agent, which covers loss or damage to property, and Casualty Broker-Agent, which covers liability for injury to others. On the life side, you can meet the exam requirement for both the life and the accident and health licenses with two separate exams or with one combined exam (Insurance Code 1676).

How the exam is given and scored

PSI administers the exams. You can sit one at a PSI test center, at the CDI examination site in Los Angeles, or online with remote proctoring through PSI. If you choose the online option, read PSI's requirements for your room and computer well before exam day.

The passing score on the producer exams is 60 percent. That can sound forgiving, but the papers are long, and California law is not confined to one section. Licensing rules, unfair practices and line-specific California law come up throughout the general and product material, so you cannot pass one part and hope to coast through another.

Application, exam and fingerprint fees change from time to time. Check the current amounts with CDI and PSI rather than relying on a figure from a study guide.

How to prepare now that the course is shorter

With the per-line course gone, the 12-hour course no longer walks you through the product material line by line. It focuses on ethics and the Insurance Code. The rest of your preparation, the policies, provisions and coverages the exam tests, is now largely up to you.

Start by picking the right exam. If you plan to sell both life and health, the combined 150-question exam gets both licenses in one sitting. If your business will be auto and homeowners coverage, compare Personal Lines with the full Property and Casualty exam, which leads to broader authority including commercial lines.

Then study the California material on purpose. Every exam tests licensing law and the Unfair Practices Article: the commissioner, the difference between an agent, a broker and a solicitor, appointments, and misrepresentation and rebating. The life and health exams add free look rules, replacement rules and Medicare supplement open enrollment. The property and casualty exams add Proposition 103, the Good Driver Discount, cancellation and nonrenewal rules, the duty to offer earthquake coverage and the FAIR Plan.

Finally, take full-length practice exams under time pressure. A 150-question paper in three hours leaves little over a minute per question, and pacing matters as much as knowledge. Review every question you miss, and note whether the gap was California law or general material.

Common questions

Do I still need 20 hours of prelicensing education in California?

Not for the property, casualty, personal lines, life or accident and health licenses. AB 943 repealed that requirement from January 1, 2026. You still need the one-time 12-hour course on ethics and the California Insurance Code, including one hour on insurance fraud.

Do I take the 12-hour course once for each license?

No. One course covers every license in the group, so a candidate applying for several lines at once completes it only once.

When do I have to finish the 12-hour course?

Before the license is issued. CDI sets the exact timing, so check with CDI before you schedule the exam if you want to be sure of the order.

Can I take the California insurance exam online?

Yes. PSI offers online remote proctoring for California insurance exams, alongside its test centers and the CDI examination site in Los Angeles.

Does the new rule apply to bail agents and public adjusters?

No. According to CDI, bail agents and public insurance adjusters still need 20 hours of prelicensing education.