Georgia Insurance License in 2026: 8-Hour Courses and the New 60 Percent Rule
5 min read·Last reviewed: September 25, 2026
Two changes in about a year have reshaped the path to a Georgia insurance license. In June 2025 the prelicensing course dropped from 20 hours to 8 hours for each major line. In August 2026 an amendment created a temporary license for some candidates who score 60 percent. The second is easy to misread as a lower pass mark, which it is not. This guide explains both changes, the five exams and how to prepare.
Key takeaways
- Since June 2025 the course is 8 hours per major line, 16 for Property and Casualty. Sources that still say 20 hours are out of date.
- All five Georgia exams are given by Pearson VUE at its test centers and pass at 70 percent.
- A 60 percent score can support a temporary license at the Commissioner's discretion, with a licensed agent sponsor and an insurer's written request. It is not a pass.
- The Georgia section has no passing score of its own. The overall score decides the result.
On this page
The course is now 8 hours, not 20
Since June 2025 Georgia requires 8 hours of prelicensing education for each major line. Life takes 8 hours, Accident and Sickness 8, and Personal Lines 8. Property and Casualty takes 16, made up of 8 hours of property and 8 of casualty.
The old figure has not disappeared. Some course providers and older study guides still describe the 20-hour requirement. Check the current hours with OCI or an approved provider before you enroll.
Holders of the CLU or FLMI designation are exempt from the life and accident and sickness course, and holders of the CPCU, CIC, CISR or CRM designation from the property and casualty course. Some designation holders are also exempt from the exam, so confirm with OCI what yours covers.
The five exams at a glance
The Office of Commissioner of Insurance and Safety Fire (OCI) offers five exams for the common selling licenses. Life, Accident and Sickness is the combined life and health exam, and Property and Casualty is its counterpart on the property side. Life and Accident and Sickness are the two halves of the combined exam, and Personal Lines is a narrower property and casualty license for personal auto, homeowners and related coverage.
Each exam includes unscored pretest items mixed in with the scored ones, which is why the count on screen is higher than the scored count. The Georgia share is largest on the single-line Life and Accident and Sickness exams, where 30 of the 80 scored items are Georgia law.
| License | Questions | Scored | Georgia items | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Life, Accident and Sickness | 135 | 125 | 25 | 150 minutes |
| Property and Casualty | 135 | 125 | 25 | 150 minutes |
| Life | 90 | 80 | 30 | 120 minutes |
| Accident and Sickness | 90 | 80 | 30 | 120 minutes |
| Personal Lines | 95 | 90 | 15 | 120 minutes |
Passing at 70 percent and the retake waits
Pearson VUE gives the exams at its test centers, so plan on sitting yours in person. The passing score on every agent exam is 70 percent of the scored items. The Georgia section is part of the exam but has no passing score of its own.
If you fail, the wait before a retest depends on how many attempts you have made. After a first or second failed attempt you wait 14 days. After that the wait is 60 days for each further attempt. A third failure costs two months, so go in ready rather than treating the first sitting as a trial run.
Once you pass, you have 12 months from the exam date to apply for the license through Sircon. Fees change, so check the current amounts with OCI and Pearson VUE.
What the 60 percent rule is, and what it is not
An amendment in August 2026 gave the Commissioner discretion to issue a temporary license to a candidate who scores 60 percent. Three conditions come with it: the score, a currently licensed agent acting as sponsor, and a written request from an insurer for the temporary license.
It is not a new passing score. The pass mark stays at 70 percent, and a candidate who holds a temporary license still has to pass the exam at 70 percent to be licensed permanently. Nor is it automatic: meeting the conditions makes a candidate eligible, not entitled.
The rule matters mostly to candidates who already have an insurer and a sponsoring agent behind them. For everyone else the target does not change: prepare for 70 percent.
A preparation plan
Start by choosing the right exam. If you plan to sell both life and health, the combined 135-question exam covers both lines in one sitting. If your business will be personal auto and homeowners, compare Personal Lines with the full Property and Casualty exam, which also covers commercial lines.
An 8-hour course will not carry you through the product material on its own, so plan independent study and give the Georgia material its own time. Every exam tests licensing law and unfair trade practices, such as rebating, twisting and the agent's fiduciary duty over premium. The life exams add replacement and required policy provisions, the accident and sickness exams add Medicare supplement and long-term care, and the property and casualty exams add cancellation and nonrenewal notice, the FAIR Plan and uninsured motorist coverage.
Finally, take full-length practice exams under time pressure. The combined exams give you 150 minutes for 135 questions, a little over a minute each. Note whether each miss was Georgia law or general material, and spend your last days on the Georgia rules you keep getting wrong.
Common questions
- Do I still need 20 hours of prelicensing education in Georgia?
- No. Since June 2025 the course is 8 hours for each major line: 8 for life, 8 for accident and sickness, 8 for personal lines and 16 for property and casualty. Some sources still show the old 20-hour figure, so confirm with OCI or your course provider.
- Is 60 percent now a passing score in Georgia?
- No. The passing score is still 70 percent. Since August 2026 a 60 percent score can support a temporary license at the Commissioner's discretion, with a licensed agent sponsor and an insurer's written request, and the candidate must still pass at 70 percent to be licensed permanently.
- How long do I have to wait to retake the exam?
- 14 days after a first or second failed attempt, and 60 days after each attempt after that.
- Do I have to pass the Georgia section separately?
- No. The Georgia section is part of the exam and counts toward the overall score, but it has no passing score of its own.
Related practice tests
Related guides
Sources
Last reviewed: September 25, 2026.