How many insurance exams do I need to take?

One for each line of authority you want. Many agents start with a single line and add others later, since each addition requires its own exam and, in states such as Florida, its own pre-licensing course. Texas requires no pre-licensing course for a permanent license; the exam is the requirement. California dropped its per-line course from January 1, 2026 and now requires a single 12-hour course on ethics and the California Insurance Code, whichever lines you add. Georgia cut its course from 20 hours to 8 for each major line in June 2025, so property and casualty takes 16 hours.

Do I need a sponsoring agency?

Unlike real estate, most states issue an insurance license without requiring sponsorship. You do need an appointment from each insurer whose products you intend to sell.

Insurance License Practice Tests

Insurance licensing is organized by line of authority rather than by a single license. Which exam you sit depends on whether you plan to sell life and health products, property and casualty products, or both.

Choose your state

Lines of authority

States issue separate licenses for different product lines, and each carries its own exam. A candidate planning to sell life insurance and annuities takes a different exam from one planning to sell homeowners and auto coverage.

Some states bundle lines into a single license. Florida, for example, issues a 2-15 license covering life, health, and variable annuity, alongside narrower codes for life only or health only. Texas combines life and health in its General Lines LAH license, offers a narrower Life Agent license, and issues no health-only license at all. California issues separate life and accident and health licenses but lets one combined exam cover both, and a single California property and casualty exam leads to two licenses, Property Broker-Agent and Casualty Broker-Agent. Georgia offers a combined Life, Accident and Sickness exam alongside separate Life and Accident and Sickness exams, plus Property and Casualty and a narrower Personal Lines license.

How the exam is built

Like real estate, insurance exams combine general principles with state-specific law. The general portion covers policy provisions, underwriting, and the mechanics of each product line. The state portion covers licensing rules, department regulations, and required policy provisions in that state.

How the state material is scored differs. Florida exams pass at 70 percent. Texas reports a scaled score and passes at 70 on that scale, which is not 70 percent correct. California producer exams pass at 60 percent, and California law is spread through the whole paper rather than set apart in its own section. Georgia exams pass at 70 percent and carry a Georgia law section of a set size, from 15 to 30 scored items depending on the license, counted in the overall score rather than passed on its own.

Common questions

How many insurance exams do I need to take?: One for each line of authority you want. Many agents start with a single line and add others later, since each addition requires its own exam and, in states such as Florida, its own pre-licensing course. Texas requires no pre-licensing course for a permanent license; the exam is the requirement. California dropped its per-line course from January 1, 2026 and now requires a single 12-hour course on ethics and the California Insurance Code, whichever lines you add. Georgia cut its course from 20 hours to 8 for each major line in June 2025, so property and casualty takes 16 hours.
Do I need a sponsoring agency?: Unlike real estate, most states issue an insurance license without requiring sponsorship. You do need an appointment from each insurer whose products you intend to sell.