This is the complete path from "I'm thinking about selling insurance in California" to holding a Life, Accident & Health license: the education requirement, the exam, the fingerprints, the application, what each step costs, and how long the whole thing takes. No upsells, no lead forms — the same information the state publishes, organized the way you'll actually live it.
One clarification before the steps, because it confuses everyone: California issues Life-Only and Accident & Health as separate license classes, but most candidates take the combined exam — one 150-question sitting that satisfies the exam requirement for both classes. You then apply for both classes on a single CDI application. This guide follows that combined path.
Step 1: Complete the 12 hours of required ethics and code education
Before the CDI will issue a license, California requires 12 hours of state-approved education on ethics and the California Insurance Code, including one hour on insurance fraud:
- This is now the only prelicensing course requirement. Until the end of 2025, California also required 20 hours of line-specific education per line (20 for Life, 20 for Accident & Health) — Assembly Bill 943 repealed those hour requirements effective January 1, 2026
- One 12-hour course covers you even when you apply for both the Life and Accident & Health license types
- You take the course through a CDI-approved provider — find them on the CDI's own Education Provider Course Lookup. Online self-paced courses dominate, and the certificate you earn is what the CDI requires before it issues your license
A sequencing note that trips people up: you can sit the exam before finishing the course — the certificate gates the license, not exam registration. Most people still complete the course first because it's a weekend's worth of work, but it doesn't have to come first on your calendar.
Cost: typically $50–$100 for the 12-hour course — a fraction of the old 52-hour combined packages. The certificate is the product; your exam result is driven by what you do next, not by the brand on the course.
Step 2: Register with PSI and pass the exam
PSI Services is the vendor California uses to administer licensing exams. You register on PSI's California insurance portal, pick a test center or a remote-proctored sitting, and pay the exam fee.
What the combined Life, Accident & Health exam looks like:
| Fact | Detail | | --- | --- | | Questions | 150 scored — roughly 75 Life, 75 Accident & Health (plus 5–10 unscored experimental items) | | Time | 195 minutes | | Passing score | 60% (90 of 150) | | Format | Multiple choice, computer-based | | Options | Test center or remote proctoring; six languages (English, Spanish, Simplified Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Tagalog) |
Cost: the exam fee runs about $98 per sitting as of this writing — a $55 CDI examination fee plus a $43 PSI convenience fee, charged at PSI test centers and for remote sittings alike. Sitting the exam at the CDI's own Los Angeles examination center skips the $43 convenience fee ($55 total). Fees change; confirm the current numbers on PSI's registration page before you budget. A retake means paying again.
We have a full guide to the exam's difficulty and question style, and free practice questions for every domain — but the short version: the exam tests applied reasoning, so build your prep around answering questions, not just re-reading the course.
Two scheduling facts worth knowing:
- Your passing result is valid for 12 months. You must finish the remaining steps within that window.
- If you fail, you can re-register immediately — no waiting period. The real limit: California caps exam admissions at 10 sittings of the same exam type within any 12-month period, and a 10th sitting locks you out of that exam type for 12 months (Insurance Code §1682). The combined exam and the standalone Life/A&H exams share one bucket.
Step 3: Get fingerprinted (Live Scan)
California requires an FBI and DOJ background check for every license applicant. The mechanism is Live Scan electronic fingerprinting — you take a completed Live Scan form (from the CDI application) to any Live Scan site, get scanned, and the results go electronically to the state.
Some PSI test centers in California offer fingerprinting on site, which lets you knock out two steps in one trip — worth checking when you book.
Cost: $74 total through CDI's contracted fingerprint vendor: $32 DOJ + $17 FBI government fees plus a $25 rolling fee. This is paid out of pocket at the scan site.
Step 4: Apply to the CDI for your license
With a passing exam and fingerprints done, you submit your license application to the California Department of Insurance — online through the CDI's licensing portal is the standard route. On the combined path, you apply for the Life-Only and Accident & Health classes together.
Things the application will want: your exam pass confirmation, your Live Scan receipt, your residency information, and disclosure answers (criminal history, prior license discipline — answer these truthfully; the background check already knows).
Cost: the CDI application fee is $188 — and usefully, applying for Life-Only and Accident & Health together is a single $188 filing, not two. Confirm the current fee schedule on the CDI site, because application fees get revised.
Processing time: a clean application typically processes in about 1–2 weeks once the CDI has your exam pass, course certificate, and cleared fingerprints — background-check complications are what stretch it longer. Your license is valid for two years, renewed with 24 hours of continuing education (including 3 hours of ethics) per cycle.
What the whole thing costs
Adding it up for the combined Life & Health path:
| Item | Typical cost | | --- | --- | | 12-hour Ethics & CA Code course | ~$50–$100 | | Exam fee (CDI $55 + PSI $43) | ~$98 | | Live Scan fingerprints | $74 | | CDI application fee (covers both license classes) | $188 | | Total (first attempt) | ~$410–$460 |
Add another ~$98 for every exam retake. All fees move over time — treat these as planning numbers and confirm current figures with PSI and the CDI before you pay anything. If an exam-prep company is quoting you $300–$600 on top of this for study materials, remember the practice layer is the part you can get for free or nearly free: every question on this site is free, and the full training engine is $49.
How long does it all take?
A realistic timeline for someone studying part-time:
- Week 1: complete the 12-hour Ethics & Code course (a weekend for most people) and start exam prep in parallel
- Weeks 1–3: focused exam prep — practice questions, wrong-answer review, at least one timed session. The seat-time mandate is gone but the exam didn't get easier: 150 questions across two full lines still demand real study hours
- Exam week: sit the exam (PSI centers run frequently; remote sittings are available same-week in most cases)
- After passing: fingerprints and CDI application within days, then the typical 1–2 week processing window
End to end: about 3–6 weeks for a prepared candidate, often faster with a clean background check. Insurance agents can't legally sell until the license issues — but many agencies will interview and even pre-hire you with a passing exam in hand, so the wait rarely stalls a job search.
If you're mapping the study window inside this timeline, read how long you should actually study — it includes a week-by-week plan matched to the exam's domains.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a sponsor or a job offer to get licensed?
No. California licenses individuals — you can complete the entire process (course, exam, fingerprints, application) independently, before you talk to any agency. Most people do exactly that, then take the license to whoever hires them.
How old do I have to be?
- There's no upper age limit and no degree requirement.
Can I take the exam before finishing the 12-hour course?
Yes — California gates the license, not the exam, on course completion. You can register with PSI and sit the exam first; the CDI just needs your course certificate before it issues your license. Most people still finish the course early since it's only 12 hours, but the sequencing is flexible.
Do I have to be a California resident?
No, but non-residents follow a slightly different application path, and if you're licensed in another state, reciprocity rules may shorten it. Residents of other states planning to sell to Californians should start with the CDI's non-resident licensing pages.
What happens if I let the 12-month window lapse after passing?
Your exam result expires, and you sit the exam again — new fee, new registration. The 12-month clock is a real deadline, not a guideline; schedule fingerprints and the application within a few weeks of passing.
Does the license expire?
Yes — every two years, renewed with 24 hours of continuing education per cycle, including 3 hours of ethics. The renewal is far easier than the original process; no exam involved.