How to get a California insurance license in five steps

Getting an insurance license in California takes five steps: complete a one-time course on ethics and the California Insurance Code, pass the qualifying exam for your line of authority, file a $188 license application, submit $74 in fingerprint fees, and secure a carrier appointment before you sell. The California Department of Insurance (CDI) issues the license, and the mandatory state fees are the exam, filing, and fingerprint fees itemized in this guide. California requires no college degree and no industry experience, and most applicants move from coursework to an issued license within a few weeks.

What a California insurance license authorizes

A California insurance license authorizes you to solicit, negotiate, and sell insurance within the lines of authority listed on the license, and anyone who sells, solicits, or negotiates insurance in the state must hold one. Agents must be licensed in every state where they do business, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook^[1]. The CDI producer licensing index^[2] lists more than two dozen license classes, from the major producer lines to bail agents and vehicle service contract providers.

One federal restriction applies before any state rule. Under Title 18 U.S.C. 1033, a person convicted of a felony involving dishonesty or breach of trust may not conduct insurance business without the written consent of the California Insurance Commissioner, and CDI publishes a 1033 Short Form Application for Written Consent^[3] for applicants in that situation.

How to get licensed in five steps

You become a licensed California insurance agent by completing prelicensing training, passing your exam, filing an application, submitting fingerprints, and getting appointed, in that order. California residents must pass the qualifying exam before submitting the license application, as the CDI examination scheduling page^[4] states.

1. Complete prelicensing training. Finish the required course on ethics and the California Insurance Code from an approved provider.
2. Pass the qualifying exam. Schedule through PSI Services LLC for your line of authority.
3. File your application. Apply online through Sircon or the National Insurance Producer Registry (NIPR) and pay the filing fee.
4. Submit fingerprints. Fingerprints go to CDI's live scan vendor after the application is filed.
5. Get appointed. File a carrier appointment or a broker bond before you transact insurance.

California lines of authority at a glance

California issues producer licenses line by line, and each major line has its own qualifying exam. The state uses its own license names: Life-Only Agent, Accident and Health or Sickness Agent, Property Broker-Agent, Casualty Broker-Agent, and Personal Lines Broker-Agent, according to the CDI producer licensing index^[2].

The PSI candidate information bulletin^[5] sets the exam format for each line:

Some combinations are blocked by NIPR business rules^[6]. A Personal Lines applicant may not apply for Property and Casualty or Limited Lines Automobile licenses, and the reverse restriction also applies. The burial expense line and the Life line cannot be held at the same time, and variable contracts authority requires an active Life license.

Requirements to qualify for a California insurance license

You qualify by being at least 18 years old, providing a Social Security Number or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, and passing CDI's background screening; no degree or prior experience is required. The Bureau of Labor Statistics^[1] lists a high school diploma as the typical entry-level education for insurance sales agents.

The specific qualifications:

• Age. The applicant must be at least 18 years old, per the NIPR resident licensing requirements^[6].
• Identification. A Social Security Number or ITIN is required to access your file in CDI's secure database, per the CDI exam scheduling page^[4].
• Residency. A resident is an individual occupying a dwelling in California or maintaining a principal place of business in the state, and only one state may be designated as the resident state (California Insurance Code section 1638, as summarized in the CDI nonresident FAQ^[7]).
• Background disclosure. You must disclose all criminal convictions except juvenile offenses, including DUIs, misdemeanors, and convictions dismissed under Penal Code 1203.4, and any pending charges. Applications are filed under penalty of perjury under California Insurance Code section 1652(a)^[8]. CDI's guidance on the background screening questions^[8] is direct:

When in doubt disclose.

Failure to disclose is treated as falsification and is grounds for denial. Once licensed, you must notify CDI within 30 days of learning of any background change under California Insurance Code section 1729.2, per the NIPR resident licensing requirements^[6].

Prelicensing training: the 12-hour course

Since January 1, 2026, the only prelicensing education California requires is 12 hours of study on ethics and the California Insurance Code, including one hour on insurance fraud, under California Insurance Code section 1749^[9]. Assembly Bill 943 (Stats. 2025, Ch. 566) amended the statute effective January 1, 2026 and removed the former line-specific hour requirements.

The rules for the course:

• It applies to applicants for the property, casualty, life, accident and health, personal lines, and limited lines automobile licenses, and to nonresident applicants as well.
• You take it only once. An applicant seeking more than one license type does not repeat the course (Ins. Code 1749(a)(1)).
• You do not need it before sitting the exam, but the license cannot issue until CDI has proof of completion, per the PSI candidate information bulletin^[5].
• The certificate of completion expires three years from the completion date, whether or not a license is issued.
• The course is available online or in a classroom. CDI's approval of non-classroom courses covers identity safeguards, attendance monitoring, student-provider interaction, and time-recording methods, per section 1749^[9].

Choosing a prelicensing course provider

RealEstateU's California ethics and Insurance Code course is delivered online and self-paced, and its price is listed in the cost section below. Any provider you consider must appear on CDI's approved education list, because only approved courses satisfy the requirement.

Taking the California insurance license exam

PSI Services LLC administers every CDI license exam at California test centers and through remote online proctoring, and you schedule online or by phone at (833) 518-7456, per the PSI California insurance exams page^[10]. Exams are also offered in Spanish, Simplified Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, and Tagalog, which was added July 1, 2024, under California Insurance Code section 1677^[11].

The costs and rules:

• Registering costs a $55 examination fee, per the CDI fee schedule^[12], plus a $43 PSI convenience fee at PSI test centers and for remote proctoring, per the PSI candidate information bulletin^[5]. The convenience fee is not charged at CDI's Los Angeles test center in the Ronald Reagan Building, 300 South Spring Street.
• All producer exams require a 60% score to pass. The Insurance Adjuster, Bail, and Life and Disability Analyst exams require 70%, per the PSI bulletin^[5].
• About 10% of questions may be experimental. They are unscored but count against your time.
• Arrive at least 30 minutes early with a government-issued photo ID. Late arrivals are not admitted and forfeit the registration fee.
• Cancel at least two business days before the exam to avoid forfeiting the fee. Voicemail and email cancellations are not accepted, per the CDI exam scheduling page^[4].
• Failing to appear is deemed a failure of the examination under California Insurance Code section 1683^[11], and you pay a rescheduling fee to retest.
• Your score appears on screen and is emailed; failed exams include a diagnostic report.
• A passed exam is valid for 12 months before license issuance, under California Insurance Code section 1676(a)^[11].
• No more than 10 attempts of the same exam type are allowed in any 12-month period, and a person who fails a 10th time is barred from that exam for 12 months, under California Insurance Code section 1682^[11].
• Willfully cheating on an exam is punishable by a fine up to $10,000, up to one year in jail, and a five-year bar from exams and licensing, under California Insurance Code section 1681.5^[11].
• Applicants previously licensed in the same line during the current or immediately preceding license year are exempt from the exam, under California Insurance Code section 1675^[11].

To prepare, study the CDI License Examination Objectives published for your exam, which list the material tested. The exam is the main hurdle in the process, and a large share of first-time takers do not pass, so treat the objectives as your syllabus rather than relying on general insurance knowledge.

Life insurance license in California

The Life-Only Agent license authorizes you to transact insurance on human lives, endowment and annuity benefits, death or dismemberment by accident, and disability income, per the CDI prelicensing and CE page^[13]. The Life exam has 75 questions and a 105-minute limit.

Most applicants combine lines. By selecting both the Life-Only Agent and Accident and Health Agent license types when scheduling at PSI and when filing the application, you take one combined exam of 150 questions in 195 minutes and pay one filing fee for the "full Life Agent" license, per the CDI life agent requirements page^[14].

Two product rules attach to the life license:

• Annuities. Before selling annuities you must complete an initial 8-hour annuity training course, and 4 hours of annuity training before each license renewal, under California Insurance Code section 1749.8^[13]. The initial course does not satisfy the ongoing requirement, and the hours count toward your continuing education total rather than adding to it.
• Variable products. Variable life and variable annuity authority is displayed on the life license, but selling variable products also requires securities registration with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), such as the Series 6 or Series 7 exam, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics^[1].

A Life-Only Agent may sell long-term care insurance only through qualifying accelerated death benefit riders, while full life agents and Accident and Health agents have broader long-term care authority (Ins. Code 10234.93(a)(4) and 10295.1, per the CDI prelicensing page^[13]).

Accident and health insurance license in California

The Accident and Health or Sickness Agent license authorizes coverage for sickness, bodily injury, accidental death, and disability income benefits, per the CDI prelicensing and CE page^[13]. The exam has 75 questions and a 105-minute limit, or you can qualify for both licenses at once through the combined exam described in the life license section above.

Two training requirements attach to health products:

• Long-term care. Licensees who transact long-term care insurance must complete 8 hours of training in each of the first four 12-month periods of transacting that business, and 8 hours before each license renewal after that, under California Insurance Code section 10234.93^[13]. The hours count within, not in addition to, the continuing education requirement.
• 24-Hour Care Coverage. Before selling 24-hour care coverage, you must pass a CE course on workers' compensation and employer liability by examination, under California Insurance Code section 1749.02^[13].

Licensed agents can also become certified to sell through Covered California, the state's health insurance exchange. The Covered California agent program^[15] requires certification, an agency agreement with a designated agency manager, and compliance with the agent code of conduct, with compensation set by the exchange's commission structure.

Property insurance license in California

The Property Broker-Agent license is California's property insurance line, and its exam has 75 questions with a 98-minute limit, per the PSI candidate information bulletin^[5]. CDI issues the license to individuals and to business entities, and the qualification sequence is the same as for the other producer lines: the ethics course, the exam, the application, and fingerprints.

Casualty insurance license in California

The Casualty Broker-Agent license covers California's casualty insurance line, and its exam has 75 questions with a 98-minute limit, per the PSI candidate information bulletin^[5].

The combined property and casualty license

Checking both the Property Broker-Agent and Casualty Broker-Agent license types when scheduling at PSI and when filing the application gives you both lines with one examination and one filing fee, per the CDI property and casualty requirements page^[16]. The combined Property and Casualty exam has 150 questions in 195 minutes. This combined credential is what most people mean by a property and casualty license or a P&C license, and it is the standard license for agencies selling both home and auto coverage alongside commercial accounts.

Personal lines insurance license in California

The Personal Lines Broker-Agent license authorizes automobile insurance, residential property insurance including earthquake and flood, personal watercraft insurance, and umbrella or excess liability written over those underlying policies, under California Insurance Code section 1625.5^[17]. The exam has 90 questions and a 135-minute limit.

Two restrictions shape this line. A Personal Lines applicant may not apply for Property and Casualty or Limited Lines Automobile licenses at the same time, per NIPR business rules^[6]. And a person already licensed as a property or casualty broker-agent who applies for the personal lines license is exempt from the exam, under California Insurance Code section 1676(a)^[11]. California residency is not required for this license.

Limited lines and specialty licenses in California

Beyond the major lines, California issues limited lines and specialty licenses with their own fees, and several require no examination at all. The CDI fee schedule^[12] and the NIPR resident licensing requirements^[6] list the filing fees:

Notes on these licenses:

• The Limited Lines Automobile exam has 60 questions and a 105-minute limit, and these licensees complete 20 hours of continuing education per term instead of 24, per the CDI continuing education FAQ^[18].
• Bail applicants must complete at least 20 hours of classroom education under California Insurance Code section 1810.7, per the PSI bulletin^[5].
• A surplus line broker must actively hold, or apply simultaneously for, both the property and casualty lines, per NIPR business rules^[6]. The $646 fee applies to a licensee transacting only on behalf of a surplus line broker business entity; a licensee with a $50,000 bond on file pays $1,296, per the CDI fee schedule^[12].

Insurance adjuster licenses in California

California licenses independent insurance adjusters under the Insurance Adjuster Act (California Insurance Code section 14021) and public insurance adjusters under separate rules, and the requirements differ sharply from producer licensing. An independent adjuster applicant needs two years of certified adjusting experience, equal to 4,000 hours of compensated time in the adjusting field, per the CDI adjuster requirements page^[19].

For the independent Insurance Adjuster (AJ) license:

• The exam has 100 questions, a 150-minute limit, and a 70% passing score, with a $79 examination fee, per the CDI fee schedule^[12] and the PSI bulletin^[5].
• The application fee is $311 per qualified manager for the two-year term, renewal is $311, and late renewal is $390, per the CDI fee schedule^[12].
• You must submit a $2,000 Bond of Insurance Adjuster (form LIC 31A-14), a 2x2 passport photo, and fingerprints, unless you adjust solely for an entity that has filed its own bond or certificate of insurance, per the CDI adjuster page^[19].
• The business must operate under an appointed qualified manager who passed the exam, and the manager need not be a California resident.
• Continuing education is 24 hours per two-year term including 3 hours of ethics, under California Insurance Code section 14090.1^[19], and Fair Claims Settlement Practices training is due on or before September 1 each year.

For the Public Insurance Adjuster (PJ) license, the requirements are a 20-hour prelicensing course under California Insurance Code section 15009.1, a $264 filing fee, a $68 examination fee, and a $20,000 bond with a CDI-approved contract, per the CDI fee schedule^[12] and the NIPR resident licensing requirements^[6]. The exam has 100 questions in 165 minutes with a 70% passing score.

Filing your application and fingerprints

After passing, you file the license application online through Sircon's Apply for a License service at Sircon.com/California or through NIPR, and CDI sends a confirmation email. The filing fee is $188 for every core producer line for the two-year term, per the CDI fee schedule^[12]. Paper applicants mail Individual Application Form LIC 441-9 to 300 Capitol Mall, 16th Floor, Sacramento, CA 95814-4313, and supporting documents can go to the NIPR Attachments Warehouse, per the CDI exam scheduling page^[4].

Fingerprints

All unlicensed applicants must submit fingerprint impressions, and they must be submitted after the license application is filed, per the CDI fingerprint requirements page^[20]. The process:

1. Register, pay, and schedule through the online portal of CDI's live scan vendor, Capital Live Scan (CLS), at one of more than 800 locations statewide.
2. Bring the Request for Live Scan form BCIA 8016 with your 7-character Payment ID or QR code.
3. Pay $74 total: $17 for FBI processing, $32 for California Department of Justice processing, and $25 for the CLS fee.

Rejected fingerprints can be re-taken at no charge using the Automated Transaction Identifier (ATI) number. If the license does not issue within 12 months after the fingerprints are submitted, a new set is required. Wait at least 7 days before checking status with the DOJ Applicant Background Check Status service, and contact CDI if the status is not "Completed" after 45 days. CLS can be reached at (877) 888-8802.

Appointments and the broker bond

A Personal Lines Agent is not required to have an appointment for the license to be issued, but no licensee may transact, solicit, or negotiate insurance until filing a $10,000 Bond of Insurance Broker (form LIC 417-5), an Action Notice of Appointment (form LIC 447-54A, $32 filing fee, submitted through NIPR), a Business Entity Endorsement, or an Action Notice of Solicitor, per the CDI personal lines requirements page^[17].

How much a California insurance license costs

Mandatory state fees for a producer license are the examination fee, the PSI convenience fee, the license filing fee, and fingerprints, per the CDI licensing fees page^[12], whose fee schedule took effect March 3, 2019.

All filing fees are non-refundable, whether or not the application is acted upon or the examination taken, under California Insurance Code section 1751.5, per the CDI fee schedule^[12]. The course price and any retake fees add to the state total.

Renewing your California insurance license

California producer licenses run on a two-year term, renewed by paying $188 and completing 24 hours of continuing education (CE) that includes 3 hours of ethics, with 1 of those hours on insurance fraud. The term of the first license begins on the date it is issued and expires on the last day of that same calendar month two years later, and any additional licenses issued later expire at the same time, under California Insurance Code section 1630^[17]. The renewal date is tied to the month of issuance, not to your birth month.

The renewal rules:

• You can renew online through the NIPR Resident License Renewal application^[21] from 90 days before the expiration date up to the expiration date.
• Life and Accident and Health lines must be renewed at the same time, and Property and Casualty lines must be renewed at the same time; partial renewals are not allowed.
• Limited Lines Automobile licensees complete 20 hours instead of 24, per the CDI continuing education FAQ^[18].
• Providers have 30 days from course completion to report your hours, and CDI suggests finishing CE at least 60 days before expiration to allow for reporting and processing. A course can be repeated for credit only if the completion dates fall in different license terms.
• The CE exemption for licensees with 70 or more years of age and 30 or more years of licensing does not apply to anyone first licensed on or after January 1, 2010, under California Insurance Code section 1749.3(c)^[17].
• Late renewal costs $282 for producer lines, and late renewers must file new company appointments or business entity endorsements, per the CDI fee schedule^[12] and the CDI personal lines page^[17].
• After the expiration date, you must reinstate through Sircon rather than NIPR, and one year after expiration you may reapply through the NIPR Resident Licensing application, per the NIPR renewal requirements^[21].

Product-specific training, such as the annuity and long-term care courses described in the line sections above, counts within the 24 hours rather than adding to them.

Nonresident licenses and reciprocity

A nonresident pays the same $188 fee a resident pays for the same license type, regardless of which state the resident license is held in, per the CDI fee schedule^[12]. Applications are filed through NIPR or Sircon^[22].

The reciprocity rules:

• Nonresidents face the same qualifying exam as residents, but the commissioner may accept a reciprocal state's certification in lieu of the exam, under California Insurance Code section 1679^[11].
• Nonresident applicants are exempt from fingerprints if they hold active resident licenses from a long list of states that includes Texas, Florida, Arizona, and Washington, per the CDI personal lines page^[17].
• Nonresidents must still complete the ethics and California Insurance Code course before the license can issue, per California Insurance Code section 1749^[9].
• Nonresidents whose home state requires continuing education do not have to complete California CE, but anyone marketing long-term care or annuity products in California must still meet the state's training requirements for those products, per the CDI nonresident FAQ^[7].

Agents moving to California get an exam waiver. Under California Insurance Code section 1675^[7], a licensee in good standing in another state who holds a California nonresident license may waive the exam when converting to a resident license, provided the resident application is filed within 90 days of canceling the previous home-state license.

Checking your application status and license records

CDI's CLASS service tracks pending applications, and the Check a License service verifies issued licenses. CLASS, the Check License Application Status Service, retrieves your application status using the business address zip code from the application, per the CDI license check help page^[23].

To look up an insurance license, use Check a License^[24] with a license number or a name. Searches may return up to 100 names, and license numbers never begin with a letter, so enter a zero rather than the letter O. The service runs in Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, Safari, and Firefox, and each license record links to additional details such as the line of authority and appointment records.

Insurance agent careers and earnings in California

Insurance sales is a large occupation with steady demand: 572,600 insurance sales agents held jobs in 2025, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics^[1] projects about 43,100 openings each year through 2035, with employment growing about as fast as the average for all occupations.

The employment picture:

• Insurance agencies and brokerages are the largest employers, followed by self-employed agents and direct insurance carriers.
• A high school diploma is the typical entry-level education, and separate licenses are required for life and health versus property and casualty products.
• Pay is commonly commission-based, with independent agents selling for several companies and captive agents working for one.

Getting started

Start by choosing your line of authority, enrolling in the ethics course, and scheduling the exam, in that order. The total time depends on exam availability and CDI processing after your fingerprints clear.

1. Choose the line matching the products you plan to sell, using the comparison table above.
2. Enroll in the ethics and California Insurance Code course; RealEstateU offers it online and self-paced.
3. Download the CDI License Examination Objectives for your exam and study them as your syllabus.
4. Schedule the exam with PSI, online or by phone.
5. After passing, file the application promptly, then submit fingerprints, then arrange an appointment or bond.