Life-Only exam: Life insurance basics
~30%Contract parties, insurable interest, underwriting, and how life policies are built and priced.
State syllabus — California Department of Insurance
The official topics, in the official order.
This is your state's published exam outline: every topic, the share of the exam it carries, and the reading the state names. Switch states with the picker in the header.
Pass mark you are aiming at
60
150 scored questions · 180 min
Exam
California Life-Only Agent and Accident & Health or Sickness Agent (or combined Life, Accident & Health exam)
Delivered by
PSI Services LLC (contracted by the California Department of Insurance)
Questions
150 scored (150 on screen)
Time limit
180 minutes
Pass mark
60% of scored questions answered correctly
Pre-licensing
No fixed prelicensing course-hour minimum applies statewide, but every applicant must complete a one-time 12-hour Ethics and California Insurance Code course (covering at least 1 hour of insurance fraud) before a license is issued.
Continuing education
24 continuing education hours per two-year license term, including 3 hours of ethics; agents who sell annuities need an initial 8-hour course plus 4 hours each renewal, and agents who sell long-term care need an initial 8-hour course plus periodic follow-up training.
How current this data is
Verified September 2026California Department of Insurance outline ↗
- The section percentages here are our estimate because CDI publishes unweighted topic lists.
- PSI adds 5 to 10 unscored experimental questions on top of the published count, with extra time, and does not publish an exact total.
- No official CDI or PSI source describes a scaled score — you get pass or fail, plus a count of correct answers if you fail.
Official content outline
10 sections · shares are our estimate · checked September 2026Life-Only exam: Policy provisions, riders and options
~25%Standard clauses, nonforfeiture options, settlement options and common riders tested on the Life exam.
02 Life Policies, Provisions & Riders50 questions here
Life-Only exam: Annuities and retirement plans
~15%Annuity structures, payout options and qualified retirement plans as covered on the Life exam.
05 Annuities & Retirement50 questions here
Life-Only exam: California insurance code and regulation
~15%Licensing, the elected Commissioner's powers, unfair trade practices, replacement and free-look rules.
Life-Only exam: Federal tax considerations
~15%How death benefits, cash values and annuity income are taxed under federal law.
06 Regulation, Ethics & Taxes50 questions here
Accident & Health exam: Health insurance basics
~25%Contract parties, underwriting, and standard provisions found in individual and group health policies.
03 Health Insurance Basics50 questions here
Accident & Health exam: Individual and group health plans
~25%HMOs, PPOs, disability income, long-term care, and how group coverage differs from individual coverage.
04 Health Plans & Coverages50 questions here
Accident & Health exam: Medicare, Medicaid and senior products
~20%Medicare Parts A–D, Medi-Cal, Medigap and California's senior-specific consumer protections.
04 Health Plans & Coverages50 questions here
Accident & Health exam: California insurance code and regulation
~20%Licensing, Cal-COBRA, unfair claims practices, and CDI enforcement as applied to health products.
Accident & Health exam: Federal tax considerations
~10%Tax treatment of health, disability and long-term care premiums and benefits under federal law.
06 Regulation, Ethics & Taxes50 questions here
Examinations: Time Limit and Number of Questions ↗
California Department of Insurance
Confirms question counts, time limits and the 60% pass mark for each CDI exam type.
Candidate Information Bulletin for California Insurance License Examinees ↗
PSI Services LLC / California Department of Insurance
Official exam-day rules, license examination objectives and scheduling process.
Application Procedures — Individual Residents (Life) ↗
California Department of Insurance
Explains the required 12-hour Ethics and California Insurance Code course and the licensing steps.
Continuing Education Program Requirements ↗
California Department of Insurance
States the 24-hour CE requirement with 3 hours of ethics, plus the annuity and long-term care training add-ons.
California Insurance Code Sections 10127.9 and 10127.10 ↗
California Legislative Information
Source for the standard 10–30 day free look and the 30-day minimum free look for senior citizens.
California Life & Health Insurance Guarantee Association — FAQ ↗
CLHIGA
Explains how the guaranty association protects policyholders if a member insurer becomes insolvent.
Where this app sits against the syllabus
The national topics above are taught by the six shared decks. The state law section is taught by this state's own law deck, so switching states swaps the rules you are drilled on.
Verified September 2026California Department of Insurance outline ↗
Outlines change, so confirm with California Department of Insurance before you book.