Oregon Life & Health Exam Overview

Oregon Life & Health Insurance Exam

To sell life or health products in Oregon you must hold a producer license issued by the Oregon Division of Financial Regulation (DFR), the agency inside the Department of Consumer and Business Services that supervises insurers, producers, and consumer complaints. The licensing exam is delivered by PSI Services LLC, a private testing vendor under contract with DFR. This guide focuses on the exact Oregon rules the exam tests, not generic insurance theory.

Lines of Authority You Can Pursue

Oregon issues separate lines of authority. You may take a single line or the combined credential:

The passing score is 70% on every Oregon line. PSI scores only scored items; combined exams include a small number of unscored pretest questions mixed in, so answer every item.

What "Accident & Health" Means in Oregon

The statutory line is Life, Accident, and Health (sometimes written Life & Health). "Accident and health" covers disability income, accident, dental, vision, long-term care, Medicare supplement, and major medical lines. A producer selling only Medicare supplement or long-term care still needs the underlying Health line plus mandatory product-specific training before soliciting those products.

How the Exam Is Weighted

The combined 150-item exam blends two content domains. Expect roughly:

• A general/national portion on contract law, policy provisions, riders, underwriting, taxation, and product types (the bulk of items).
• A state-law portion on Oregon statutes (ORS Chapter 744 producers; ORS 743 policy provisions), DFR authority, unfair trade practices, and required disclosures.

Common trap: Candidates over-study national concepts and underprepare the Oregon-specific 25–35 state questions. Those state items are the difference between a 68% and a 72% for many test-takers, so the later chapters in this guide carry disproportionate exam weight.

Worked Logistics Example

A candidate wanting both lines completes a single 40-hour combined pre-licensing course, receives one Certificate of Completion, schedules the 150-question combined exam (one sitting, 2.5 hours), and pays one $55 Series 12-03 exam fee — cheaper and faster than sitting Life and Health separately. Plan for the combined path unless you only ever intend to sell one product family.

Pre-Licensing Education

Oregon requires DFR-approved pre-licensing education (PLE) before you may sit the exam — there is no "experience waiver" for ordinary applicants. The standard is 20 hours per line, so 40 hours for the combined Life & Health credential.

PLE Rules That Trip People Up

• Courses must be from a DFR-approved provider (online self-study or classroom).
• You must pass each course's internal final with at least 70% to earn the certificate.
• The Certificate of Completion is valid for one year (12 months). If you do not pass the state exam within that window, you must retake the entire PLE course.
• Bring the certificate to the test center — PSI will not seat you without it.

Designation Exemptions

Holders of certain professional designations may be exempt from PLE (not from the exam):

Confirm any exemption with DFR before scheduling; the exemption removes the course hours but you still sit and pass the PSI exam.

Scheduling and Exam-Day Requirements

Register through PSI at psiexams.com or by phone. PSI offers both physical Oregon test centers and remote online proctored delivery from home (with a webcam, ID check, and clear-room rules).

What to Bring

No personal items, notes, phones, or smartwatches are allowed in the testing room; PSI provides on-screen calculators and scratch material. Results print immediately as a pass/fail score report — keep it, you submit it with your application.

Fingerprinting: Oregon's Same-Day Rule

Oregon's most distinctive requirement is electronic fingerprinting at the PSI test site on the same day you pass the exam. This is the rule most likely to derail an otherwise-ready candidate.

The Hard Rules

• Timing: Fingerprints are captured at the Oregon PSI test center immediately after you pass — not before, and not on a later date by default.
• Location: Only an Oregon PSI test site can capture insurance-producer prints for DFR. Prints taken elsewhere are rejected.
• No reuse: Fingerprints taken previously, for an employer, or for another license cannot be used for your insurance license.
• Cost: The PSI fingerprint-based background-check fee is about $61.25, paid at the site.

Critical trap: If you test by remote online proctoring or miss same-day capture, you must make separate arrangements through DFR/PSI before your application can clear the background check — delaying licensure by weeks. If you can, sit at a physical Oregon center so you finish prints the same day.

Application, Fees, and Renewal

After you pass and are fingerprinted, you apply through NIPR (National Insurance Producer Registry) or the DFR/Sircon system.

Typical Cost Stack

Application Steps

1. Submit the producer application via NIPR/Sircon, attaching your PSI score report.
2. Pay the application fee.
3. Background check processes against your same-day fingerprints.
4. DFR review — disclose any criminal or regulatory history (1033 consent issues can stall approval).
5. License issued, valid for a 2-year term.

Continuing Education for Renewal

To renew every 2 years you must complete 24 CE hours, structured as:

• 3 hours of ethics, and
• 3 hours on Oregon insurance statutes and administrative rules, with
• the remaining hours in approved life/health subject matter.

Missing the ethics or Oregon-law subcategories is a frequent renewal failure even when total hours are met. Track CE in Sircon/DFR's system and renew before expiration to avoid lapse and reinstatement penalties.

Disclaimer: Fees and rules change; always confirm current figures with DFR (dfr.oregon.gov, 503-947-7981) and the current PSI Candidate Information Bulletin before scheduling.