Can you get licensed in New Jersey?
You need to be at least 18 years old and either a New Jersey resident or have your principal place of business in New Jersey. You'll also need an SSN or FEIN.
DOBI expects applicants to be trustworthy, competent, financially responsible, and of good personal and business reputation — which is what the fingerprint background check and the screening questions at the test center are checking.
The 20-hour pre-licensing course
New Jersey requires 20 hours of DOBI-approved pre-licensing for the Personal Lines path — 20 hours per line of authority. Your course ends with a proctored certification exam you must pass at 70% to earn a Certificate of Completion.
Here's a genuinely nice New Jersey quirk: prelicensing certificates never expire. Finish the course now, sit the state exam whenever you're ready — there's no 12-month clock like most states impose. You'll present the certificate (electronic or hard copy) at the test center.
TESTivity recommends [Achievable](https://app.achievable.me/study/insurance-personal-lines/purchase#a_aid=getthelicense) to satisfy your New Jersey pre-licensing requirement. Achievable is an approved provider, its insurance courses were built by the same subject-matter expert behind TESTivity, and completing the Achievable course earns you the certificate of completion New Jersey requires.
One important distinction: TESTivity is not an approved pre-licensing provider in New Jersey and does not issue certificates of completion. The TESTivity learning tools and study packages will absolutely help you pass the exam — but treat them as a supplement to your Achievable course, not a substitute for it.
Disclosure: TESTivity has a partnership with Achievable and may earn a commission if you enroll through links on this page.
What the Personal Lines exam looks like
The Personal Lines Producer exam is administered by PSI at a 70% pass bar, 112 scored items with a few unscored experimental items mixed in.
What to expect on content
New Jersey's Personal Lines exam blends personal property and personal casualty product knowledge with the same heavy NJ-law emphasis seen across every line.
Expect strong coverage of homeowners and dwelling forms, personal auto, and New Jersey's no-fault auto system — PIP, tort options, and the residual-market plans — alongside the common NJ regulatory material (DOBI authority, licensing, unfair trade practices, fraud). Confirm the exact item-by-section weighting against PSI's published Personal Lines outline.
Booking your exam with PSI
Register online at the PSI NJ portal or by phone at (855) 579-4634. Pick a PSI test center or remote online proctoring — your call.
Show up (or log in) 30 minutes early. You must bring one current, government-issued photo ID and your prelicensing certificate of completion (or a DOBI waiver). No certificate, no exam — and you forfeit the fee.
Need to cancel? Do it at least 2 days out to keep your fee. Fail, and you can retest as soon as space allows — you just can't rebook the same day you tested.
What it costs, start to finish
Pre-licensing course: roughly $100-$300 for the 20 hours.
Exam: $47 per attempt to PSI.
Fingerprints: about $50-$70 at IdentoGO Live Scan.
License application: $150 for two years plus roughly $40 processing through NIPR.
First-try total usually runs around $340-$560.
From passing score to active license
New Jersey does something most states don't: qualifying candidates get a Temporary Work Authority right at the test center, good for 60 days, letting you transact Personal Lines business under a licensed producer's supervision while your permanent license processes. Answer the screening questions carefully — once you confirm them, they can't be changed.
Apply for the permanent license electronically through NIPR. The license fee is $150 for a two-year term, plus a processing fee (about $40 on paper; less electronically). New resident applicants also complete IdentoGO Live Scan fingerprinting — schedule it with producer service code 2F16Y3.
Your PSI passing score report is valid for one year, so don't sit on it.
Keeping the license active
Major-line licenses are biennial and expire on the last day of your birth month. Renew through NIPR; New Jersey gives a 30-day grace period before a late fee applies.
Continuing education is 24 hours per 2-year term, including 3 hours of ethics (one of those ethics hours can be satisfied with an insurance-fraud course). You can carry over up to 12 hours to the next term, and prelicensing courses don't count toward CE.
Quick Reference
Official Links
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