What This License Is
An Oregon Life license lets you sell life insurance and annuity products to people and businesses in Oregon. It is issued by the Oregon Division of Financial Regulation.
Licensing runs through the same process as every Oregon producer line — the difference is the focused Life exam. Note that Oregon requires 20 hours of pre-licensing education for this line before you can sit for the exam.
Exam Options & Format
The Life exam is Life Producer (Series 12-01): 100 (+5-10 unscored trial items) questions, 2 hr, $45 per attempt. Passing standard: 70%.
Oregon also offers the combined exam (Life & Health Producer (Series 12-03): 150 questions, 2 hr 40 min, $55), which licenses both lines in one sitting. If there is any chance you will sell health products later, the combined exam is usually the better value.
Prelicensing education: 40 hours
Oregon requires 20 hours of prelicensing per line of authority. Because Life & Health is two lines, the combined requirement is 40 hours of state-approved coursework.
You take the course through an approved provider, and they issue your Certificate of Completion. Bring that certificate (electronic or printed - both are accepted) to the test center on exam day; you can't sit the exam without it.
Holders of the CLU designation can waive prelicensing for the Life, Health, or Life & Health producer license - you submit verification of the designation with your application instead.
TESTivity recommends [Achievable](https://app.achievable.me/study/insurance-life/purchase#a_aid=getthelicense) to satisfy your Oregon 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 Oregon requires.
One important distinction: TESTivity is not an approved pre-licensing provider in Oregon 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.
Fingerprints and background check
Every first-time Oregon applicant submits fingerprints for a state and national criminal background check. In Oregon these are captured electronically at a PSI test site - conveniently, you can do them the same day as your exam.
The fingerprint fee is $61.25, paid to PSI at the site (money order, cashier's/company check, Visa, or MasterCard). That covers the $46.25 state processing fee plus PSI's $15 fee. Budget up to four weeks for the results to clear.
If you already hold a valid Oregon insurance license and are just adding another class, you do not need to be reprinted.
Applying for the license
Once you pass, apply online at NIPR.com. The resident producer license runs $75 ($30 application + $45 license fee to DCBS) plus NIPR's small processing fee.
To qualify you must be at least 18 and either an Oregon resident or maintain a place of business in Oregon. NIPR verifies your passing exam at submission - if it isn't on record yet the application sits pending, so it's cleanest to apply after your score posts.
To actually transact insurance you also need to be appointed by (employed with or under contract to) an authorized insurer or licensed agency. You keep the license without an appointment, but you can't write business until one is in place.
Continuing education and renewal
Oregon producers complete 24 hours of CE every two-year renewal cycle, including at least 3 hours of ethics and 3 hours on Oregon statutes and administrative rules.
Your license renews on the last day of your birth month, every two years. Helpfully, holding more than one line (say L&H and P&C) does not double the requirement - it's still 24 hours total.
A few rules to plan around: no carryover of excess hours to the next term, no taking the same course twice in one term, and a maximum of 8 credit hours earned in a single day.
Oregon-specific L&H rules worth knowing
The Oregon Life & Health Insurance Guaranty Association (ORS 734.750-.890) protects policyholders if a member life/health insurer becomes insolvent - expect questions on its purpose and coverage limits.
Replacement rules and life-insurance illustration standards are tested closely on the state portion, along with life settlements regulation and the accelerated (living) benefit provisions.
On the health side, know the ACA essential health benefits and metallic coverage levels, Oregon's Health Insurance Marketplace, HIPAA portability and privacy, Medicare and standardized Medicare Supplement plans, and Oregon's small-employer and group continuation/conversion rules.
Suitability standards apply to both annuity and life sales - Oregon adopted the best-interest framework, which is why the annuity training gate exists.
Quick Reference
Official Links
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