Pennsylvania Insurance Exam Guides
Pick the license you're studying for. Each guide covers Pennsylvania-specific requirements, fees, and official links — plus a free practice exam. Then scroll down to explore the Pennsylvania exam's state-law material, mapped.
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What's actually tested on the Pennsylvania exam — the state regulations, mapped
Every Pennsylvania insurance exam reserves a block of questions for Pennsylvania-specific law — the fees, deadlines, limits, and rules that generic national study guides gloss over. This is that material: 114 facts from the TESTivity Pennsylvania regulations curriculum, organized the way we teach them. Open a branch, explore, and let the structure do some of the remembering for you.
Every fact below carries its source citation and the date we last verified it (most recently August 2026) — and is re-checked on a schedule. Facts marked tested are ones you should expect to see on the exam.
Life 14 facts
The life insurance rules that differ by state — free look, grace, reinstatement.
- Incontestability period tested2 years — a policy is incontestable after it has been in force for 2 years during the insured's lifetime (except for nonpayment of premium)
- Grace period for individual life tested30 days (one month), during which the policy stays in force; the insurer may charge up to 8% annual interest on the overdue premium
- Window to reinstate a lapsed policy testedWithin 3 years of the date of default, with proof of insurability and payment of overdue premiums with interest
- Max interest chargeable on reinstatement, if capped testedOverdue premiums are paid with interest at a rate not exceeding 8% per year
- Suicide exclusion period tested2 years — the industry-standard suicide period, bounded by the 2-year contestable period; Pennsylvania's standard-provisions law does not fix a dedicated statutory suicide period
- Free look for individual life tested10 days to return an individual life policy for a full premium refund
- Free look for annuities tested10 days for an annuity contract (fixed or variable)
- Free look when a policy is being replaced testedOn a REPLACEMENT: 45 days if the new policy replaces one with the SAME insurer or insurer group, or 20 days if it replaces one with a DIFFERENT insurer
- Free look for long-term care tested30 days from delivery - the NAIC model figure, and very likely correct, but the Pennsylvania right-to-return provision could not be located in 31 Pa. Code Ch. 89a or 40 P.S. 991.1105. Treat the citation as unconfirmed.
- Required nonforfeiture options testedCash surrender value, reduced paid-up insurance, and extended term insurance, under Pennsylvania's Standard Nonforfeiture Law
- Registrations required to sell variable products testedVariable life and variable annuities require the Pennsylvania Life line plus FINRA registration (a Series 6 or 7 with a Series 63) — they are securities regulated by the SEC, FINRA, and the state
- Does the state regulate viatical/life settlements? testedYes — Pennsylvania regulates viatical settlements under the Viatical Settlements Act (40 P.S. §626.1 et seq.); providers and brokers must be licensed
- Viator's rescission window testedAn unconditional right to rescind within 30 days of the contract date and at least 15 calendar days from receipt of the viatical settlement proceeds; if the insured dies during the rescission period the contract shall be deemed to have been rescinded. The operative provision is 40 P.S. 626.8(h); the 15-day figure also appears in the disclosure section at 626.7(a)(5).
- Has the state adopted the NAIC best interest standard? testedYES — Pennsylvania adopted the NAIC best interest annuity standard as Act 99 of 2021, effective June 20, 2022, with a producer best-interest duty and a one-time annuity training
Health 15 facts
Health coverage rules — continuation, prompt pay, mandates, public programs.
- Has the state expanded Medicaid under the ACA? testedYES — Pennsylvania expanded Medicaid under the ACA (adults up to 138% of the federal poverty level), effective January 1, 2015, through Medical Assistance (delivered by HealthChoices)
- Effective date of expansion, if expanded testedJanuary 1, 2015
- Agency administering Medicaid testedThe Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS), which runs Medical Assistance (Medicaid) through the HealthChoices managed-care program
- Federal marketplace or state-based exchange testedA STATE-BASED exchange — Pennie, Pennsylvania's official marketplace (created by Act 42 of 2019), which went live for the 2021 plan year and replaced HealthCare.gov for Pennsylvania
- Name of the state CHIP program testedPennsylvania's Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), a well-known standalone program for uninsured children up to age 19, administered by DHS
- Clean-claim payment deadline, electronic tested45 days to pay a clean claim
- Clean-claim payment deadline, paper tested45 days — Pennsylvania uses a single clean-claim deadline for electronic and paper claims
- Does the state distinguish electronic vs paper claims? testedNo — Pennsylvania applies a single 45-day clean-claim deadline to both electronic and paper claims
- Interest / penalty on late claim payment testedInterest of 10% per year accrues on a clean claim not paid within 45 days
- Is the IRO's external review decision binding on the plan? testedYES — Pennsylvania's independent external review, administered by the Insurance Department (created by Act 146 of 2022, effective January 1, 2024) and decided by an Independent Review Organization, is BINDING on the insurer
- Employer size at which federal COBRA applies testedFederal COBRA applies at 20+ employees; Pennsylvania mini-COBRA reaches smaller groups
- Employer size range covered by state continuation testedPennsylvania mini-COBRA (Act 2 of 2009) applies to small employers with 2 to 19 employees (those not subject to federal COBRA)
- Duration of state continuation coverage testedUp to 9 months
- Election period for state continuation testedWithin 30 days of notice; the employee must have been covered for 3 continuous months
- Max premium as % of group rate testedUp to 105% of the group rate
Auto 12 facts
Auto insurance — minimum limits, fault system, required coverages.
- Fault-based (tort) or no-fault testedCHOICE NO-FAULT — Pennsylvania drivers CHOOSE between LIMITED TORT (a lower premium, with the right to sue for pain and suffering limited to 'serious injury' and other exceptions) and FULL TORT (the unrestricted right to sue). Every policy also carries mandatory first-party medical benefits.
- Minimum bodily injury liability per person tested$15,000 per person
- Minimum bodily injury liability per occurrence tested$30,000 per accident
- Minimum property damage liability tested$5,000 per accident
- The memorizable shorthand (e.g. 30/60/25) tested15/30/5
- Uninsured motorist: mandatory / must be offered & rejectable / not required testedMUST BE OFFERED and rejectable in writing — uninsured motorist coverage must be offered, but it may be rejected only by a signed, dated written waiver on a separate form
- Underinsured motorist status testedMUST BE OFFERED and rejectable in writing — underinsured motorist coverage is treated the same as UM, each rejectable only by a signed written waiver
- Personal injury protection status testedMANDATORY first-party medical benefits — every Pennsylvania auto policy must include at least $5,000 in medical benefits, paid regardless of fault (higher limits and other first-party benefits are optional)
- Contributory / pure comparative / modified comparative negligence testedMODIFIED COMPARATIVE NEGLIGENCE with a 51% bar — a claimant recovers only if their negligence is NOT GREATER THAN the defendant's, so a claimant exactly 50% at fault still recovers, but one 51% or more at fault recovers nothing; the award is reduced by the claimant's share
- The bar percentage, if modified comparative tested51% bar — a claimant whose fault is greater than the defendant's recovers nothing (a claimant exactly 50% at fault still recovers)
- Assigned risk / residual market plan for auto testedThe Pennsylvania Assigned Risk Plan (the auto residual market; every auto insurer must participate, administered through AIPSO)
- Any alternative to buying liability insurance (e.g. VA's UMV fee) testedThe signature Pennsylvania choice is the tort election: LIMITED TORT (lower premium, no suit for pain and suffering except for a 'serious injury' or other statutory exception) versus FULL TORT (the full right to sue). If a driver makes no election, FULL TORT applies. Self-insurance is available to owners of 25+ vehicles.
CE & Renewal 10 facts
Continuing education and renewal rules — the numbers the exam loves.
- How long a license lasts before renewal tested2 years (biennial), renewing on the last day of the producer's birth month
- What the renewal date keys off (flat term / birthday / birth year) testedBirthday-based — a producer license renews biennially on the last day of the licensee's birth month
- CE hours per renewal period, standard case tested24 CE hours every 2-year cycle
- CE hours if holding multiple license types (if different) tested24 total each cycle — a single requirement covering all lines held; it is not stacked per line
- Ethics hours required per period testedAt least 3 of the 24 credit hours must be on the topic of ethics - added by Act 142 of 2024 alongside the repeal of pre-licensing, effective April 29, 2025. Existing licensees had 12 months from that date or until the end of their current licence period, whichever was longer; new licensees must satisfy it by the end of their first licence period.
- Limits on who may provide CE credits testedCourses and providers must be approved by the Department, and transcripts are maintained through Sircon. Act 142 of 2024 additionally requires at least 2 of the 24 credit hours on flood insurance 'for each licensee with a property and casualty line of authority' - note the statutory wording, since Pennsylvania lists Personal Lines as a separate line of authority. The flood credits count inside the 24 rather than on top of them.
- Initial long-term care training requirement testedLong-term care sales require 8 hours of initial training and at least 4 hours in every subsequent 24-month licensing cycle (31 Pa. Code 39a.9); producers selling Partnership policies must include a 1-hour Medicaid course within the initial 8. Separately, selling annuities requires a 4-credit best-interest training course under Act 99 of 2021, effective June 20, 2022, with a 1-credit bridge course having been available to producers who held prior annuity training.
- What happens if CE is not completed (fine / expiry / cancellation) testedFailing to complete the 24 CE hours results in termination of the license (treated as a non-renewal)
- Late renewal / reinstatement tiers testedRenewal window opens 90 days before expiration and runs through the day after. Days 1 to 3 after expiration: no application can be filed (apply on day 4). Days 4 to 60: late renewal at $165, with the licence remaining ACTIVE. After day 60 the licence goes INACTIVE. Days 61 to 63: again no application can be filed (apply on day 64). Day 64 through one year: reinstatement at $165. Beyond one year: the renewal and reinstatement paths close and the person reapplies through the standard resident licensing application as a new applicant. Whether the examination must be retaken at that point is not stated by the Department or NIPR.
- Any CE exemption (e.g. long-service agents) testedThe Department has limited authority under Act 147 of 2002 to waive CE individually, typically for military service or well-documented extenuating circumstances. Nonresident reciprocity is conditional: 40 P.S. 310.8 exempts a nonresident who has satisfied the home state's CE requirements IF that state reciprocally recognises Pennsylvania compliance - and a nonresident who fails to satisfy the home state becomes subject to Pennsylvania's own 24 hours.
Property 7 facts
Property insurance — rate regulation, residual markets, catastrophe exposure.
- Rate regulation system (file-and-use / prior approval / use-and-file) testedPRIOR-APPROVAL / file-and-use — property and casualty rates are filed with the Insurance Department under the Casualty and Surety and Fire rate-regulatory acts, and may be disapproved if excessive, inadequate, or unfairly discriminatory
- Is insurance credit scoring permitted in personal lines? testedUNSETTLED - do not publish a rule. The widely quoted formulation (permitted at initial underwriting, unusable after 60 days for cancellation, nonrenewal or renewal rating, never adverse solely for absence of credit history) is NCOIL model-act language; Pennsylvania's attempts to adopt the model (HB 2141 of 2003-04, HB 1060 of 2005-06) were not enacted, and no corresponding provision was located in Title 40 or 31 Pa. Code. Pennsylvania does have a general 60-day underwriting window, which is a different rule.
- Does the state have a FAIR Plan? testedYES - the Insurance Placement Facility of Pennsylvania, marketed as the Pennsylvania FAIR Plan, created by Act 233 of 1968 effective August 1, 1968. It is an association of the property insurance companies doing business in Pennsylvania, serving persons with an insurable interest in Pennsylvania property who have been unable to secure coverage in the voluntary market. Lines include fire, homeowners, renters, property, and vacant and seasonal property.
- Name of the FAIR Plan, if any testedThe Insurance Placement Facility of Pennsylvania, marketed as the Pennsylvania FAIR Plan - the insurer of last resort for basic property coverage
- Dominant catastrophe perils in the state testedSevere thunderstorms with straight-line wind and hail, winter storms (snow and ice), riverine flooding, and the remnants of tropical systems — an inland Mid-Atlantic profile with no direct coastal hurricane landfall
- What license you must already hold to write surplus lines testedA surplus lines producer license (which requires an underlying property & casualty license); coverage is placed only with an eligible surplus lines insurer
- Is a diligent-effort search of the admitted market required first? testedYes - 31 Pa. Code 124.5 deems a diligent effort made where the writing producer has documented a declination of coverage from at least three admitted insurers. Declinations must be recorded at or near the time of receipt, and an insurer's non-response counts as a declination after 5 business days. The writing producer executes a written statement of diligent effort in Department-prescribed form; the surplus lines licensee files a declaration of lack of knowledge of how the coverage could have been procured from admitted insurers. Records are retained 5 years after contract termination. Risks on the Department's Export List are excepted.
Guaranty 10 facts
The safety nets when an insurer fails — and their limits.
- Name of the life & health guaranty association testedThe Pennsylvania Life and Health Insurance Guaranty Association (PLHIGA)
- Life death benefit limit tested$300,000 death benefit
- Life cash surrender / withdrawal value limit tested$100,000 net cash surrender value (within the $300,000 life limit)
- Annuity benefit limit tested$250,000 present value of annuity benefits (including cash surrender/withdrawal value)
- Health benefit limit tested$500,000 for a health benefit plan (basic hospital, medical, or major medical); $300,000 for disability income and long-term care; $100,000 for other health
- Aggregate per-individual cap, if any tested$300,000 aggregate per individual (up to $500,000 where a health benefit plan is involved)
- Does the state follow the standard NAIC model limits? testedYes — Pennsylvania follows the NAIC model ($300,000 death benefit, $100,000 cash value, $250,000 annuity, tiered health up to $500,000, $300,000 aggregate)
- Name of the P&C guaranty association testedThe Pennsylvania Property and Casualty Insurance Guaranty Association (PPCIGA)
- Per-claim cap testedUp to $300,000 per claimant on a covered claim, and returned unearned premium is capped at $10,000 per policy. 40 P.S. 991.1803(b)(1) additionally provides that in no event shall the association be obligated to pay a claimant an amount in excess of the obligation of the insolvent insurer under the policy or coverage from which the claim arises - so the policy limit is a second ceiling.
- Is using the guaranty association as a sales inducement prohibited? testedYes — using the existence of the guaranty association to induce the purchase of insurance is prohibited
Workers Comp 7 facts
Who must carry workers' compensation and what it pays.
- Is workers' compensation mandatory for private employers? testedYes — workers' compensation is mandatory for essentially all Pennsylvania employers with one or more employees
- Employee count at which coverage is required testedCoverage is required from the first employee — Pennsylvania has no numeric threshold (with a few narrow exceptions)
- Agency administering workers' compensation testedThe Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry, Bureau of Workers' Compensation (the State Workers' Insurance Fund, SWIF, is a competitive state fund that competes with private carriers)
- Temporary total disability wage replacement rate testedAbout two-thirds of the average weekly wage (lower earners receive a higher percentage), subject to the statewide maximum. The waiting period is 7 days, benefits begin on the eighth day, and the first seven days become payable retroactively only once the worker has been off work 14 days.
- Maximum TTD duration testedTotal disability benefits continue while total disability persists (after 104 weeks an employer may compel an Impairment Rating Evaluation); partial disability is capped at 500 weeks. The maximum weekly benefit is the statewide average weekly wage (about $1,394 for 2026).
- Deadline to file a claim testedReport the injury to the employer within 120 days, and file a claim petition within 3 years of the injury
- Ways an employer may comply (insure / self-insure / group) testedBuy from a private carrier, from the State Workers' Insurance Fund (SWIF, Pennsylvania's competitive state fund), or qualify as an approved self-insurer — Pennsylvania is NOT monopolistic
Regulator 5 facts
Who regulates insurance here and what powers the office holds.
- Name of the state insurance regulator testedThe Pennsylvania Insurance Department (PID)
- Title of the person who heads it testedInsurance Commissioner
- How the commissioner is chosen: elected / appointed by governor / appointed by other body testedAPPOINTED by the Governor and confirmed by the Pennsylvania Senate — not elected
- Where the state's insurance law is codified testedTitle 40 of the Pennsylvania Statutes (40 P.S.), including the Insurance Company Law of 1921, with producer licensing in the Insurance Department Act (40 P.S. §310.1 et seq.); regulations are in Title 31 of the Pennsylvania Code
- Does the regulator sit somewhere unusual (e.g. inside a constitutional commission)? testedNo — the Insurance Department is a standard standalone department headed by a Commissioner appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate
Cancellation 8 facts
When and how policies can be canceled or nonrenewed — heavily tested.
- Initial window during which an insurer may cancel more freely tested60 days — during the first 60 days of a new auto policy the insurer may cancel more freely (it must still state the reason and may not use prohibited grounds); after 60 days cancellation is limited to enumerated grounds
- Notice days to cancel a homeowners policy inside the initial window testedAt least 30 days' written notice to cancel a homeowners policy mid-term on a permitted ground, stating the specific reason (governed by the Unfair Insurance Practices Act and 31 Pa. Code Ch. 59)
- Notice days to cancel a personal auto policy inside the initial window testedAt least 60 days' written notice to cancel a personal auto policy for a permitted cause (15 days for nonpayment or certain enumerated grounds), stating the reason
- Notice days for cancellation for nonpayment tested15 days for a personal auto cancellation on the short-form grounds in 40 P.S. 2004(1) and (2) - nonpayment of premium, and suspension or revocation of the driver's licence or registration. It is not nonpayment alone. Homeowners nonpayment runs on the property 30-day floor.
- Notice days for cancellation for other permitted causes testedFor a permitted cause, a personal auto cancellation runs on 60 days' notice (15 days for nonpayment), and a homeowners cancellation on 30 days' notice
- Notice days required for nonrenewal testedPersonal auto: at least 60 days' advance written notice with the reason stated (40 P.S. 991.2006). Homeowners and other property: at least 30 days - 40 P.S. 1171.5(a)(9) and 31 Pa. Code 59.6 set a single 30-day floor covering cancellation and refusal to renew alike, so property does NOT get the auto line's 60 days.
- Must the reason be stated proactively, on request, or not at all? testedYes — a cancellation or nonrenewal notice must state the specific reason
- Restrictions on nonrenewing because of claims (e.g. weather claims excluded) testedPennsylvania restricts cancellation, nonrenewal, and surcharge based on certain accidents — for example, a not-at-fault accident may not be used to increase premiums or refuse renewal
Licensing 26 facts
How you get and keep the license — exams, fees, applications, background checks.
- Is there a standalone life license/exam? testedYes — a standalone Life Insurance and Annuities exam (Series 16-01) and line of authority (Life includes annuities)
- Is there a standalone health license/exam? testedYes — a standalone Accident and Health exam (Series 16-02) and line of authority
- Is there a combined life+health license/exam? testedYes — Pennsylvania offers a combined Life, Accident and Health exam (Series 16-03), in addition to the individual Life and Accident & Health exams
- Is there a personal lines license/exam? testedYes — a Personal Lines line and exam (Series 16-16), covering property and casualty sold to individuals
- Is P&C one combined license, or split into Property and Casualty? testedBoth — Pennsylvania offers separate Property and Allied Lines (16-04) and Casualty and Allied Lines (16-05) exams AND a combined Property & Casualty exam (16-06), plus a narrower Personal Lines line (16-16)
- Does the life license cover annuities? testedYes — the Life line is 'Life Insurance and Annuities,' so fixed annuities are included. VARIABLE life and annuities require the Life line plus FINRA registration (they are securities).
- Does the P&C license already include personal lines authority? testedYes — the combined Property & Casualty license covers personal-lines risks; standalone Personal Lines is a narrower, personal-only line
- Full list of exam-based agent license types testedPennsylvania producer lines include Life Insurance & Annuities · Accident & Health · combined Life, Accident & Health · Property & Allied Lines · Casualty & Allied Lines · combined Property & Casualty · Personal Lines — plus Surplus Lines, Title, Public Adjuster, and Variable (with FINRA registration)
- Exam administrator (Prometric / PSI / Pearson VUE) testedPSI Services (PSI) administers Pennsylvania producer exams (the 'PAIN' exam) under contract with the Insurance Department
- Exam fee tested$45 for a single-line exam; $55 for a combined Life/Accident & Health or Property & Casualty exam
- License application fee tested$55 for a resident individual producer license (a nonresident producer license is $110)
- Fee per insurer appointment tested$15 per producer appointment, billed annually to the insurer for each producer it appointed during the preceding year
- Passing score tested70%
- Minimum age to be licensed tested18
- Is pre-licensing education required? testedNO - Act 142 of 2024 deleted 40 P.S. 310.4(b), the 24-credit-hour preexamination requirement, in its entirety, effective April 29, 2025. It also struck the preexamination study certificate from the examination application and removed the education condition from the issuance criteria at 310.6(a)(3). Applicants go straight to the exam.
- Pre-licensing hours and any exceptions (e.g. Title, adjusters) testedNone. Candidates study on their own and sit the exam directly. Two cautions: 31 Pa. Code Ch. 39a still contains unrepealed preexamination provisions that the statute supersedes but that were never cleaned up, and PSI's own marketing page at psiexams.com still lists 'completion of a state-approved pre-licensing course' as an eligibility item - the current candidate bulletin does not. Note also that eliminating pre-licensing did not eliminate product-specific training: annuity sales still require the 4-credit Act 99 course and long-term care still requires 8 hours plus 4 every cycle.
- Fingerprints, state police report, or none testedElectronic fingerprinting for an FBI criminal history background check, required of initial resident producer applicants (added by Act 147 of 2002)
- Who takes the prints / issues the report testedIdentoGO (service code 1KGBGJ); fingerprints are submitted after passing the exam and applying. Nonresident (reciprocity) and add-line applicants are not fingerprinted.
- How long the background report stays valid testedFingerprints are submitted only after passing the exam and applying — results without a matching application are discarded
- Deadline to apply after passing the exam testedApply within 1 year of passing the exam (the exam result is valid for one year)
- How long a passed exam remains valid testedA passing exam result is valid for 1 year
- Waiting period before retaking a failed exam testedNo fixed waiting period and no attempt cap, but you cannot rebook on the day you tested. PSI's worked example in the current bulletin is a candidate who fails on a Wednesday calling Thursday and retesting Friday - so about two days in practice, subject to seat availability. Each attempt costs the full fee again.
- Notice required to reschedule/cancel without forfeiting the fee testedCancel or reschedule at least 2 days before the exam to avoid forfeiting the fee
- Where you apply (Sircon / NIPR / state portal) testedSircon (sircon.com/pennsylvania) or NIPR (nipr.com) — apply online; many candidates apply at the PSI test-center kiosk right after passing
- Are temporary licenses available? testedYes - 40 P.S. 310.9 authorises a temporary licence in four situations: the surviving spouse or court-appointed personal representative of a deceased or disabled resident individual licensee; an owner, partner or employee of a business entity licensee on the death or disability of the designated licensee; the designee of a licensee entering active armed-forces service; and any other person in an extenuating circumstance where the commissioner deems the public interest will best be served.
- Temporary license duration and training requirement testedThe temporary licence runs for a period not to exceed 180 days and is not transferable. The Department may require a sponsoring insurer, may limit the lines of authority, and may immediately and without notice revoke the licence if it is deemed in the public interest. Note that the Department's own temporary-licence instruction sheet is a COVID-era document that still cites the repealed 24-hour pre-licensing requirement and should not be relied on.