Washington Insurance Licensing State Requirements
On this page, you will find all of the state-specific information for Insurance Licensing in the state of Washington. This information pertains to resident license applicants. For additional information for resident licensing, or for non-resident license
information, please refer to the Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner website at http://www.insurance.wa.gov. Information is subject to change, and
we will do our very best to make the process of completing your licensing education requirements as simple as possible.
Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner
Agents and Brokers
PO Box 40257
Olympia, WA 98504-0257
Phone: 360-725-7144
Fax: 360-586-2019
Website: http://www.insurance.wa.gov
Email: LicInfo@oic.wa.gov
COVID-19 Updates:
Effective 4/28/2020: Remote testing available for those who have compatible computer hardware and software (for state licensing exams). The state is extending the expiration date of pre-licensing education and exams through July 31 for producers whose exam expiration dates were March 23 or later.
How to Get Your Washington Insurance License
1. Complete an Insurance Prelicensing Course
Washington requires those seeking an insurance license to complete prelicensing before taking the state licensing exam. Prelicensing courses with Kaplan give you the best chance to pass—our pass rates are among the highest in the industry.
Prelicensing Education Hour Requirements
- Life: 20 Hours
- Disability: 20 Hours
- Property: 20 Hours
- Casualty: 20 Hours
- Personal Lines: 20 Hours
Acceptable Methods of Education
- Classroom
- Self-study (includes online)
- Self-study courses must be purchased from an approved provider.
- Candidates are allowed 12 months from the purchase date of their courses to complete their prelicensing education.
Online Course Requirements
Washington requires that your online study time is tracked. In order to successfully complete the course, you must complete the required number of hours while studying in the Course Contents Units of the online course. Your online course tracker will
be displayed in the upper right-hand corner of your page so that you can verify the time spent in the course is being tracked.
Prelicensing Education Exemptions
Candidates may qualify for a waiver of their prelicensing education requirements if they have completed one of the following insurance designation or certification programs within the last 12 months:
- Life: CEBS, ChFC®, CIC, CFP®, CLU®, FLMI, LUTCF
- Disability: RHU, CEBS, REBC, HIA
Property or Casualty: AAI, ARM, CIC, CPCU®
Note: Candidates who have been granted a waiver must present the waiver at the test center.
Note: Candidates who are not licensed within 180 days after passing an examination must be reexamined.
Adjuster License Requirements
All insurance adjusters in this state are required to be licensed. Check with the Department of Insurance in your resident state to see how to obtain an adjuster license.
2. Pass Your Washington Licensing Exam
After completing your required prelicensing course, you must pass a state licensing exam. Kaplan’s prelicensing content is based directly on the Washington licensing exams, so you will be prepared to pass the first time.
Certificate of Completion Requirements
- Education provider issues a separate certificate for each 20-hour course successfully completed.
- Candidates must present their prelicensing course certificate at the exam center, but certificates will not be retained at the test center.
- Candidates submit the certificate of completion along with their license application.
- Certificates of completion are valid for 12 months from the date of course completion.
Exam Provider: PSI
- To obtain a Licensing Information Bulletin, go to the PSI website at http://www.psiexams.com
- To schedule an exam, contact PSI at http://www.psiexams.com or 800-733-9267.
- To obtain a copy of the Candidate Information Bulletin. Click here.
It is the candidate’s responsibility to contact PSI to pay and schedule an examination. There is no limit to the number of times a candidate may retake an examination if necessary to pass. However, for the examinations that require a pre-licensing course certificate, the certificate must be valid.
Frequently Asked Questions About the Washington Licensing Exam
After completing my prelicensing, how should I prepare for exam day?
Exam day: On the day of the examination, you should arrive 30 minutes before your appointment. This extra time is for sign-in, identification, and familiarizing you with the examination process. If you arrive late, you may not be admitted
to the examination center, and you will forfeit your examination registration fee. Candidates must review and agree to the PSI Security Agreement for Examinations in order to take the examination. If the Security Agreement is not followed and/or cheating
or tampering with the examination is suspected, it will be reported as such, and the appropriate action will be taken. The examination fee will not be refunded, the exam may be determined invalid, and/or the state may take further action such as prohibiting
candidates from retaking the examination and/or denying a license.
All personal belongings should be placed in the secure storage provided at each site prior to entering the examination room. Personal belongings include, but are not limited to, the following items:
- Electronic devices of any type, including cellular/mobile phones, recording devices, electronic watches, cameras, pagers, laptop computers, tablet computers (e.g., iPads), music players (e.g., iPods), smart watches, radios, or electronic games.
- Bulky or loose clothing or coats that could be used to conceal recording devices or notes. For security purposes, outerwear such as, but not limited to, open sweaters, cardigans, shawls, scarves, hoodies, vests, jackets, and coats are not permitted in the testing room. In the event you are asked to remove the outerwear, appropriate attire, such as a shirt or blouse, should be worn underneath.
- Hats or headgear not worn for religious reasons or as religious apparel, including hats, baseball caps, or visors.
- Other personal items, including purses, notebooks, reference or reading material, briefcases, backpacks, wallets, pens, pencils, other writing devices, food, drinks, and good luck items.
ID requirements: Candidates must register for the exam with their LEGAL first and last name as it appears on their government issued identification. All required identification below must match the first and last name under which the
candidate is registered. Candidates are required to bring two (2) forms of valid (non-expired) signature bearing identification to the examination center. If the candidate fails to bring proper identification or the candidate names do not match, the
candidate will not be allowed to test, and their examination fee will not be refunded.
Primary Identification (ID must contain candidate photo, be valid, and be unexpired)
Choose one or two from this list:
- State Issued Driver’s License
- State Issued Identification Card
- US Government Issued Passport
- US Government Issued Military Identification Card
- US Government Issued Alien Registration Card
- Canadian Government Issued ID
Secondary Identification
Choose one if two are not be provided from the above list:
- Credit Card (must be signed)
- Social Security Card
- US Issued Birth Certificate with Raised Seal
Note: Student ID and employment ID are NOT acceptable forms of identification. In addition to the necessary ID, your Pre-licensing Certificate of Completion will also be required.
What is the exam like?
Questions on the final PSI exam are in multiple-choice format. The final PSI examination contains non-scored questions. The use of such questions is an essential step in developing accurate future examinations. These questions will NOT be scored, and
time to answer them has been added to the time allowed.
How is the exam scored?
There is a minimum passing score of 70%. Your score will be displayed on screen at the end of the examination, and a score report will be emailed to you.
Note: Remote online proctored exams will not see their score on the screen at the end of the examination. A score report will be emailed to the candidate.
If you fail, the emailed score report will include the diagnostic report indicating your strengths and weaknesses by examination type. Due to processing and reporting scores, it is not possible to make a new examination appointment on the same day you
have taken an examination. For example, a candidate who tests unsuccessfully on a Wednesday can call the next day, Thursday, and retest as soon as Friday, depending upon space availability. You may schedule online at www.psiexams.com or call PSI at (800) 733-9267.
How long is the exam?
| Exam Series | License Line | Exam Time | Total Questions |
| n/a | WA Life Producer | 2 Hours 30 Minutes | 100 Questions |
| n/a | WA Disability Producer | 2 Hours 30 Minutes | 100 Questions |
| n/a | WA Life and Disability Producer Combo | 3 Hours 15 Minutes | 150 Questions |
| n/a | WA Property Producer | 2 Hours 30 Minutes | 100 Questions |
| n/a | WA Casualty Producer | 2 Hours 30 Minutes | 100 Questions |
| n/a | WA Property and Casualty Producer Combo | 3 Hours 15 Minutes | 150 Questions |
| n/a | WA Personal Lines Producer | 2 Hours 15 Minutes | 100 Questions |
| n/a | WA Credit | 1 Hour 15 Minutes | 50 Questions |
| n/a | WA Adjuster | 2 Hours 15 Minutes | 100 Questions |
| n/a | WA Crop Adjuster | 1 Hour | 50 Questions |
| n/a | WA Surety | 1 Hour 15 Minutes | 50 Questions |
| n/a | WA Surplus Lines Broker | 2 Hours 30 Minutes | 100 Questions |
| n/a | CO Crop | .75 Hours | 35 Questions |
| n/a | CO Crop | .75 Hours | 35 Questions |
| n/a | CO Crop | .75 Hours | 35 Questions |
3. Get Fingerprinted
Washington state requires resident applicants to submit their fingerprints electronically for a background check. Non-resident applicants do not have any fingerprint requirements. A license will not be issued until the state receives the results of the
background check.
WWW.PSIEXAMS.COM 4 PSI subcontracts fingerprint services to IDEMIA. Candidates must make a fingerprint reservation with IDEMIA no later than one (1) business day prior to the desired examination date. Candidates must either schedule their appointment
online at www.Identogo.com or contact IDEMIA at 888-771-5097. An IDEMIA Registration ID number will be provided at the end of the appointment scheduling process and should be made available to the proctor on the exam date, if requested.
A fee of $49.25 must be paid by credit card, eCheck, or company billing account to IDEMIA at the time of appointment scheduling. This payment includes the WA State Patrol processing fee of $29.25, and the PSI fingerprint processing fee of $20.00. Payments
will not be accepted on-site.
If a candidate waits too long to schedule an appointment, there may not be an available slot on the same day as their examination. In that case, candidates should select an appointment slot for a later date. Upon arrival at the test site, the candidate
should notify the proctor that a fingerprint reservation was made for a future date and share the IDEMIA Registration ID number (required).
The following information is required by the OIC, State Patrol & Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and must be provided at the time of the fingerprint reservation:
- Full Legal Name
- Height
- Weight
- Hair Color
- Citizenship
- Ethnicity
- Gender
- Full Current Address
- Place of Birth
- Date of Birth
- Eye Color
- Social Security Number
IDEMIA will contact candidates via email with directions if their fingerprints have been rejected and a new appointment is required. Candidates should provide a valid email address when making their initial reservation.
4. Apply for a Washington Insurance License
Once you have passed your state licensing exam, you are ready to apply for an insurance license.
You can apply online at http://www.nipr.com. Have your exam score report(s) ready as you will need to attach electronically or mail to the state. Certificate of Completion is also
submitted along with your license application.
You will be assigned an NPN. This unique identifier is assigned through the licensing application process and is used to track individuals and business entities on a national basis. The NPN is used by many states to replace a producer license number.
5. Plan to Complete Required Insurance Continuing Education (CE) Credits
Every insurance producer must adhere to their home state’s CE requirements. Stay on top of your CE and ahead of the competition with 365 days of unlimited course access when you enroll in a CE library with Kaplan.
Learn how to renew a Washington insurance license by clicking here.