- CA-LAHS is the California Department of Insurance exam for the Life, Accident & Health or Sickness agent license, delivered via PSI.
- The combined exam has 150 questions across 8 domains, with a 3-hour limit and a 60% passing score.
- Total cost per attempt is $98 ($55 state fee plus $43 PSI convenience fee), for either test center or remote proctoring.
- Since January 1, 2026, the 20-hour line-specific prelicensing course was eliminated, but 12 hours of Ethics and California Insurance Code study remain required.
What Is CA-LAHS?
CA-LAHS stands for the California Life, Accident & Health or Sickness Insurance Exam - the licensing test the California Department of Insurance (CDI) requires before a producer can sell life insurance, annuities, disability income coverage, medical expense plans, and long-term care policies in the state. It is not a voluntary professional designation; it is the gatekeeping exam behind an actual insurance producer license. If you plan to work as an agent selling any combination of life or health-related coverage in California, this is the test standing between you and your license number.
The exam combines two historically separate lines - Life and Accident & Health or Sickness - into a single 150-question test. That structure matters for how you study, because the two halves are scored and weighted as equal components even though the content inside them is quite different. For a full breakdown of every domain and how much of the exam each one occupies, see the CA-LAHS Exam Domains 2026: Complete Guide to All 8 Content Areas.
Who Administers the Exam
The California Department of Insurance sets the licensing rules, the required education, and the passing standard. PSI is the testing vendor that actually delivers the exam, whether you sit at a physical test center or use remote online proctoring. Both delivery formats cost the same: a $55 California examination fee plus a $43 PSI convenience fee, for a total of $98 per attempt. That fee is charged every time you sit for the exam, so a failed attempt is not just a scheduling setback - it's a direct cost. If you want a full accounting of every fee involved in becoming licensed, not just the exam fee, read the CA-LAHS Certification Cost 2026: Complete Pricing Breakdown.
Because CDI and PSI jointly control the exam, the objectives you're tested on are official CDI content outlines, not third-party study material guesses. The current version of those objectives took effect January 1, 2026, which is the version referenced throughout this article and across this site.
Exam Format and Question Style
The CA-LAHS exam is 150 multiple-choice questions, and you're given 3 hours to complete it. There is no essay component, no simulation, no case-study workspace - every question is a single best-answer multiple-choice item. That format rewards precise recall of definitions, policy provisions, and regulatory rules rather than open-ended reasoning, which is exactly why memorizing exact terminology (grace periods, free-look periods, contestability windows, definitions of "insured" versus "owner") pays off more here than in exams that test broader analytical skill.
You need 60% correct to pass - that's 90 correct answers out of 150. Recent first-attempt performance (January-June 2026, English-language administrations) showed a 59% pass rate, while candidates repeating the exam passed at a 41% rate. That gap between first-timers and repeat test-takers is worth sitting with for a moment: it suggests that whatever preparation gap existed on attempt one often isn't closed before attempt two. For a deeper look at what that data actually implies for your prep strategy, see CA-LAHS Pass Rate 2026: What the Data Shows and CA-LAHS Passing Score 2026: Exactly What You Need to Pass.
Key Takeaway
With 150 questions in 180 minutes, you have roughly 72 seconds per question on average - budget your time so unfamiliar riders or definitions don't eat into time you need for the rest of the exam.
The Eight Content Domains
The 150 questions split into two 75-question components that are weighted equally in the combined score: Domains 1 through 3 make up the Life component, and Domains 4 through 8 make up the Accident and Health or Sickness component. Even though each component carries the same overall weight, the domains inside them are not equal to each other - some carry far more questions than others.
Domain 1 & 4: General Insurance
Foundational insurance concepts, contract law basics, and regulatory principles that apply across both the Life and Accident & Health portions. Expect terminology-heavy questions on legal concepts like insurable interest, offer and acceptance, and misrepresentation.
- Understand how contract elements differ from general commercial contracts
- Know California-specific definitions used across both components
Domain 2: Life Insurance
This is the single largest domain on the entire exam at 32.5% weight, meaning nearly a third of your combined score rides on this content alone. It covers policy types, nonforfeiture options, settlement options, and underwriting basics for life products.
- Master term, whole, universal, and variable life distinctions
- Know policy loan provisions, dividend options, and beneficiary designations cold
Domain 3: Life Policy Riders
Covers add-on provisions attached to life policies, such as waiver of premium, accidental death benefit, and guaranteed insurability riders. Questions tend to test what a rider does and does not cover.
- Distinguish riders that add benefits from riders that convert or extend a base policy
Domain 5: General Concepts of Medical and Disability Insurance
Bridges basic insurance principles into the health insurance space - coordination of benefits, coinsurance, deductibles, and managed care structures.
Domain 6: Medical Expense Insurance
The second-heaviest domain on the exam at 30% weight. Combined with Life Insurance's 32.5%, these two domains alone account for well over half of your total score.
- Know HMO, PPO, and indemnity plan distinctions
- Understand health savings accounts and qualifying high-deductible plan rules
Domain 7: Disability Income Insurance
Covers elimination periods, benefit periods, definitions of disability (own-occupation versus any-occupation), and how disability benefits interact with other income sources.
Domain 8: Long-Term Care Insurance
Covers LTC policy triggers, benefit periods, inflation protection options, and California-specific LTC partnership program rules.
Because Life Insurance and Medical Expense Insurance together dominate the score, a study plan that spreads effort evenly across all eight domains is actually a mistake - you want disproportionate time on Domains 2 and 6. The CA-LAHS Exam Domains 2026: Complete Guide to All 8 Content Areas breaks down every sub-topic examiners pull from within each domain.
| Component | Domains Included | Question Count | Combined Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life | Domains 1-3 | 75 | 50% |
| Accident and Health or Sickness | Domains 4-8 | 75 | 50% |
Registration, Fees, and Delivery Options
Every CA-LAHS attempt costs $98 total - the $55 California examination fee plus PSI's $43 convenience fee - regardless of whether you test in person at a PSI test center or remotely through online proctoring. That flat fee structure means your delivery choice can come down purely to convenience and comfort rather than cost. If you'd rather test from home, confirm your setup meets PSI's remote-proctoring requirements before your scheduled date, since technical issues on test day don't refund the fee.
For exact scheduling windows, how far in advance you can book, and what to do if you need to reschedule, see CA-LAHS Exam Dates 2026: Testing Windows, Deadlines & Scheduling.
Education Requirements Before You Sit
A significant change took effect January 1, 2026: California eliminated the former 20-hour line-specific prelicensing education requirement. That requirement used to force candidates through hours of line-by-line coursework before they could even schedule the exam. Under the current rules, applicants still must complete 12 hours of Ethics and California Insurance Code education, including 1 hour specifically on insurance fraud, before a license is issued.
This shift means the exam itself - not a mandated prelicensing course - is now the primary filter for verifying product knowledge. Practically speaking, that puts more weight on self-directed study, since there's no longer a state-mandated line-specific course walking you through Life and Health content step by step. For a full checklist of what's required before you're eligible to sit and to get licensed, see CA-LAHS Requirements 2026: Eligibility, Prerequisites & How to Qualify.
Who Actually Needs This Exam
CA-LAHS licensing applies to anyone who wants to be compensated for selling life insurance, annuities, disability income insurance, medical expense insurance, or long-term care insurance in California. That includes:
- Independent insurance agents building a book of business across life and health products
- Captive agents hired directly by carriers to sell proprietary life and health lines
- Financial advisors and planners who want to add insurance products to their service offering
- Career changers entering insurance sales from unrelated fields, since no college degree is required to sit for the exam
Because the license covers both life and health-related product lines, it's attractive to agents who don't want to be boxed into selling only one type of coverage. If you're weighing whether the licensing effort and cost are worth it relative to what agents in this space typically earn, read CA-LAHS Salary Guide 2026: Complete Earnings Analysis and Is the CA-LAHS Certification Worth It? Complete ROI Analysis 2026. For a sense of the kinds of roles that specifically require this license, see CA-LAHS Jobs.
After You Pass: License Maintenance
Passing the exam is not the finish line - it's the gateway to an active license, and that license comes with ongoing obligations. The filing or renewal fee is $188, and resident licensees must complete 24 continuing-education hours during each two-year license term, including 3 hours of ethics with 1 hour specifically dedicated to insurance fraud. Budgeting for these recurring costs and hours matters just as much as budgeting for the initial exam, since letting a license lapse means dealing with reinstatement on top of everything else.
If you're trying to understand how the license, the exam, and the broader certification concept fit together as one continuous process, CA-LAHS Certification walks through the full lifecycle from application to renewal.
Preparing for the Combined Exam
Because Domains 2 (Life Insurance) and 6 (Medical Expense Insurance) carry the most weight, an efficient study sequence front-loads those two domains rather than moving through Domains 1 through 8 in strict numerical order. A simple technique that works well here: block dedicated study sessions by domain weight, not by domain number, and use short, timed recall drills for definitions rather than long reading sessions, since the exam itself is pure recall-based multiple choice.
Life Insurance (Domain 2) and General Insurance (Domains 1 & 4)
- Master policy types, nonforfeiture options, and settlement options
- Build a terminology list for contract law concepts shared across both components
Medical Expense Insurance (Domain 6) and General Concepts (Domain 5)
- Compare HMO, PPO, and indemnity plan structures side by side
- Drill coordination-of-benefits scenarios until they're automatic
Riders, Disability Income, and Long-Term Care (Domains 3, 7, 8)
- Build a rider-by-rider comparison chart
- Memorize elimination period and benefit period definitions
Full-Length Practice and Timing
- Run full 150-question timed practice sessions to build stamina for the 3-hour window
- Review every missed question by domain to find your weakest area before test day
For a structured, week-by-week study plan built specifically around these weightings, see the CA-LAHS Study Guide 2026: How to Pass on Your First Attempt. And if you're still trying to gauge how demanding this exam really is compared to other licensing tests, How Hard Is the CA-LAHS Exam? Complete Difficulty Guide 2026 breaks that down using the actual pass-rate data. You can also run realistic practice sessions on our practice test platform to get comfortable with the multiple-choice format before your real attempt.
Frequently Asked Questions
It's one combined exam with 150 total questions, but it's built from two equally weighted components: a 75-question Life section (Domains 1-3) and a 75-question Accident and Health or Sickness section (Domains 4-8).
Each attempt costs $98 total: a $55 California examination fee plus a $43 PSI convenience fee. This applies whether you test at a physical PSI center or through remote online proctoring.
No. Effective January 1, 2026, California eliminated the former 20-hour line-specific prelicensing requirement. You still need 12 hours of Ethics and California Insurance Code education, including 1 hour on insurance fraud, before a license is issued.
You need 60% correct out of the 150 combined-exam questions to pass, which works out to 90 correct answers.
Life Insurance (32.5%) and Medical Expense Insurance (30%) are the two most heavily weighted domains, together making up more than half of the entire exam, so they deserve disproportionate study time relative to the other six domains.