- The exam has 150 questions (135 scored, 15 unscored pretest) with a 3-hour limit and a 70% passing score.
- Indiana Laws and Department Rules Common to All Lines is the single largest domain at 14.8% of the exam.
- You need 40 hours of approved prelicensing education before you can sit for the exam, plus an $69 exam fee.
- Failed attempts require a mandatory 48-hour wait before you can retake the test.
Quick Facts Snapshot
If you only have five minutes before test day, this is the page to bookmark. Every number below comes straight from the Indiana Department of Insurance's exam framework for the Life and Health Producer exam, administered through Pearson VUE. For the full context behind each figure, see the detailed INLH Certification Cost breakdown and the INLH Pass Rate data.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Regulator | Indiana Department of Insurance |
| Test administrator | Pearson VUE |
| Total questions | 150 (135 scored + 15 unscored pretest) |
| Time limit | 3 hours |
| Passing score | 70% |
| Exam fee | $69 |
| Prelicensing education | 40 hours (approved Life and Health course) |
| Initial license application fee | $40 |
| License application window | Within 6 months of course completion certificate |
| Minimum age | 18 |
| Retake wait period | 48 hours |
| First-time pass rate (Jan-June 2026) | 62% |
Exam Mechanics at a Glance
The Indiana Life & Health Insurance Producer Exam is a closed-book, computer-based test delivered at Pearson VUE test centers and Ivy Tech locations across the state. There is no bring-your-own-calculator option and no reference sheet handed out at the terminal - everything you need to answer a question has to already be in your head. That single fact shapes how you should study far more than any generic tip about flashcards.
Of the 150 multiple-choice questions on the screen, only 135 actually count toward your score. The other 15 are unscored pretest items the state uses to evaluate future questions. You won't know which is which, so the practical implication is simple: treat every question as if it counts, and don't burn mental energy trying to guess which ones are "throwaways."
With a 3-hour limit spread across 150 questions, you have roughly 72 seconds per question on average - generous for a licensing exam of this type, but not enough time to second-guess every answer. Candidates who struggle with pacing tend to over-analyze early questions in Domain 1 and 2 and then rush through the later health and regulation domains. For a deeper look at where candidates typically lose time, the INLH difficulty guide breaks down common pacing mistakes by domain.
Key Takeaway
Budget your practice-exam time the same way you'll budget real exam time: roughly 70 seconds per question, with a hard stop to flag-and-move-on rather than stall.
Domain Breakdown Cheat Sheet
The Indiana outline splits the exam into 12 content domains covering life insurance, health insurance, and Indiana-specific regulation. Below is the fast-reference version - the "what it is, what to remember" summary. For the long-form version with sample question styles, see the complete domain guide.
Domain 1 - Life: Types of Policies
Covers term, whole, universal, and variable life products.
- Know the structural differences between term and permanent coverage before memorizing riders.
Domain 2 - Life: Provisions, Options, and Exclusions
Focuses on nonforfeiture options, settlement options, and standard policy exclusions.
- Grace period, reinstatement, and incontestability clauses show up repeatedly in scenario questions.
Domain 3 - Life: Application, Underwriting, and Delivery
Tests the mechanics of getting a policy from application to in-force status.
- Understand conditional receipts and the free-look period timeline.
Domain 4 - Life: Retirement and Other Insurance Concepts
Blends annuities, qualified plans, and taxation basics.
- Distinguish qualified vs. nonqualified plan taxation - a frequent trap on this exam.
Domain 5 - Health: Types of Policies
Disability income, medical expense, and long-term care structures.
- Compare indemnity vs. managed-care style plans side by side.
Domain 6 - Health: Policy Provisions, Clauses, and Riders
Mandatory and optional provisions plus common riders.
- Coordination of benefits questions often hinge on definitions, not math.
Domain 7 - Health: Social Insurance
Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security disability basics.
- Memorize the four parts of Medicare and what each one covers.
Domain 8 - Health: Other Insurance Concepts
Group vs. individual coverage, HSAs, and COBRA-style continuation concepts.
- Eligibility periods and continuation rights are commonly tested.
Domain 9 - Health: Field Underwriting Procedures
Application accuracy, replacement rules, and producer responsibilities.
- Know what a producer must disclose at the point of sale.
Domain 10 - Indiana Laws and Department Rules Common to All Lines
The largest domain on the exam at 14.8% of scored content - it deserves outsized attention.
- Licensing, appointments, and unfair trade practice rules are core here.
Domain 11 - Life Regulations
Indiana-specific statutes governing life insurance producers and products.
- Pair this with Domain 1-4 review so state rules reinforce product knowledge.
Domain 12 - Health Regulations
Indiana-specific statutes governing health insurance producers and products.
- Study alongside Domains 5-9 for the same reinforcement effect.
Licensing Checklist
Passing the exam is only one step in becoming a licensed Indiana producer. The full eligibility path, laid out plainly, looks like this:
- Be at least 18 years old.
- Complete 40 hours of Indiana Department of Insurance-approved Life and Health prelicensing education.
- Pass the Life & Health Producer exam with a score of 70% or higher.
- File your license application within six months of the date on your course completion certificate.
- Pay the $40 initial application fee.
Miss that six-month window and your course completion certificate expires, meaning you'd need to retake the prelicensing course before applying - an expensive and time-consuming mistake. Build your exam date backward from that deadline, not the other way around. For a fuller walkthrough of eligibility edge cases, see INLH Requirements 2026, and for the exact score math behind that 70% threshold, check INLH Passing Score 2026.
Key Takeaway
Treat your course completion certificate date as a countdown clock - schedule your Pearson VUE or Ivy Tech exam slot well inside that six-month window, not at the last minute.
Test Day Rules
The exam is closed-book. That means no personal calculators, no notes, no reference sheets, and no phone at your station. Everything is administered on-screen at a Pearson VUE test center or an Ivy Tech testing site. If a question involves basic arithmetic - like calculating a grace period or a benefit amount - you're expected to work it out mentally or on scratch material provided at the center, not with an outside device.
If you don't pass on your first attempt, Indiana requires a 48-hour wait before you're eligible to retake the exam. That's not a long window, but it's also not zero - plan your retake strategy around it rather than assuming you can walk back in the next morning. Candidates who fail typically underestimate Domain 10, 11, or 12 (the regulation-heavy sections) rather than the product-knowledge domains, according to patterns discussed in the INLH Study Guide.
Renewal & CE Facts
Passing the exam and getting licensed isn't the finish line - Indiana producer licenses renew every two years on the last day of your birth month. To renew, you'll need 24 continuing education hours, including 3 hours specifically in ethics. Missing these deadlines can lapse your license, so many producers set renewal reminders tied to their birth month rather than a calendar year.
Understanding this renewal cycle early matters for career planning too. If you're weighing whether the licensing effort pays off long-term, the ROI analysis and salary guide both factor renewal and CE obligations into the bigger picture.
Last-Week Review Plan
With a 12-domain outline and one dominant regulatory domain, your final week should be structured, not random. Here's a domain-focused approach for the last stretch before test day.
Regulatory Core
- Drill Domain 10 (Indiana Laws and Department Rules Common to All Lines) since it's the single heaviest domain at 14.8%.
- Follow with Domains 11 and 12 (Life and Health Regulations) while the state-rule mindset is fresh.
Life Domains
- Review Domains 1-4: policy types, provisions, underwriting, and retirement concepts.
- Focus extra time on nonforfeiture options and qualified plan taxation - frequent scenario-question territory.
Health Domains
- Review Domains 5-9: policy types, provisions, social insurance, other concepts, and field underwriting.
- Nail down Medicare parts and coordination-of-benefits rules.
Full Simulation
- Take a full-length timed practice run at the practice test platform under real 3-hour, 150-question conditions.
- Review missed questions by domain, not just by score, to catch weak spots before exam day.
This structure works because it mirrors the exam's own weighting: heaviest attention to the domain worth the most points, followed by systematic passes through the remaining life and health content. If you want the reasoning behind this sequencing spelled out further, the INLH Study Guide covers weekly planning in more depth, and practice exams are the fastest way to confirm which domains still need work before test day.
FAQ
There are 150 multiple-choice questions total: 135 are scored and 15 are unscored pretest questions used for future exam development. You won't know which is which during the test.
You need to score at least 70% to pass. The exam is timed at 3 hours and administered through Pearson VUE.
No. The exam is closed-book, and personal calculators and reference materials are not allowed at the testing center.
Indiana requires a 48-hour waiting period before you're eligible to retake the Life & Health Producer exam.
You must file your license application within the six-month validity period of your prelicensing course completion certificate, along with the $40 initial application fee.