How Many Questions Are on the South Carolina Life & Health Exam? Format, Time Limit and Passing Score (2026)

The combined South Carolina Life, Accident and Health producer exam has 130 scored questions and 10 unscored pretest questions, for 140 items in all. You get 150 minutes. The passing score is a scaled 70 on a 0 to 100 scale. Pearson VUE administers it and the fee is $59 per attempt. The outline described below took effect on September 15, 2026.

South Carolina lets you choose between a combined exam and two separate single-line exams. All three are delivered by Pearson VUE and all three cost $59 per attempt.

• Life, Accident and Health (InsSC-LAH03): 130 scored questions (100 general, 30 South Carolina-specific), 10 pretest, 140 items in total, 150 minutes.
• Life (InsSC-Life01): 75 scored questions (50 general, 25 South Carolina-specific), 10 pretest, 85 items in total, 120 minutes.
• Accident and Health (InsSC-AH02): 75 scored questions (50 general, 25 South Carolina-specific), 10 pretest, 85 items in total, 120 minutes.

Sitting the combined exam once costs $59. Sitting the two single-line exams separately costs $59 each, $118 in total. If you want both lines of authority, the combined exam is the cheaper route per attempt.

Only the scored questions count toward your result. The pretest items, 5 in the general portion and 5 in the South Carolina portion of the combined exam, are unscored questions. Treat every item as if it counts.

The passing score is a scaled score of 70 on a 0 to 100 scale, set by the South Carolina Department of Insurance. Regulation 69-23 independently refers to seventy points. Because the score is scaled, do not assume it equals 70% of questions answered correctly. The cut score is set on the scale, and we have no published conversion to a raw number of correct answers, so plan to answer as many questions correctly as you can.

The combined exam returns a single score. The Pearson VUE handbook states that to be licensed you must pass the complete exam, and that you cannot be licensed for either single line unless you pass it. There is no partial credit for passing the life portion alone or the health portion alone.

General knowledge portion (100 scored questions):

• I. Life: Types of Policies, 15 items (11.5%)
• II. Life: Policy Riders, Provisions, Options, and Exclusions, 15 items (11.5%)
• III. Life: Completing the Application, Underwriting, and Delivering the Policy, 12 items (9.2%)
• IV. Life: Retirement and Other Insurance Concepts, 8 items (6.2%)
• V. Accident & Sickness: Types of Policies, 16 items (12.3%)
• VI. Accident & Sickness: Policy Provisions, Clauses, and Riders, 15 items (11.5%)
• VII. Social Insurance, 6 items (4.6%)
• VIII. Accident and Sickness: Other Insurance Concepts, 5 items (3.8%)
• IX. Accident and Sickness: Field Underwriting Procedures, 8 items (6.2%)

South Carolina-specific portion (30 scored questions):

• I. South Carolina Laws and Regulations Pertinent to All Lines, 18 items (13.8%)
• II. South Carolina Laws and Regulations Pertinent to Life Insurance, 6 items (4.6%)
• III. South Carolina Laws and Regulations Pertinent to Accident & Health Insurance, 6 items (4.6%)

The percentages are shares of the 130 scored items. The state-specific sections cite parts of Title 38 (general definitions, penalties, the Department's powers, examinations, the Life and Accident and Health Insurance Guaranty Association, licensing, unfair discrimination and fraud, unfair trade practices, claims settlement, group and individual life provisions, and individual and group accident and health) and regulations on replacement, long-term care, Medicare supplement, continuing education and consumer privacy.

The weights tell you where the marks are. The all-lines South Carolina law section is the single largest block, and the Accident and Sickness types-of-policies section is second. Our topic practice sets follow the outline: see the free practice question hub, then take the full course from the course preview. If the format worries you, read how hard the exam really is, and what happens at the testing center in our exam day guide.