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

5 min read|Updated 2026-10-23

The Format at a Glance

Tennessee Life, Accident & Health licensing uses two exams, both delivered by Pearson VUE. They share one profile.

Item	Life Agent exam	Accident and Health Agent exam
Scored questions	68 (50 general knowledge + 18 Tennessee-specific)	68 (50 general knowledge + 18 Tennessee-specific)
Unscored pretest questions	9 (5 + 4)	9 (5 + 4)
Total items delivered	77	77
Time limit	1 hour 45 minutes (105 minutes)	1 hour 45 minutes (105 minutes)
Passing score	Scaled 70 on a 0-100 scale	Scaled 70 on a 0-100 scale
Fee per attempt at a test center	$55	$55

Scored and Unscored Questions

Each exam delivers 77 items, but only 68 are scored. The other 9 are pretest questions: 5 in the general-knowledge part and 4 in the Tennessee part. Pretest items are unscored, so they cannot raise or lower your result. Treat every question as if it counts, because you cannot tell which is which. Across both exams the scored total is 136.

The general-knowledge and Tennessee-specific content is sat together in one sitting and scored together. Each exam must be taken alone in one session at a physical test center.

The Passing Score

The passing mark is a scaled score of 70 on a 0-100 scale. It is not a raw count of correct answers and not a percentage. A scaled score is converted from your performance, so do not expect to translate it into a number of questions you can afford to miss.

Life Exam: Outline Sections and Weights

Section	Items
I. Types of Policies	15
II. Policy Riders, Provisions, Options, and Exclusions	15
III. Completing the Application, Underwriting, and Delivering the Policies	12
IV. Retirement and Other Insurance Concepts	8
V. Tennessee Laws and Departmental Rules Common to Life, Accident and Health, Property and Casualty Insurance	14
VI. Tennessee Laws and Departmental Rules Pertinent to Life Insurance Only	4

Sections I to IV are the 50 scored general-knowledge questions; sections V and VI are the 18 scored Tennessee questions.

Accident and Health Exam: Outline Sections and Weights

Section	Items
I. Types of Policies	16
II. Policy Provisions, Clauses, and Riders	15
III. Social Insurance	6
IV. Other Insurance Concepts	5
V. Field Underwriting Procedures	8
VI. Tennessee Laws and Departmental Rules Common to Life, Accident and Health, Property and Casualty Insurance	14
VII. Tennessee Laws and Departmental Rules Pertinent to Accident and Health Insurance Only	4

Section VII includes the Affordable Care Act, Medicare supplement, long-term care and mandated coverages. These weights come from the Pearson VUE content outline effective October 7, 2026. The only Life or Accident and Health changes from the previous outline are a military sales practices item and an annuity suitability rule reference in the Life Tennessee section; item counts and weights are otherwise unchanged.

Two Exams, Not One

Tennessee does not offer a single merged Life and Accident & Health exam. Each exam covers one line and is scored independently, so passing one has no effect on the other. Someone who wants both lines sits both. If both are taken online through OnVUE, Pearson VUE sells an $80 bundle for the pair, compared with $110 for two $55 test-center sittings. That is a pricing bundle, not a merged exam.

Candidates who need extra time because English is a second language may request 1.5 times the time with a letter from an instructor or employer. No other language accommodation is granted, and the exams are delivered in English.