New York Life and Health Insurance Agent Exam

Need of a License: An individual who is acting as an agent or producer needs a license to sell life and health insurance in New York.

Who Grants a License: Licenses are granted by the New York Department of Financial Services.

Qualifications to receive a License: Individuals who wish to obtain an insurance license in the State of New York:
 
1. Be at least eighteen (18) years of age.
2. Be a resident of New York.
3. Complete prelicensing education requirements.
4. Pay fees and pass the examination.
5. Apply for a license.
 
Completing Prelicensing Education Requirements: Prelicensing education requirements have been established to ensure that license candidates have a minimum level of knowledge about the insurance marketplace and related New York State laws and regulations. Forty hours are required for the life and health insurance agent license. A list of approved providers and courses is available on the Department’s Web site at www.dfs.ny.gov or by calling the Department at 518.474.6630. Once you complete a prelicensing course, the course provider will issue a Prelicensing Education School Certificate certifying your satisfactory completion of the course. This certificate must be submitted to the Department with your application.
 
Applying for the Producer Exam:  Examinations are administered by the independent testing service, PSI. Registration and examination information can be found in the New York Licensing Information Bulletin, which should be reviewed thoroughly prior to registering for the exam. To register and schedule an exam online. You may also register and schedule your examination by phone or fax. Please see the New York Licensing Information Bulletin for further details. Direct all questions and requests for information about exams to:
Test Information: Each exam will cover the New York statutes and general principles sections, as well as the specific content for each line. Be sure to review the appropriate exam content outline to determine what topics are covered in the comprehensive exams. At the end of your exam, your score will be shown on the screen and you will receive a printed score report. The report indicates your overall score and grade, including the numerical percentage of questions answered correctly and whether you passed or failed. The New York Licensing Information Bulletin contains specific content information beyond the following general outlines:
 
New York Life, Accident, and Health Insurance Agent/Broker Examination
Series 17-55 (150 questions – 2.5 hour time limit)
1.0 Insurance Regulation 7%
1.1 Licensing
1.2 State regulation
1.3 Federal regulation
2.0 General Insurance 4%
2.1 Concepts
2.2 Insurers
2.3 Agents and general rules of agency
2.4 Contracts
3.0 Life Insurance Basics 8%
3.1 Insurable interest (3205)
3.2 Personal uses of life insurance
3.3 Determining amount of personal life insurance
3.4 Business uses of life insurance
3.5 Differences in life insurance policies
3.6 Factors in premium determination
3.7 Licensee responsibilities
3.8 Individual underwriting by the insurer
4.0 Life Insurance Policies 8%
4.1 Term life insurance
4.2 Whole life insurance
4.3 Flexible premium policies
4.4 Specialized policies
4.5 Group life insurance
4.6 Credit life insurance
5.0 Life Insurance Policy Provisions, Options and Riders 10%
5.1 Required provisions (3203)
5.2 Beneficiaries
5.3 Settlement options
5.4 Nonforfeiture options
5.5 Policy loan and withdrawal options
5.6 Dividend options
5.7 Disability riders
5.8 Accelerated (living) benefit provisions/riders
5.9 Riders covering additional insureds
5.10 Riders affecting the death benefit amount
6.0 Annuities 7%
6.1 Annuity principles and concepts
6.2 Required provisions
6.3 Immediate versus deferred annuities
6.4 Annuity (benefit) payment options
6.5 Annuity products
6.6 Personal Uses of annuities
6.7 Suitability in Annuity Transactions
7.0 Federal Tax Considerations for Life Insurance and Annuities 1%
7.1 Taxation of personal life insurance
7.2 Rollovers and transfers (IRAs and qualified plans)
7.3 Section 1035 exchanges
8.0 Qualified Plans 1%
8.1 General requirements
8.2 Plan types, characteristics and purchasers
8.3 Section 529 plan characteristics (college savings programs)
9.0 Life Settlement 5%
9.1 Definitions
9.2 Broker License Requirements
9.3 Intermediary Registration
9.4 Provider License
9.5 Fingerprinting Requirements
9.6 Advertising
9.7 Privacy
9.8 Disclosure to owners and insureds
9.9 Life Insurance Applications
9.10 Prohibited Practices
9.11 Stranger-originated life insurance
9.12 Penalties and civil remedies
9.13 Applicability and choice of law
9.14 General Rules
10.0 Accident and Health Insurance Basics 5%
10.1 Definitions of perils
10.2 Principal types of losses and benefits
10.3 Classes of accident and health insurance coverage Individual, sole proprietor, franchise and group
10.4 Types of Limited policies
10.5 Common exclusions from coverage
10.6 Licensee responsibilities in individual accident and health insurance
10.7 Considerations in replacing accident and health insurance
10.8 Community rating of policies
11.0 Individual Health Insurance Policy General Provisions 4%
11.1 Required provisions
11.2 Other provisions
11.3 Other general provisions
12.0 Disability Income and Related Insurance 5%
12.1 Qualifying for disability benefits
12.2 Individual disability income insurance
12.3 Group disability income insurance
12.4 Business disability insurance
13.0 Medical Plans 7%
13.1 Medical plan concepts
13.2 Types of plans
13.3 Cost containment in health care delivery
13.4 New York mandated benefits and offers
13.5 HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) requirements
13.6 Federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
14.0 Long-term Care (LTC) Insurance 10%
14.1 Benefits
14.2 New York regulations and required provisions
15.0 Group Health and Blanket Insurance 6%
15.1 Characteristics of group insurance
15.2 Types of eligible groups
15.3 Regulation of employer group insurance plans
15.4 Types of funding and administration
15.6 Employer group health insurance
15.7 Small employer medical plans
16.0 Government Health Insurance Plans 6%
16.1 Worker's compensation
16.2 Social Security Disability
16.3 New York State Disability
16.4 Medicaid
16.5 Medicare
16.6 Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) and Health Savings Accounts (HSAs)
16.7 Healthy New York
17.0 Private Insurance for Senior Citizens and Special Needs Individuals 6%
17.1 Medicare supplements
17.2 Other Medicare options for individuals
 
How to Apply for the License: After passing the licensing exam (if an exam is required), you will need to
submit/process your license application to the Department, along with any other required paperwork for the type of license you are seeking. You may obtain license application information from the Department’s Website at www.dfs.ny.gov.

Direct additional questions about licensure to:
 
New York State Department of Financial Services
One Commerce Plaza, Suite 2003
Albany, NY 12257
Phone: 518.474.6630
Email: licensing@dfs.ny.gov
Visit the Department’s Web site at http://www.dfs.ny.gov
 
License Renewal Requirements: Individual Producer licenses must be renewed every two years and there is a continuing education requirement.

Applicable Regulations: Life and health insurance agents in New York are regulated by the New York Department of Financial Services.
 

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