- What the NY-LAH Certification Actually Covers
- The Regulator, the Test Vendor, and How the Exam Works
- Eligibility, Fees, and Licensing Mechanics
- The 18 Domains Behind the NY-LAH Certification
- Who Hires NY-LAH Certified Agents and Brokers
- Building a Domain-Weighted Study Approach
- After You Pass: License, Renewal, and Continuing Education
- Frequently Asked Questions
- NY-LAH is administered via PSI as the Series 17-55 exam: 150 questions, 2 hours 30 minutes, 105 correct to pass.
- The passing threshold is 70%, and the exam fee is $40 per attempt.
- Life Insurance Policy Provisions, Options, and Riders is the single largest domain at 10% of the exam.
- Candidates need 40 hours of DFS-approved prelicensing education and must be at least 18 years old.
What the NY-LAH Certification Actually Covers
The NY-LAH Certification - short for the New York Life, Accident & Health Insurance Agent/Broker Exam - is the state-mandated credential that authorizes producers to sell life insurance, annuities, accident insurance, and health insurance products in New York. If you've landed on this page while searching for basic definitions, you may also want to review What Is NY-LAH?, NY-LAH Meaning, or What Does NY-LAH Stand For? for quick orientation before diving into exam mechanics.
Unlike generic insurance licensing exams in other states, NY-LAH is built around New York's own regulatory framework and product rules, layered on top of federal tax and health-law content. That combination - state insurance regulation plus federal considerations like the Affordable Care Act and qualified retirement plans - is what makes this exam distinct, and it's why generic multi-state study material often falls short for New York candidates.
The Regulator, the Test Vendor, and How the Exam Works
The exam is overseen by the New York State Department of Financial Services and delivered through PSI, the testing vendor that administers the Series 17-55 exam electronically. Candidates can sit for the exam at a physical PSI test center or through remote online proctoring, which gives more scheduling flexibility than a center-only model.
- Format: 150 multiple-choice questions, delivered electronically
- Time allowed: 2 hours 30 minutes
- Passing score: 105 correct answers, or 70%
- Exam fee: $40 per attempt
Because every question is scored against the same 70% threshold, there is no partial credit for "close" domain performance - a candidate who is strong in Annuities but weak in Government Health Insurance Plans still needs the combined total to clear 105 correct answers. For a deeper breakdown of exactly what that threshold means in practice, see NY-LAH Passing Score 2026: Exactly What You Need to Pass.
Key Takeaway
The 70% passing line applies to the exam as a whole, not to each of the 18 domains individually - so uneven preparation across domains can still sink an otherwise strong score.
Eligibility, Fees, and Licensing Mechanics
Before scheduling the Series 17-55 exam, candidates must meet a short list of state requirements:
- Be at least 18 years old
- Complete 40 hours of DFS-approved combined prelicensing education
- Pass the exam and use that passing result for a license application within two years
A full walkthrough of these prerequisites, including how the prelicensing hours are structured, is covered in NY-LAH Requirements 2026: Eligibility, Prerequisites & How to Qualify.
On the money side, the exam fee is $40, separate from any prelicensing course tuition. Once licensed, the individual license fee is also $40 per year or fraction of a year, and licenses can be issued for up to two years at a time. If you're trying to budget the full path from zero to licensed producer, NY-LAH Certification Cost 2026: Complete Pricing Breakdown lays out every fee in sequence.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Exam questions | 150 multiple-choice |
| Time allowed | 2 hours 30 minutes |
| Passing score | 105 correct (70%) |
| Exam fee | $40 |
| Minimum age | 18 |
| Prelicensing education | 40 hours, DFS-approved |
| License fee | $40 per year or fraction of a year |
| License validity | Up to two years per issuance |
If you plan to sell variable life insurance or variable annuities, there's an additional layer: FINRA registration and a CRD number are required on top of the NY-LAH license itself. This matters for candidates targeting broker-dealer-affiliated roles, since variable products sit outside the state-only authority granted by the base license.
The 18 Domains Behind the NY-LAH Certification
The current DFS-linked Series 17-55 topic locator, labeled 2018-2019, organizes exam content into 18 domains. Understanding the relative weight of each domain is the single most useful thing a candidate can do before opening a study guide, because it tells you where your study hours produce the most points. For the complete breakdown with study implications for each area, see NY-LAH Exam Domains 2026: Complete Guide to All 18 Content Areas.
Domain 5: Life Insurance Policy Provisions, Options, and Riders (10%)
This is the largest single domain on the exam and deserves the most concentrated study time. Candidates must understand nonforfeiture options, settlement options, policy loans, riders (waiver of premium, accidental death, guaranteed insurability), and how provisions interact with policyowner rights.
- Nonforfeiture and settlement options
- Common riders and their triggering conditions
- Policy loan mechanics and grace periods
Domain 3 & Domain 4: Life Insurance Basics and Life Insurance Policies (8% each)
Together these two domains account for 16% of the exam and form the conceptual foundation for Domain 5. Expect questions on policy types (term, whole, universal, variable), underwriting classifications, and the structure of a life insurance contract.
Domain 1: Insurance Regulation (7%)
This domain tests knowledge of DFS authority, licensing rules, unfair trade practices, and producer conduct standards specific to New York. It overlaps conceptually with eligibility rules covered elsewhere but focuses on regulatory obligations once licensed.
Domain 6: Annuities (7%)
Covers fixed, variable, and indexed annuity structures, annuitization options, surrender charges, and free-look provisions. Pairs conceptually with Domain 7 (Federal Tax Considerations) since annuity taxation is a frequent cross-domain testing point.
Domains 10-18: Accident, Health, and Specialty Coverage
Nine domains - Accident and Health Insurance Basics, Individual Health Insurance Policy General Provisions, Disability Income and Related Insurance, Medical Plans, Federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Long-Term Care Insurance, Group Health and Blanket Insurance, Government Health Insurance Plans, and Private Insurance for Senior Citizens and Special Needs Individuals - together carry the largest cumulative weight on the health side. Each ranges from 4% to 6%, so no single one dominates, but skipping any of them leaves meaningful points on the table.
- Disability Income and Related Insurance (6%)
- Medical Plans (6%)
- Federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (6%)
- Long-Term Care (LTC) Insurance (6%)
- Private Insurance for Senior Citizens and Special Needs Individuals (6%)
The remaining domains - General Insurance (4%), Federal Tax Considerations for Life Insurance and Annuities (2%), Qualified Plans (2%), Life Settlement (3%), Individual Health Insurance Policy General Provisions (4%), and Group Health and Blanket Insurance (5%) - are lighter in weight individually but still appear reliably on the 150-question exam. Ignoring low-weight domains is a common mistake; even a 2% domain represents multiple guaranteed questions.
Who Hires NY-LAH Certified Agents and Brokers
Holding the NY-LAH license is the entry credential for selling life, accident, and health products anywhere in New York State. It's typically required for roles at:
- Life insurance carriers hiring captive agents to sell individual life and annuity products
- Independent insurance agencies and brokerages placing life, health, and long-term care coverage
- Employee benefits brokers handling group health and blanket insurance placements
- Financial services firms where advisors need life/health authority alongside securities licenses
- Medicare and senior-market specialists working with government health insurance plans and senior-focused private coverage
Because the exam blends life insurance, annuities, and health/accident content in one credential, it's broader than single-line licenses in many other states - which is part of why New York treats it as its own distinct exam rather than splitting it into separate life and health tests. For a candid look at how demanding that breadth makes the exam relative to expectations, read How Hard Is the NY-LAH Exam? Complete Difficulty Guide 2026, and for outcome data specifically, see NY-LAH Pass Rate 2026: What the Data Shows.
If you're weighing whether pursuing this license fits your career plans, Is the NY-LAH Certification Worth It? Complete ROI Analysis 2026 and NY-LAH Salary Guide 2026: Complete Earnings Analysis dig into the earning and career-path side, while NY-LAH Jobs surveys the kinds of roles that list this license as a requirement.
Building a Domain-Weighted Study Approach
Because the NY-LAH exam spans 18 domains with different weights, a flat "study everything equally" plan wastes hours. A more efficient approach allocates study blocks in rough proportion to domain weight, front-loads the heaviest domains, and reserves the final stretch for mixed-domain practice questions that mimic the real 150-question, 2-hour-30-minute format.
Foundation Domains
- Life Insurance Basics (Domain 3) and Life Insurance Policies (Domain 4)
- Insurance Regulation (Domain 1) and General Insurance (Domain 2)
Highest-Weight Content
- Life Insurance Policy Provisions, Options, and Riders (Domain 5) - the 10% domain
- Annuities (Domain 6) and Federal Tax Considerations (Domain 7)
Health and Accident Cluster
- Accident and Health Insurance Basics, Disability Income, Medical Plans
- Affordable Care Act provisions and Long-Term Care Insurance
Specialty and Group Topics
- Group Health and Blanket Insurance, Government Health Insurance Plans
- Private Insurance for Senior Citizens and Special Needs Individuals, Life Settlement, Qualified Plans
Full Timed Simulation
- Complete 150-question practice runs under the 2 hour 30 minute limit
- Review missed questions by domain, not just overall score
Timed, full-length practice under real conditions matters more here than generic flashcard drilling, since the 105-correct threshold applies across all 18 domains at once. You can run untimed and timed domain-specific quizzes plus full simulated exams through the practice platform on the NY-LAH practice test site, which tracks performance by domain so you can see exactly where you're losing points before test day. For a structured week-by-week plan built around these same weights, see NY-LAH Study Guide 2026: How to Pass on Your First Attempt, and for a condensed reference you can review the night before, check NY-LAH Cheat Sheet 2026: One-Page Review of Must-Know Facts.
After You Pass: License, Renewal, and Continuing Education
Passing the Series 17-55 exam is not the finish line - it's the trigger for a license application, which must be submitted within two years of your passing result. Once issued, the license runs for up to two years, and the license fee is $40 per year or fraction of a year covered by that term.
Renewal rules change once you've held the license a while: after a license has been in effect for more than two years, renewal requires 15 continuing-education credits. Budget for this early, since CE requirements catch some producers off guard when their first renewal cycle arrives. Scheduling matters too - testing is available at PSI centers and via remote online proctoring, so plan your exam date around your prelicensing course completion and any personal deadlines. See NY-LAH Exam Dates 2026: Testing Windows, Deadlines & Scheduling for how to time this correctly.
For readers still clarifying terminology across the site's broader coverage, related explainer pieces include What Is A NY-LAH?, What Does NY-LAH Mean?, What Is NY-LAH Certification?, and NY-LAH Training, which covers how prelicensing coursework fits into the overall path described here.
Frequently Asked Questions
The Series 17-55 exam has 150 multiple-choice questions, and candidates are given 2 hours 30 minutes to complete it electronically.
You need 105 correct answers out of 150, which equals 70%, to pass the exam.
The exam fee is $40 per attempt, separate from prelicensing education costs and the subsequent license fee.
Life Insurance Policy Provisions, Options, and Riders is the largest domain, accounting for 10% of the exam content.
Yes. Selling variable life insurance or variable annuities requires FINRA registration and a CRD number in addition to the state license.