- AZ P&C stands for the Arizona Examination for Property and Casualty Insurance Producer, a licensing exam, not a certificate program.
- PSI administers it as Series 13-34 under the Arizona Department of Insurance and Financial Institutions.
- The exam costs $59, has 150 scored questions plus 5-10 unscored items, and runs 2 hours 30 minutes.
- You need 70% to pass, and Arizona requires no prelicensing education - just fingerprinting for residents.
What AZ P&C Actually Means
AZ P&C stands for the Arizona Examination for Property and Casualty Insurance Producer. It is the state licensing exam that anyone who wants to sell property and casualty insurance in Arizona must pass. The abbreviation gets reused across the insurance and financial-services world for other things, so if you're researching this term, make sure whatever you're reading is actually about the Arizona producer exam and not a different credential that happens to share the same three letters.
In plain terms, AZ P&C is a test of whether you understand insurance regulation, policy structure, and the specific coverages that make up property and casualty lines - from homeowners policies to commercial general liability. Passing it is the gateway to becoming a licensed P&C producer in Arizona. It is not a voluntary professional certification you add to a resume for prestige; it's a mandatory checkpoint enforced by state regulators before you can legally transact P&C insurance business.
Who Governs and Administers the Exam
The exam is governed by the Arizona Department of Insurance and Financial Institutions (DIFI), the state regulator responsible for insurance licensing in Arizona. DIFI sets the content outline, the passing standard, and the licensing rules. Actual test delivery is handled by PSI, a third-party testing vendor, under the designation Series 13-34.
This two-party structure is standard for state insurance exams: the regulator decides what should be tested and why, while the testing company builds the delivery infrastructure - test centers, scheduling, scoring, and identity verification. When you register, you're registering with PSI, but the rules you're being held to (fingerprinting, retake limits, content weighting) come from DIFI.
Exam Format, Fees, and Logistics
Here's exactly what you're walking into on test day:
- Exam fee: $59
- Question count: 150 scored multiple-choice questions, plus 5 to 10 unscored experimental items mixed in (you won't know which ones are experimental)
- Time allowed: 2 hours 30 minutes
- Passing score: 70%
- Format: Closed-book, multiple choice
- Delivery method: PSI test centers or live online proctoring
Because the exam is closed-book, you can't bring reference sheets, notes, or a calculator unless PSI provides one on-screen. This puts a premium on memorization of policy terminology and coverage triggers rather than reasoning through an open reference. The unscored experimental items are worth mentioning because they mean your raw question count (150-160 questions on screen) won't match your scored total - don't waste time trying to guess which items count.
For the full pricing picture, including how the $59 fee fits alongside other licensing costs, see AZ P&C Certification Cost 2026: Complete Pricing Breakdown. If you want a calendar-style breakdown of scheduling windows, check AZ P&C Exam Dates 2026: Testing Windows, Deadlines & Scheduling.
Key Takeaway
70% of 150 scored questions means you need roughly 105 correct answers. Treat that number as your internal benchmark while practicing - see AZ P&C Passing Score 2026: Exactly What You Need to Pass for the full math.
The 13 Content Domains Explained
The current content outline takes effect June 1, 2026, and it organizes the exam into 13 domains. Understanding the weighting is the single most useful thing you can do before opening a study guide, because it tells you exactly where your study hours should go.
Domain 4: Property and Casualty Insurance Basics (19%)
This is the largest domain by a wide margin, covering foundational concepts that apply across every policy type - legal principles of insurance contracts, policy provisions, and underwriting basics.
- Insurable interest, indemnity, and subrogation
- Policy structure: declarations, insuring agreement, exclusions, conditions
- Underwriting and rating fundamentals
Domain 3: General Insurance Concepts (11%) & Domain 6: Homeowners Policy Concepts (11%) & Domain 7: Personal Automobile Policy (11%)
These three domains tie for second-largest weight and together make up a third of the exam. Expect deep coverage of policy forms, endorsements, and standard vs. optional coverages.
- ISO homeowners forms and coverage parts
- Personal auto liability, medical payments, and uninsured motorist coverage
- Risk management and loss control terminology
Domain 5: Dwelling Policy Concepts (8%), Domain 9: Commercial Property Policies (9%), Domain 10: Commercial General Liability (9%)
These mid-weight domains test whether you can distinguish personal lines from commercial lines coverage triggers and exclusions.
- Dwelling policy forms DP-1, DP-2, DP-3 distinctions
- Commercial property causes of loss forms
- CGL occurrence vs. claims-made triggers
The remaining domains - Insurance Regulation (5%), Businessowners Policy (5%), Commercial Automobile Policy (4%), Federal Laws and Regulations (2%), Other Types of Property and Casualty Insurance (3%), and Workers' Compensation Laws (3%) - carry lighter individual weight but still appear on every exam form. Skipping them entirely because they're "only worth a few percent" is a common mistake; collectively they represent over 20% of the exam.
| Domain | Weight |
|---|---|
| Property and Casualty Insurance Basics | 19% |
| General Insurance Concepts | 11% |
| Homeowners Policy Concepts | 11% |
| Personal Automobile Policy | 11% |
| Commercial Property Policies | 9% |
| Commercial General Liability | 9% |
| Dwelling Policy Concepts | 8% |
| Insurance Regulation | 5% |
| Businessowners Policy | 5% |
| Commercial Automobile Policy | 4% |
| Other P&C Insurance Types | 3% |
| Workers' Compensation Laws | 3% |
| Federal Laws and Regulations | 2% |
For a domain-by-domain study breakdown with subtopics inside each area, see AZ P&C Exam Domains 2026: Complete Guide to All 13 Content Areas.
Eligibility and Fingerprinting Requirements
One thing that surprises out-of-state candidates: Arizona does not require prelicensing education before you sit the exam. You are free to self-study using any materials you choose, including practice questions on the main practice test site. This is different from many other states, so don't assume you need a mandatory course hour count before registering.
What Arizona does require is electronic fingerprinting for resident applicants, which is part of the background check process tied to license issuance rather than exam eligibility itself. Because the fingerprinting step is procedural and separate from studying, candidates often overlook it until late in the process - plan for it early so it doesn't delay your license after you pass.
A full walkthrough of every eligibility step, including what happens after you pass, lives at AZ P&C Requirements 2026: Eligibility, Prerequisites & How to Qualify.
Retake Rules If You Don't Pass
If you don't clear 70% on your first try, Arizona's rules give you room to retry, but with real limits. You may attempt the exam up to four times within a 12-month period. If you fail a fourth time, you must wait one full year before attempting again. This makes preparation strategy matter more than it might in states with unlimited retakes - burning through attempts quickly without adjusting your study approach can put you in that year-long holding pattern.
Who Actually Takes This Exam
The AZ P&C exam is taken by people pursuing careers as independent agents, captive agents for carriers, brokerage staff, and account managers at agencies that sell homeowners, auto, commercial property, and liability coverage in Arizona. It's also common among career-changers moving from claims or underwriting support roles into producer roles, since those backgrounds already touch several of the tested domains.
Employers hiring for these roles include regional and national P&C carriers, independent insurance agencies, and brokerages that need Arizona-licensed producers to legally bind and sell policies in the state. If you're weighing whether pursuing this license fits your career plans, AZ P&C Salary Guide 2026: Complete Earnings Analysis and Is the AZ P&C Certification Worth It? Complete ROI Analysis 2026 go into more depth, and AZ P&C Jobs covers the kinds of roles that require this license.
How to Prepare Around the Domain Weights
Because Property and Casualty Insurance Basics carries the most weight at 19%, it deserves the first and largest block of your study time - not because it's necessarily the hardest, but because a point lost there costs you more than a point lost in Federal Laws and Regulations at 2%. From there, work through the three 11% domains (General Insurance Concepts, Homeowners Policy Concepts, Personal Automobile Policy) before moving to the mid-weight commercial domains.
Foundations
- Property and Casualty Insurance Basics (19%)
- General Insurance Concepts (11%)
Personal Lines
- Homeowners Policy Concepts (11%)
- Dwelling Policy Concepts (8%)
- Personal Automobile Policy (11%)
Commercial Lines
- Commercial Property Policies (9%)
- Commercial General Liability (9%)
- Commercial Automobile Policy (4%)
- Businessowners Policy (5%)
Regulation and Review
- Insurance Regulation (5%)
- Federal Laws and Regulations (2%)
- Workers' Compensation Laws (3%)
- Other P&C Insurance Types (3%)
- Full timed practice runs
Spacing your review sessions across these four weeks, rather than cramming domain content in one sitting, works well specifically because the heaviest domains (Basics, Homeowners, Auto) benefit from repeated exposure across multiple study sessions before test day. Run full-length timed practice sets in the final week using the practice test platform so the 2-hour-30-minute pacing feels familiar before you sit for the real thing.
For a complete pass strategy that goes beyond scheduling, see AZ P&C Study Guide 2026: How to Pass on Your First Attempt, and for an honest read on difficulty, How Hard Is the AZ P&C Exam? Complete Difficulty Guide 2026 is worth reading before you set your study timeline.
Key Takeaway
Weight your study hours to match domain weight: Property and Casualty Insurance Basics at 19% deserves roughly four times the attention of Federal Laws and Regulations at 2%.
Frequently Asked Questions
AZ P&C stands for the Arizona Examination for Property and Casualty Insurance Producer, the state licensing exam administered by PSI as Series 13-34 under DIFI oversight.
No. Arizona does not require prelicensing education. Resident applicants do need to complete electronic fingerprinting as part of the licensing process.
There are 150 scored multiple-choice questions plus 5 to 10 unscored experimental items, with 2 hours 30 minutes to complete the exam.
You need 70% correct on the scored questions to pass.
You may attempt the exam up to four times within a 12-month period. After a fourth failed attempt, you must wait one year before trying again.