- ND-PC stands for the North Dakota Property & Casualty Insurance Producer Exam, administered by PSI Services LLC.
- Property and Casualty are separate 110-question exams, each requiring 70% (77 correct) within 150 minutes.
- North Dakota Laws and Regulations is the single largest content area on both exams: 27.3% of Casualty, 23.6% of Property.
- Passing scores lead to licensure through the North Dakota Insurance & Securities Department, not a standalone "certification."
What ND-PC Actually Means
ND-PC stands for the North Dakota Property & Casualty Insurance Producer Exam. It is the state-mandated licensing test that anyone who wants to sell, solicit, or negotiate property and casualty insurance in North Dakota must pass before applying for a producer license. The North Dakota Insurance & Securities Department sets the licensing rules, while PSI Services LLC is the vendor that builds, schedules, and scores the actual exams.
That distinction matters because the letters "ND-PC" get used loosely online, sometimes attached to unrelated credentials in other industries. On this site, and in every fact below, ND-PC refers exclusively to the North Dakota insurance producer licensing exam covering property and casualty lines. If you landed here searching for a broader definition, this article - and the companion piece What Is ND-PC? - will keep you anchored to the correct meaning.
Two Exams, One Name
A subtlety hidden inside the "ND-PC" label is that it actually covers two distinct exams - Property and Casualty - that are scheduled, scored, and priced separately. Candidates who want both lines of authority must sit for and pass each exam independently. There is no combined "PC" exam that tests both bodies of knowledge in a single sitting.
- Each exam costs $64.
- Each contains 110 scored questions, plus 5-10 unscored experimental questions that don't count toward your score but are indistinguishable from scored items.
- Candidates get 150 minutes per exam.
- A passing score is 70%, meaning 77 correct scored answers out of 110.
If you're unsure exactly how that threshold is calculated or what it means for your margin for error, the breakdown in ND-PC Passing Score 2026: Exactly What You Need to Pass walks through the math in detail.
Exam Format and Mechanics
Both the Property exam and the Casualty exam are delivered as computer-based, multiple-choice tests at PSI-authorized testing centers or approved remote-proctoring setups. There's no essay component, no simulation, and no oral portion - every question has a single best answer among the choices given.
Retakes are unlimited, so a failed attempt on either exam doesn't close the door - you simply reschedule and pay the exam fee again. Scores remain valid for one year from the date you pass, which is the window you have to complete the rest of the licensing process before you'd need to retest.
Key Takeaway
Because retakes are unlimited but each attempt costs $64 per exam, treat your first sitting seriously rather than planning on a "practice run." Review the domain weightings before you schedule anything.
The exam content itself, along with registration mechanics, is documented in the state-hosted PSI candidate bulletin, currently dated December 27, 2024. That bulletin is the authoritative source for content outlines, and it's worth cross-referencing against any third-party prep material - including the domain-by-domain breakdown in ND-PC Exam Domains 2026: Complete Guide to All 20 Content Areas.
What the Domains Tell You About the Meaning
One of the clearest ways to understand what "ND-PC" actually tests is to look at how the content is organized. Each exam - Property and Casualty - is broken into ten domains, for twenty total across the ND-PC exam pair.
Property Exam Domains
The Property exam moves from regulatory fundamentals into specific policy mechanics.
- Insurance Regulation
- North Dakota Laws and Regulations Pertinent to Property Insurance
- Federal Laws and Regulations
- General Insurance
- Property Insurance Basics
- Dwelling Policy Concepts
- Homeowners Policy Concepts
- Commercial Property Policies
- Businessowners Policy
- Other Types of Property Insurance - Purpose and General Characteristics
Casualty Exam Domains
The Casualty exam follows a parallel structure but shifts toward liability and auto-related lines.
- Insurance Regulation
- North Dakota Laws and Regulations Pertinent to Casualty Insurance
- Federal Laws and Regulations
- General Insurance
- Casualty Insurance Basics
- Personal Automobile Insurance
- Commercial Automobile Policy
- Commercial General Liability
- Other Types of Casualty Insurance
- Workers' Compensation Laws
Notice that on both exams, the North Dakota Laws and Regulations domain carries the most weight of any single area - 27.3% of the Casualty exam and 23.6% of the Property exam. That's not a coincidence; it reflects the fact that the ND-PC exam exists specifically to confirm you know North Dakota's producer statutes and rules, not just generic insurance theory. A study plan that treats state law as "one more topic" instead of the anchor topic is misreading what ND-PC is designed to measure.
| Attribute | Property Exam | Casualty Exam |
|---|---|---|
| Scored questions | 110 | 110 |
| Unscored experimental items | 5-10 | 5-10 |
| Time allowed | 150 minutes | 150 minutes |
| Passing score | 70% (77 correct) | 70% (77 correct) |
| Fee | $64 | $64 |
| Largest domain | ND Laws & Regulations (23.6%) | ND Laws & Regulations (27.3%) |
For a full sense of how difficult this content mix feels in practice - not just on paper - see How Hard Is the ND-PC Exam? Complete Difficulty Guide 2026.
Who Uses the ND-PC Credential
Passing the ND-PC exams isn't an academic exercise - it's the gateway to a specific type of employment. Independent agencies, captive insurance companies, banks with insurance divisions, and brokerages operating in North Dakota all require producers to hold active Property and/or Casualty lines of authority before they can legally quote or bind coverage. Because North Dakota does not require a prelicensing course, many candidates come from adjacent backgrounds - claims, underwriting support, customer service at an agency - and use the ND-PC exams as their entry point into a licensed producer role.
Employers hiring for these roles are typically looking for someone who already holds, or is actively pursuing, both lines, since most personal-lines and commercial-lines books of business touch both property exposures (homes, buildings, business property) and casualty exposures (auto, general liability, workers' compensation). If you're trying to gauge how this credential translates into actual job openings and compensation ranges, ND-PC Jobs and ND-PC Salary Guide 2026: Complete Earnings Analysis go deeper into that side of the picture.
From Exam Meaning to Active License
Passing the exam is a milestone, not the finish line. To actually hold a North Dakota producer license, you need to satisfy the full set of requirements the state attaches to the ND-PC process:
- Be at least 18 years old.
- Reside in North Dakota or maintain a principal place of business there.
- Pass each line's exam you're requesting (Property, Casualty, or both).
- Complete a fingerprint-based criminal history check.
- Apply through NIPR while your exam score is still valid - remember, scores expire after one year.
- Pay the $100 initial license fee.
Once licensed, the work isn't finished either. North Dakota producer licenses renew biennially, due by the last day of your birth month, for a $25 renewal fee, and you must complete 24 continuing education hours every renewal cycle, including 3 hours of ethics. A detailed eligibility walkthrough, including edge cases for out-of-state applicants, is available in ND-PC Requirements 2026: Eligibility, Prerequisites & How to Qualify. For a complete cost picture spanning exam fees through renewal fees, see ND-PC Certification Cost 2026: Complete Pricing Breakdown.
Turning the Meaning Into a Study Plan
Understanding what ND-PC stands for is the easy part; converting that understanding into a passing score requires sequencing your review around the domain weights rather than studying everything equally. Since North Dakota Laws and Regulations dominates both exams, it deserves the first and most repeated review block, not an afterthought squeezed in near test day.
Regulatory Foundation
- North Dakota Laws and Regulations (both exams)
- Insurance Regulation and Federal Laws and Regulations domains
Property-Specific Policy Concepts
- Property Insurance Basics, Dwelling Policy Concepts, Homeowners Policy Concepts
- Commercial Property Policies and Businessowners Policy
Casualty-Specific Policy Concepts
- Personal and Commercial Automobile Insurance
- Commercial General Liability and Workers' Compensation Laws
Timed Practice and Review
- Full-length 110-question simulations under the 150-minute limit
- Targeted review of missed items by domain
A structured week-by-week plan with more granular task lists is laid out in ND-PC Study Guide 2026: How to Pass on Your First Attempt. Running realistic, timed practice sessions on our practice test platform is one of the most reliable ways to confirm you can hit 77 correct answers within the 150-minute window before you sit for the real thing. If you want a condensed, single-page reference to skim the night before each exam, the ND-PC Cheat Sheet 2026: One-Page Review of Must-Know Facts compiles the highest-yield facts in one place.
Frequently Asked Questions
ND-PC refers to the North Dakota Property & Casualty Insurance Producer Exam program, which is actually two separate exams - Property and Casualty - each with its own 110 scored questions, 150-minute time limit, and $64 fee.
No. Passing the exam qualifies you to apply for a North Dakota producer license through NIPR, but that license must be renewed biennially with continuing education, so it is an ongoing licensing requirement rather than a one-time credential.
No prelicensing course is required in North Dakota. Candidates can study independently or use prep resources, then schedule directly with PSI Services LLC once they meet the basic eligibility requirements.
Retakes are unlimited. You simply pay the $64 fee again and reschedule, though repeated attempts add up in cost and time, which is why focused preparation on the highest-weighted domains matters.
Once you pass, your score remains valid for one year, giving you that window to complete the fingerprint check and submit your license application through NIPR before needing to retest.