NMLS exam cost, retakes and waiting periods

Cost

• Fee: $110 per attempt, paid to NMLS when you enroll.
• Each attempt is separate. A candidate must request and pay for a separate test enrollment for each attempt.
• No course required first. You do not have to take a pre-licensure course before the test. You do still have to complete at least 20 hours of pre-licensure education from a provider NMLS lists to be licensed. Test prep, ours included, is not that education. See how to become a mortgage loan originator.

Enrolling, scheduling and cancelling

• You enroll and pay through NMLS, then schedule your appointment at a Prometric test center. NMLS's pages also describe online proctoring through Prometric's ProProctor, but the handbook's test day page says online appointments are only for candidates who qualify for testing accommodations. Check the Testing page when you schedule to see what applies to you.
• Enrollment fees are non-refundable and non-transferable.
• You can cancel or reschedule on the Prometric website or by phone, no later than 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time two business days before your appointment.
• If you cancel late or do not show up, your enrollment window is closed and you lose the fee. You then have to request and pay for a new enrollment window before you can schedule again.
• After a failure, NMLS lets you enroll again right away, but the window will not let you book a date before your waiting period is over.

Test day

• Arrive 30 minutes early to check in with the test center administrator.
• ID: one current, non-expired government-issued ID with your photo and signature. The name on it must match your NMLS account exactly. Without it you are turned away and lose the fee.
• Bring nothing else. Phones, bags, wallets, coats, notes and books go in a locker. The test center gives you a basic four-function calculator and a wipe board.
• Format: 120 items in 190 minutes, inside a 225-minute appointment that includes 30 to 35 minutes for a tutorial and an optional survey. The clock keeps running if you take a restroom break.

Results

• When you finish, your score and pass or fail result usually appear on screen, and the test center gives you a printed score report. That report is not final until NMLS posts the result.
• NMLS posts the final result to the Testing Information section of the Composite View in your NMLS record within 72 hours and emails you.
• For an online proctored test, the results report goes to your email within three business days.
• The score report shows an overall percentage and a range for each section. It does not give the number of questions you answered correctly, and you cannot review the test afterward.
• If you have a concern about a specific question, NMLS accepts a content challenge form within 20 days of the test date. It will not release test questions or answers, and it does not review scores through this process.

Passing score

You need 75% or better. That figure is set by the SAFE Act.

Retakes and waiting periods

NMLS follows the SAFE Act rule: three attempts, then a longer wait. After a failed test you wait 30 calendar days from the previous test date before you can retake it. After every third failed test the wait is 180 calendar days. Then a new cycle starts and repeats.

Regulation H, the federal rule behind the licensing standards, says a person who fails three consecutive tests must wait at least 6 months. NMLS applies 180 calendar days. A candidate who passes cannot retake the test. Use the time before a retake well: the score report's section ranges show where to look, and the content outline guide shows where the points are.

When a passed test expires

You pass the SAFE MLO Test once, and it meets the test requirement for every state you apply in. But if you go five consecutive years without a state license or active federal registration, your passed result expires and you must retest. Time spent as a federally registered MLO does not count against the five years.

Banks and depository institutions

NMLS's FAQ says employees of insured depository institutions and certain other regulated institutions are not required to take the National Test. As registrants they are eligible to take it.

Take the free 10-question check and see your score by content area in minutes. It needs no signup and explains every answer.

The Rate Lock course has lessons for each content area, original practice questions with every answer worked, and timed practice exams. Your scores come back by content area, so you know where the next study hour goes. It is test prep only and is no substitute for the 20 hours of pre-licensure education from a provider NMLS lists. See the course.

Not affiliated with or endorsed by NMLS, CSBS or Prometric. NMLS, CSBS and Prometric are named only to identify the exam, its owner and its test vendor.

Sources

Show the list

• SAFE MLO Testing FAQ, NMLS Resource Center. Read 7 Nov 2026.
• 1.0 Overview and Test Specifications, MLO Testing Handbook, NMLS Resource Center. Read 7 Nov 2026.
• 7.0 Test Day, 8.0 Test Center Policies, 9.0 Test and Survey Results, 10.0 Retaking a Failed Test / Waiting Period and 11.0 Test Expiration, MLO Testing Handbook, NMLS Resource Center. Read 7 Nov 2026.
• 12 CFR 1008.105(e), Regulation H, eCFR, current to 4 Nov 2026. Read 7 Nov 2026.