Iowa Real Estate Salesperson License requirements

Follow these steps in order. Deadlines and affiliation requirements can make a passed exam unusable if they are missed.

1. 1

   Start the FBI packet the same week you start class

   My Iowa PLB → RE - Background Request → $51. Results take 5–6 weeks after the card returns and are then valid 210 days. This step takes the longest.

2. 2

   Finish the 60-hour principles course (live or online)

   Named 12+12+12+12+12 curriculum (193E—16.2). Sit PSI only after these 60 hours are posted. They must be less than 12 months old at both the exam and the application.

3. 3

   Complete the three live 12-hour courses: Buying, Listing, Professionalism/Ethics

   Live instruction only, in any order. Due at application, within the same 12 months. They do not replace the 60 hours and are not CE.

4. 4

   Sit PSI ($95): 80/120 min at 56 and 40/60 min at 28

   Both portions must still be valid (through the end of the sixth month) when the Commission receives your application. A retake costs another $95.

5. 5

   Sit PSI with the hard-copy 60-hour certificate and matching photo ID

   90-day registration. Arrive 30 minutes early. Remote or West Des Moines / Cedar Rapids / Council Bluffs. If you fail one portion, retake it for another $95; both portions must still be valid at application.

6. 6

   E&O, sponsoring broker, $125 license fee in My Iowa PLB

   An original license cannot be issued inactive. Your broker signs electronically after the background check clears. RISC group policy or a Chapter 19 / 481-2019-compliant independent policy. File by the last business day of the sixth month. Bad payment nullifies the original (193E—9.2(5)).

Minimum age

18 years old

Identification

A Social Security number is required. An ITIN is not confirmed as a substitute.

Residency and identification

No Iowa residency requirement and no citizenship requirement on the DIAL salesperson-by-exam page. Age 18 at the time the license application is submitted — you may sit PSI before 18, but you must be 18 to apply, and the application must arrive before your score expires. Licensure requires U.S. citizenship or lawful-presence verification through SAVE. The DIAL exam page does not list a high school diploma separately the way Nebraska does; the 543B.15 qualifications and the Commission application govern. Nonresidents use the same exam path unless 543B.21 recognition applies; confirm with the Commission.

Qualifying education

193E—16.2 and DIAL salesperson-by-exam. The 60-hour principles-and-practices course may be live or distance/online, and completing it makes you eligible for PSI. Named 60-hour split: Introduction to Real Estate and Iowa License Law 12; Ownership, Encumbrances, Legal Descriptions, Transfer of Title and Closing 12; Contracts, Agency and Antitrust 12; Valuation, Finance and Real Estate Math 12; Property Management/Leasing, Fair Housing, Environmental Risks and Health Issues 12. The three 12-hour courses — Buying Practices, Listing Practices, Developing Professionalism and Ethical Practices — are live instruction only (classroom or real-time visual/audio). All education, 60 plus the three 12s, must be completed during the 12 months prior to the date the application is postmarked or received. The 60 must also be less than one year old when you sit and pass PSI. Provider course exams are part of completion; exam time counts as hours. An hour is 50 minutes. You may request in writing that substantially similar courses be accepted; courses older than 12 months do not qualify (16.2(3)). Nebraska Course #0003 and Missouri MREP do not count as these three live 12-hour courses.

Education or filing deadline

12-month limit: the 60 hours must be less than 12 months old at the exam and at application, and all 96 hours (60+12+12+12) must fall within the 12 months before the Commission receives the application. PSI scores expire on the last working day of the sixth month following the pass date. The background check expires after 210 days. If you miss any of these three deadlines, you must redo that step.

Character review

Iowa Code § 543B.15: a rejected application in this or any other state inside 12 months, or a revoked real estate license inside two years, bars the application. Specified felony / fiduciary / fraud-type offenses: five years after incarceration, fine, or sentence before the Commission will even consider the application; other moral-turpitude offenses: one year. After those waiting periods, the Commission may still deny based on the conviction. You can request a 272C.15 eligibility determination. Disclose all convictions; failing to disclose is disqualifying on its own.

Background process

National FBI criminal-history check through the Commission packet. $51. Valid 210 calendar days before the license application is received (§ 543B.15(9)). Average 5–6 weeks after the completed card arrives. The Commission processes the license application but holds delivery until the background is done. Do not mail the card to the FBI or DCI.

Experience

No licensed experience is required for the salesperson license. The broker license comes later and requires 24 months of active salesperson experience plus 60 named broker hours.

Broker affiliation

A salesperson is assigned to a licensed broker or firm and cannot conduct business independently (193E—4.1(3)). Original salesperson licenses cannot be issued inactive (193E—4.1(1)). After the background clears, the employing broker is sent the application electronically to review and sign; you then pay the $125 license fee. Transfers let you work immediately for the new broker (193E—4.1(2)).

PSI Services LLC (https://test-takers.psiexams.com/iare; (855) 898-0712). Bulletin effective 2/8/2024. · Fee: $95

Per the bulletin, the fee is $95 for salesperson or broker, not refundable or transferable. If you fail one portion, retake only that portion for $95 with a new PSI registration. An Iowa-portion-only exam requires prior written IREC authorization, which you bring to the center. Both portions must still be valid (through the last working day of the sixth month following each pass date) when the Commission receives the electronic application. For example, if you pass any day in June, the score expires December 31. You may sit before age 18, but you may not apply before 18, and your score can still expire while you wait.

These are commission or testing-vendor amounts we can cite. School tuition and optional preparation products are private-market prices.

193E—9.1: salesperson original or renewal $125; broker $170; firm $170; branch / trade name / additional officer $50; certification $25. Late renewal January 1–30: salesperson $150 (125+25 reinstatement), broker $195. After January 30, it becomes a reinstatement under 193E—4.6, not a late renewal. PSI $95 per sitting (bulletin). FBI packet $51 (DIAL criminal-history page) plus whatever the rolling location charges. The application and initialLicense amounts here are the same $125 original fee, not two charges. E&O premium is separate (RISC group or independent). An original license paid with a bad check is null and void (9.2(5)).

• !

  Treating the three 12s as optional CE or as online self-study

  They are required live-instruction prelicense courses, due at application and within the 12-month limit. Distance/online versions will not count. They are not the same as Nebraska Course #0003.

• !

  Sitting PSI on a 60-hour course that is 13 months old

  The 60 must be less than a year old at the sitting and at application. All 96 hours must fall within the 12 months before the Commission receives the application. Substitution requests also expire at 12 months.

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  Letting the FBI check age past 210 days

  § 543B.15(9) rejects the application. Start the packet early; 5–6 weeks after the card returns is typical. Do not mail the card to the FBI.

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  Assuming a PSI score is good for a year

  Iowa scores expire on the last working day of the sixth month following the pass date. A June pass expires December 31. Nebraska's 30-day issuance deadline and Washington's one-year application deadline are different rules.

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  Applying without E&O or without a broker who will sign

  An original salesperson license cannot be issued inactive. Chapter 19 E&O proof is a condition of issuance, through RISC or a conforming independent policy.

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  Using a Nebraska 96-hour transcript or a Missouri 48+MREP as Iowa's 60+12+12+12

  The named courses, live-instruction rule, and 12-month limit differ. Recognition is a Commission decision, not an automatic transcript transfer. 16.2(3) substitution must be requested in writing and is not available for courses older than 12 months.

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  Treating 56 + 28 as one combined 84

  You must pass each portion. The combined 84 is just the sum, not a total you can reach by doing better on the other portion. If you score 27 on the state portion, a 70 on the national portion does not help. A retake costs another $95 and needs a new 90-day registration.

• !

  Confusing the 90-day PSI registration with the six-month score deadline

  If you do not use your registration within 90 days, you forfeit the $95. If you do not apply by the last working day of the sixth month after passing, your score expires. Schedule soon after the confirmation notice; the bulletin warns that if you wait until day 80, weekends and holidays may use up the last ten days.

• !

  Showing up without the hard-copy 60-hour certificate

  Per the bulletin, without the certificate (or a Commission authorization letter) you cannot sit; it counts as a missed appointment and you lose the fee. Brokers who bring one certificate instead of nine get the same result. A phone photo does not replace the hard copy the center photocopies.

• !

  Using first-renewal CE as a substitute for the live 12s

  Law Update 8 and Ethics 4 are renewal requirements (193E—16.4). The original live 12s are Buying, Listing, and Developing Professionalism and Ethical Practices. They are not interchangeable. Newly licensed salespersons also cannot recycle the salesperson 60 as first-renewal CE (16.10(1)).

• !

  Paying original with a bad check

  193E—9.2(5): a bad payment on an original license makes the application incomplete and the license null and void. A bad renewal payment voids the renewal as of December 31, and you then owe the reinstatement fee as well.

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  Mailing the fingerprint card to the FBI or to DCI

  DIAL is explicit: do NOT submit the card, or any portion of the background, directly to the FBI or the Division of Criminal Investigation. The entire check runs through the Commission packet. IdentoGO, an old Nebraska State Patrol print, and a Kansas Pearson digital print are not substitutes.

Iowa Code § 543B.21 is the nonresident / recognition statute; it is not a 50-state compact this site will copy. DIAL: no residency requirement on the original-by-exam path. Iowa-portion-only exams exist for candidates the Commission has authorized in writing. Nebraska 96-hour Course #0003, Missouri MREP, and Illinois 75+45 do not swallow Iowa's three live 12s. Confirm live waivers with IREC before skipping a named course.

Iowa vs neighboring states

Hours are the pre-license total printed in each guide; states that count credits or named courses show “See guide.” Published state fees add the application, exam, initial-license, and fingerprint amounts the guide can cite — tuition is not included.

Is it 60 hours, or 60 plus three live 12s?

Both. Per 193E—16.2 and the DIAL exam page, you need the 60-hour principles (live or online) to sit PSI, plus 12-hour Buying Practices, 12-hour Listing Practices, and 12-hour Developing Professionalism and Ethical Practices that must be live instruction. All 96 hours must fall within the 12 months before the Commission receives the application. Nebraska's 96 hours (30+30+30+6) are structured differently.

Can I take the three 12s online?

Not as ordinary distance learning. Live instruction is classroom or electronic delivery with real-time visual and audio contact (193E—16.1). Self-paced online versions of the 12-hour courses will not count. The 60-hour principles course may be online.

What is the passing score?

PSI bulletin effective 2/8/2024: 56 of 80 national points and 28 of 40 state points (84 of 120 combined). Broker is 60 of 80 national points and 30 of 40 state. This differs from Nebraska's 75 percent and is not a scaled 70.

How long after passing do I have?

Until the last working day of the sixth month following the exam pass date. A June pass expires December 31. Both portions must still be valid when the electronic application is received. That is shorter than a one-year score validity and longer than Nebraska's 30-day issuance deadline.

When should I fingerprint?

As soon as you open My Iowa PLB. Request the RE - Background Request packet, pay $51, return the card through the Commission. Valid 210 days from completion. Average 5–6 weeks after the card is in. Do not mail it to the FBI. If the background check is more than 210 days old, the application is rejected.

Is E&O optional?

No. Iowa Code § 543B.47 and 193E ch. 19 require uninterrupted E&O for every active license. Original applications need proof before issuance. RISC is the Commission group policy; independent policies must meet Chapter 19. Inactive licensees are exempt while inactive and must re-prove on reactivation after more than 20 days.

Can the original salesperson license be issued inactive?

No. 193E—4.1(1). You need a sponsoring broker who will sign. You cannot hold an original Iowa salesperson license without a broker.

What is the renewal cycle?

Three years, counting the remaining portion of the year of issue as a full year, expiring December 31 of the third year (193E—16.4(1)). A license issued in 2026 expires December 31, 2028. Active CE is 36 hours: 8 Law Update, 4 Ethics, 24 electives, with a maximum of 24 distance/online and therefore at least 12 live. A course may be taken for credit only once per cycle unless course number and instructor both change. Up to 18 elective hours may carry forward; Law Update and Ethics cannot. Fee $125; January 1–30 late is $150. Notice may go to the email of record ~45 days prior; failure to receive it is not an excuse.

Can I sit PSI before finishing the three live 12s?

Yes. Per DIAL and 193E—16.2, completing the 60-hour principles course makes you eligible for PSI. The three live 12-hour courses (Buying, Listing, Professionalism/Ethics) are due at application, within the same 12 months. You still must complete them; the original license will not issue without them.

What do I bring to the PSI center?

Bulletin: a hard-copy 60-hour completion certificate (or a Commission authorization / 193E—5.3 letter) and one unexpired photo ID whose name matches the PSI account. Salespersons present one certificate; brokers present nine. Without the certificate, you cannot sit, and the $95 is forfeited as a missed appointment. Arrive 30 minutes early. Remote-proctored sittings have their own camera/lighting rules and no scratch paper.

Is the 90-day PSI registration the same as the six-month score deadline?

No. Registration expires at 90 days if you have not TAKEN the exam (not merely scheduled it). After you pass, the score expires on the last working day of the sixth month following the pass date. These are two separate deadlines; confusing them can cost you $95 twice.

Can I use the exam as continuing education later?

193E—16.9: a salesperson (or broker) may satisfy all CE deficiencies by taking and passing the corresponding licensing examination, but only with a Commission authorization letter obtained before scheduling. If you pass inside the six months immediately preceding expiration, that sitting can cover the current term and previous deficiencies. This option is only for making up CE deficiencies; it does not replace original prelicense education.

Can prelicense hours count as CE?

193E—16.10: salespersons and brokers may take up to 24 hours of the salesperson prelicense courses specified in 16.2(1) as CE, but a newly licensed salesperson cannot use those credits on the first renewal. Broker prelicense taken by a salesperson can count as salesperson CE and still count later toward the broker 60. A newly licensed broker cannot use the broker-qualifying courses as first-renewal CE.

What is an instructional hour?

193E—16.1: an hour is 50 minutes of instruction. School finals count as hours of instruction (16.2(2)). Live instruction is a classroom or electronic delivery with real-time visual and audio contact — not a recorded webinar you play back later.

Does Iowa have a recovery fund?

No. Instead, the law requires E&O under Iowa Code § 543B.47 and 193E ch. 19 (DIAL now refers independent policies to IAC 481 ch. 2019). RISC is the Commission group policy. Proof is due on original, on reactivation after more than 20 days inactive, on transfer, and if selected for a random E&O audit. Firm licenses cannot go inactive.

I am licensed in Nebraska / Missouri / Illinois. Do I skip the 60 and the live 12s?

Not automatically. 193E—5.3 Iowa-portion-only sittings exist for people the Commission has authorized in writing — bring that letter. You may request substitution of substantially similar courses in writing under 16.2(3), but courses older than 12 months do not qualify. Nebraska Course #0003, Missouri MREP, and Illinois 75+45 do not count as Iowa Buying/Listing/Ethics. The nonresident consent section on the application does not waive any hours.

What convictions actually matter?

Iowa Code § 543B.15 sets waiting periods (five years after incarceration/fine/sentence for specified felony / fiduciary / fraud-type offenses; one year for other moral-turpitude offenses; a rejected application in any state inside 12 months, or a revoked real estate license inside two years, bars the application). DIAL also publishes a 272C.15 potentially-disqualifying list (drugs, sex offenses, forcible felonies, dishonesty, public-health offenses). A listed conviction is not an automatic bar; the Commission still reviews whether the conduct is inside the scope of practice. You can request a 272C.15 eligibility determination. Disclose all convictions; failing to disclose is disqualifying on its own.