Alerts and Updates for RIBO Level 1 Entry-Level Broker Exam (Ontario)

RIBO Level 1 exam at a glance

Passing the Level 1 exam also confers eligibility to sell travel health insurance, which is why the five travel questions sit in the blueprint. RIBO sets the syllabus, the pass mark and the fee; the two providers only deliver the sitting and release the result. Candidates have two attempts per exam provider.

Dates and windows

There is no national sitting date for Level 1: candidates book an appointment with one of the two providers and write on a date of their choosing within the provider's published window. In-person seats are offered on a limited schedule, so the practical constraint is seat availability rather than a deadline.

What this means for your preparation

The mistake that costs candidates most is treating the two exam providers as interchangeable attempts at the same pool. RIBO allows two attempts per exam provider, and after two failures with a provider an eight-month waiting period runs from the second failure. Writing during that period does not help: RIBO states that doing so resets the waiting period and nullifies the result. The second mistake is preparing from material written before January 2025, which predates the commercial lines domain.

Weight your revision to the blueprint, not the textbook

The blueprint in force since January 1, 2025 fixes the split precisely: general insurance and industry knowledge 25 questions, personal lines automobile 25, personal lines habitational 25, commercial lines 20 and travel 5. Three quarters of the paper therefore sits in general knowledge, auto and habitational, and a candidate who is comfortable in those three and merely literate in commercial is already close to the mark. Commercial lines is the newest domain and the one where older study packages are thinnest, so it is worth checking that any course you buy was revised for the 2025 profile. The travel block is only five questions, but passing the exam is what confers eligibility to sell travel health insurance, so those questions are not decorative. RIBO publishes the full profile and a set of retired sample questions as PDFs on its own site.

The 75 per cent pass mark leaves little slack

RIBO states the pass mark as at least 75 per cent, expressed as 75 out of 100, on a paper of 100 questions of which 15 are pilot questions that do not count towards the score. Compared with the 60 per cent threshold used on the LLQP modules, this is a demanding bar, and it means roughly one wrong answer in four is the whole margin. Three hours for 100 multiple-choice questions is not tight in itself, at about 1.8 minutes a question, so the binding constraint is knowledge rather than speed. The practical implication is that guessing strategy matters less than eliminating whole topics you cannot answer: at 75 per cent there is no comfortable band of material you can afford to skip entirely.

Choose the delivery format before you book

Both providers offer an in-person sitting and a virtually proctored one. The Insurance Institute describes in-person as writing online on its computers at a limited schedule of locations, and virtual proctoring as writing on your own machine with webcam and microphone monitoring. RIBO's exam rules are stricter for the virtual route than many candidates expect: the webcam must capture the whole face, head and shoulders throughout, only one five-minute break is allowed and only with proctor approval, and loss of video, audio or screen sharing for more than five minutes terminates the exam. In-person candidates must arrive no later than 15 minutes before the start, cannot write at all if they are 30 minutes late, and cannot leave the room in the first 30 minutes.

Identity and name matching stop more sittings than nerves

RIBO requires original, valid, non-expired government-issued photo identification at check-in. Digital copies and photocopies are rejected outright, and the name and date of birth on the identification must match the registration details exactly. Where they do not, the candidate must reschedule at their own expense, which in practice means paying the 325 dollar fee again. If you registered in a maiden name, a shortened first name or with a transposed date of birth, correct the registration with the provider well before the sitting rather than arguing it at the door. Rescheduling a virtual exam because of a technical fault at your end may attract a fee, although RIBO states that such a reschedule does not count as an attempt.

Sequence the exam, the job offer and the licence application

Passing the exam is only the first of several steps. A Level 1 licence also requires employment with a RIBO-registered brokerage in Ontario, a criminal record check less than 60 days old, government-issued identification, and confirmation that you hold no conflicting licence as an adjuster, real estate agent or mortgage broker. Results arrive from the exam provider two weeks after the exam date, so the criminal record check should be timed to still be inside its 60-day life when the application goes in. Once licensed you work under the supervision of a Principal Broker, complete continuing education credits each year and renew annually. The individual licence fee is 240 dollars for the year to September 30, 2026 and 265 dollars for the year beginning October 1, 2026.

Common questions

How much does the RIBO Level 1 exam cost in 2026?

RIBO increased the licensing exam fee from 300 dollars to 325 dollars with effect from January 1, 2026, and states the fee is the same whichever exam provider you use and whether you write online or in person. The Insurance Institute of Canada lists the 2026 English sitting at 325 dollars and IBAO lists 325 dollars for non-members. The fee is paid to the provider, is charged per attempt, and is separate from the annual RIBO licence fee payable after you pass.

What is the pass mark for the Level 1 entry-level broker exam?

RIBO states the pass mark as at least 75 per cent, which it expresses as 75 out of 100. The paper contains 100 multiple-choice questions, of which 15 are pilot questions that do not count towards the score, and candidates are allowed three hours. Results are provided by the exam provider two weeks after the exam date, not on the day. Candidates who pass also become eligible to sell travel health insurance, which is why the blueprint includes a small travel domain.

How many times can I retake the RIBO Level 1 exam?

RIBO allows two attempts per exam provider. After two failed attempts with a provider, an eight-month waiting period applies, running from the date of the second failure. RIBO warns that sitting the exam during that waiting period resets the period and nullifies the result, so attempting to write it early is counter-productive. Because there are two approved providers, the Insurance Institute of Canada and IBAO, the attempt allowance is counted separately for each rather than pooled across both.

When are the Level 1 exam dates in 2026?

There is no fixed national sitting. The Insurance Institute of Canada lists Level 1 appointments running continuously from January 5 to December 18, 2026, and requires an appointment to be pre-booked whether you write in person or under virtual proctoring. IBAO publishes named dates for its own sittings, including in-person dates on September 21, 24 and 28 and an online attempt on October 13, and closes registration ten days before the date or earlier once places fill. In-person seats are on a limited schedule.

What is on the Level 1 syllabus?

The competency profile and blueprint effective January 1, 2025 sets ten core competencies, including legal and regulatory compliance, professionalism and ethics, risk identification and assessment, claims services and information management. The question split is general insurance and industry knowledge 25, personal lines automobile 25, personal lines habitational 25, commercial lines 20 and travel 5. Commercial lines is a domain introduced with this profile. RIBO publishes the full blueprint, a curriculum guide for education providers and a set of retired sample questions on its website.

Do I need a job at a brokerage before I write the exam?

No. Employment with a RIBO-registered brokerage is a requirement for the licence application rather than for sitting the exam, although RIBO asks candidates to review its licensing qualification criteria before writing. The licence application also needs a criminal record check less than 60 days old, government-issued identification and confirmation that you do not hold a conflicting adjuster, real estate or mortgage broker licence. Once licensed you must work under a Principal Broker's supervision, complete annual continuing education and renew the licence each year.