- CT-CADJ is the Connecticut All Lines Casualty Adjuster exam (code 12-CT-09), run by the Connecticut Insurance Department.
- The exam costs $70, has 100 scored questions, runs 2 hours, and requires a 70% score to pass.
- Testing moved fully to Pearson VUE test centers after online testing ended August 1, 2025.
- General Insurance is the heaviest domain at 30% of the exam.
What Is the CT-CADJ?
CT-CADJ stands for the Connecticut All Lines Casualty Adjuster exam, officially designated 12-CT-09 by the state. It's the licensing test that qualifies someone to work as a casualty adjuster in Connecticut, handling claims across property and casualty insurance lines. If you're planning to adjust auto, homeowners, commercial, workers' compensation, or liability claims in the state, this is the exam standing between you and a license.
It's worth pausing on the acronym because "CT-CADJ" gets used loosely online, and some content confuses it with other credentials that share similar naming. This site, and this article, deal exclusively with the Connecticut-specific all lines casualty adjuster license and its exam. If you want the full breakdown of what the letters mean and where the confusion comes from, see CT-CADJ Meaning and What Does CT-CADJ Stand For?.
Who Governs and Administers It
The Connecticut Insurance Department sets the licensing rules, the content outline, and the passing standard for the exam. Pearson VUE is the testing vendor that actually delivers the exam. Until August 1, 2025, candidates could take the exam online through remote proctoring; that option has been discontinued, so as of now every candidate must sit for the exam in person at a Pearson VUE test center.
This matters practically: you can no longer schedule a remote session from home. You'll need to find an available test center, book a slot, and plan travel time. For a walk-through of scheduling logistics and testing windows, check CT-CADJ Exam Dates 2026: Testing Windows, Deadlines & Scheduling.
Exam Format and Registration
The exam itself is straightforward in structure, even if the content is dense. Here's what candidates face:
- Exam code: 12-CT-09 (All Lines Casualty Adjuster)
- Fee: $70 per attempt
- Questions: 100 scoreable multiple-choice items
- Time allowed: 2 hours
- Passing score: 70%
- Minimum age: 18
- Prelicensing education: Not required
- Fingerprinting: Not required for this license
That last point surprises a lot of candidates coming from states with heavier prelicensing mandates. Connecticut doesn't require a set number of prelicensing education hours or a fingerprint-based background check for the casualty adjuster license, which lowers the barrier to entry but also means the exam itself carries more weight as the actual knowledge gate. For the full eligibility picture, see CT-CADJ Requirements 2026: Eligibility, Prerequisites & How to Qualify.
Key Takeaway
With no prelicensing hours and no fingerprinting required, the 100-question exam is the primary checkpoint. Treat your prep time as the substitute for formal coursework other states require.
Because the exam is scored on a strict 70% threshold with no partial credit for reasoning, it pays to understand exactly how the passing score is calculated and what margin for error you actually have. That's covered in detail in CT-CADJ Passing Score 2026: Exactly What You Need to Pass.
The 7 Exam Domains
The current content outline takes effect September 1, 2026, and organizes the 100 scored questions across seven domains. Knowing the relative weight of each domain helps you allocate study time proportionally instead of spreading effort evenly across topics that don't carry equal exam weight.
Domain 1: CT Statutes, Rules, and Regulations Common to Property and Casualty Insurance
Covers Connecticut-specific insurance law that applies broadly across property and casualty lines, including licensing rules, unfair claims practices, and regulatory definitions.
- State-specific statutory language often trips up candidates who study only generic P&C material
Domain 2: General Insurance
The largest domain at 30% of the exam. Covers foundational insurance concepts, contract principles, policy structure, and terminology that underpins every other domain.
- Because this is the single biggest domain, weak fundamentals here drag down performance everywhere else
Domain 3: Personal Lines
Focuses on personal auto and homeowners policies from a claims-handling perspective, including coverage triggers and exclusions adjusters must recognize.
Domain 4: Commercial Package Policies
Tests knowledge of how commercial property and liability coverages are bundled and adjusted, including how package policy structure differs from monoline coverage.
Domain 5: Miscellaneous Liability
Covers liability exposures outside standard auto and property lines, requiring familiarity with a wider range of policy forms and endorsements.
Domain 6: Workers' Compensation
Focuses on claims handling under workers' comp, including benefit types and the claims process specific to occupational injury.
Domain 7: Adjustment Procedures
Covers the actual mechanics of claims adjustment: investigation, evaluation, negotiation, and settlement practices an adjuster applies across all lines.
For a deeper breakdown of each domain with subtopic-level detail and how questions are typically framed, see CT-CADJ Exam Domains 2026: Complete Guide to All 7 Content Areas.
Licensing Requirements and Costs
Passing the exam is a milestone, not the finish line. You'll need to apply for and pay for the individual license separately. Here's how the costs and mechanics break down:
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Exam fee (12-CT-09) | $70 |
| Individual license fee | $130 |
| License term | 2 years |
| Renewal fee | $80, every other year in birth month |
| Continuing education | None required for casualty adjusters |
| Minimum age | 18 |
| Prelicensing education | Not required |
| Fingerprinting | Not required |
Add the $70 exam fee to the $130 license fee and you're looking at your total upfront cost before you've adjusted a single claim. For a full cost breakdown including how renewal fees add up over time, read CT-CADJ Certification Cost 2026: Complete Pricing Breakdown.
Who Actually Needs This Exam
The CT-CADJ credential is aimed at people who want to work as independent or staff casualty adjusters handling Connecticut claims - auto liability, homeowners, commercial package claims, workers' comp, and general liability. Insurance carriers, independent adjusting firms, and third-party administrators operating in Connecticut typically require this license (or an equivalent reciprocal license) before assigning someone to handle claims in the state.
If you're evaluating whether pursuing this license fits your career goals - including how it compares to holding a license elsewhere or working under reciprocity - it helps to look at both sides of the ledger. See Is the CT-CADJ Certification Worth It? Complete ROI Analysis 2026 and CT-CADJ Salary Guide 2026: Complete Earnings Analysis for a fuller picture, and browse CT-CADJ Jobs for a sense of the kinds of roles that list this license as a requirement.
Renewal and Continuing Education
One thing that distinguishes Connecticut's casualty adjuster license from many other states: there's no continuing education requirement to maintain it. Once licensed, you renew every two years in your birth month for $80, without needing to log CE credit hours. This is unusual enough that candidates coming from CE-heavy states often ask about it directly - the answer from CERT FACTS is simple: no CE is required for this specific license.
That doesn't mean the material becomes irrelevant after you pass. Statutes and coverage forms evolve, and the content outline itself is updated periodically - the version effective September 1, 2026 reflects Connecticut's latest structuring of the seven domains. Staying current is good practice even without a formal CE mandate.
Preparing for the Content Outline
Because the exam draws from seven domains of uneven weight, a smart prep sequence starts with the heaviest domain and works outward, rather than moving through domains in listed order. Given that General Insurance carries 30% of the exam, most candidates benefit from front-loading that material before narrowing into line-specific domains like Personal Lines, Commercial Package Policies, or Workers' Compensation.
General Insurance foundations
- Build the vocabulary and contract concepts that recur across every other domain
Connecticut statutes and adjustment procedures
- Pair state-specific rules with the practical mechanics of claims handling
Line-specific domains
- Work through Personal Lines, Commercial Package Policies, Miscellaneous Liability, and Workers' Compensation
Full-length practice and review
- Simulate the 100-question, 2-hour format and target weak domains
If you want a structured, step-by-step plan built specifically around these seven domains and the 70% passing threshold, see CT-CADJ Study Guide 2026: How to Pass on Your First Attempt. And if you're still gauging how challenging this exam actually is relative to other state licensing tests, How Hard Is the CT-CADJ Exam? Complete Difficulty Guide 2026 and CT-CADJ Pass Rate 2026: What the Data Shows both offer useful context.
Running timed practice questions modeled on the actual 12-CT-09 format is one of the most direct ways to know whether you're ready. You can work through domain-organized practice questions on the main practice test site to simulate exam-day pacing across all seven areas before you book your Pearson VUE appointment.
Frequently Asked Questions
CT-CADJ refers to the Connecticut All Lines Casualty Adjuster exam, officially coded 12-CT-09, which leads to a casualty adjuster license in Connecticut.
No. Online testing for this exam ended August 1, 2025. Candidates now must test in person at a Pearson VUE test center.
No. Connecticut does not require prelicensing education hours or fingerprinting for the All Lines Casualty Adjuster license. You do need to be at least 18 years old.
The exam itself costs $70. The individual license costs $130 and lasts two years, after which renewal is $80 every other year in your birth month.
No. Connecticut does not require continuing education for casualty adjusters holding this license, though renewal fees still apply on the two-year cycle.