CSLB exam day at PSI
Updated September 22, 2026 · Written by the License Ladder team
CSLB contracts with PSI to give its exams, on a computer at a PSI test center. Here we explain, in plain English, the rules PSI and CSLB publish for exam day: when to show up, which IDs get you in, what has to stay out of the testing room, what you get before you leave, and what to do if you need to reschedule or retake.
License Ladder is independent study material, not affiliated with or endorsed by CSLB or PSI. Our sources are listed at the bottom of this page.
PSI publishes a candidate bulletin for each CSLB exam. The bulletins for Law & Business and General Building (B) set out the same exam-day rules for every PSI test center, and CSLB repeats the key ones on its own site.
Here is the whole day in five steps. Each one is explained in full below.
At least 30 minutes before your appointment, for check-in and ID verification.
Show one accepted photo ID, say whether you have any prohibited items, empty your pockets, and give a thumbprint.
Confirm your name, ID number and exam on screen. The tutorial that follows, up to 15 minutes, is not counted against your exam time.
3½ hours per exam, multiple choice, one question on the screen at a time.
Back at check-in, you get a printed score report before you leave.
At least 30 minutes before your appointment. PSI's bulletin says you must arrive at least 30 minutes before your scheduled time, which leaves room for check-in, ID verification and getting familiar with how the exam works.
One valid, unexpired, government-issued photo ID. PSI accepts these six:
The name on your application has to match the name on your photo ID, and the photo has to be recognizable as you. If you recently changed your name with CSLB, PSI suggests calling (877) 392-6422 to check that it has your current name on file.
A note on passports: PSI's English list and CSLB's both say "government-issued passport," but PSI's Spanish translation of the list says the passport must be issued by the U.S. government. If your passport is from another country (Mexico, for example), ask PSI before your appointment whether it will be accepted: (877) 392-6422.
PSI's bulletin lists the personal items that aren't allowed in the testing room and says the list is not complete, so if something isn't named, don't assume it's allowed. Grouped, the list comes down to this.
Phones, smart devices, cameras, pagers, headphones and earbuds, anything that records, any other electronic device, and calculators (one is provided). Watches and other timekeeping devices are out too; there's a timer in the room and on your screen.
Textbooks, notes, reading material of any kind, and your own pens or pencils.
Purses, briefcases, backpacks and luggage; hats, caps and visors; sunglasses; fashion scarves; bulky, large or noisy jewelry; good-luck charms; therapeutic items; weapons; and medication, over-the-counter or prescription (see the exception below).
No food, candy, snacks or gum, and no drinks, not even water.
Proctors also have "considerable discretion," in PSI's words, to refuse clothing or items that compromise the exam's integrity or security.
CSLB adds that personal items go in a shared storage area at your own risk, and that test center staff don't watch it, so leave anything valuable locked in your vehicle.
Notes and printed material aren't only against PSI's rules. California law makes it a misdemeanor to subvert a licensing exam, and having books, notes or other written or printed material with you during the exam is one of the ways it names (Business and Professions Code section 123, reprinted in PSI's bulletin). CSLB says the penalties can include a fine, damages of up to $10,000, jail time, automatic failure and a one-year bar on applying for any CSLB license classification, counted from the exam date.
Everyone's thumbprint is taken at check-in. It has to match again when you come back from a restroom break, and any time you leave the test site and come back.
The room is kept at a moderate temperature, and PSI advises layers: lightweight shirts, sweaters and pullovers without pockets or hoods. Wear them at check-in, while you wait and when you first sit down. Coats, heavy jackets, vests, shawls and scarves aren't allowed in the testing room.
Take a layer off during the exam and you have to store it in the lobby, and your exam time keeps counting down while you do.
Watches and other timekeeping devices aren't allowed in the testing room. There's a timer in the room and on your computer.
One candidate at a time, and you sign out and back in. If a break runs longer than five minutes, a proctor checks on you and reports it to the regulator, which investigates.
Shoes stay on the whole time, and your feet stay on the floor, not on the chair.
If a proctor asks you to step into the lobby during the exam, your exam is suspended, so you keep all of your remaining time. Only candidates, and people the regulator has approved in advance, may be in the testing site.
Need an exception to any of these rules? Ask CSLB before your exam date; CSLB has to send the exception to PSI. PSI's bulletin says no exceptions are made on the day of the exam.
A calculator. PSI's bulletin says some questions require math and that a calculator will be provided. CSLB adds that pencils, scratch paper, calculators and scale rulers are provided at the test center on request, so ask if you want them.
CSLB says your exam must be taken in person at a PSI location; there's no online option. You test at a semi-private station with a mouse and keyboard, and when you sit down you confirm your name, ID number and the exam you registered for.
An on-screen tutorial runs before the exam starts. The time you spend on it, up to 15 minutes, does not count as exam time, and it ends with sample questions so you can practice answering and reviewing.
CSLB gives you 3½ hours to complete each exam. One question appears on the screen at a time, with the minutes you have left shown at the top.
Every question is multiple choice with four answers, written so that one is the BEST answer. Some questions need math. There's no penalty for guessing, so answering beats leaving a question blank.
Law & Business and General Building (B) are both among the ten CSLB exams offered in Spanish. Esta página en español →
Before you leave. When you finish, you go back to the check-in area and get a printed score report. Results are confidential: they go only to you and CSLB, and PSI doesn't give scores over the phone.
The report shows that you passed; CSLB says it doesn't show your score. It is not a license. CSLB mails you a Bond and Fee letter that lists what you still need to do before your license can be issued.
The report shows your overall score, including how many questions you got right, and CSLB says you also get a section-by-section count of how many you answered correctly and incorrectly. Use it to aim your studying: you can't review the actual questions or the answer key afterward.
Had a technical problem during your exam? CSLB says to email your name, application fee number and a description of the problem to exams@cslb.ca.gov, and to allow five to seven days for a response.
You can retake a failed exam after 21 calendar days, as long as you're not past your application's void date. Each attempt is a new registration with its own fee, paid to PSI, and you book it through your PSI account online or by phone.
CSLB gives every application 18 months from the day it's accepted to pass. Inside that window you can test as many times as you need, 21 calendar days apart. After it, the application is void, and you would have to apply again with new fees.
If you test within three weeks of your void date, that is your last chance on this application.
CSLB says exam results are good for five years, so you only retake the exam you failed, as long as you retake it within five years. Keep in mind that if your application goes void at 18 months, you have to apply again with new fees.
CSLB may extend a void date by up to 90 days if you show documented evidence that a medical emergency or another circumstance beyond your control kept you from rescheduling.
Once CSLB approves you to test, you get a Notice to Schedule in the mail, and you book and pay for each exam yourself, directly with PSI. You can't book before CSLB refers your application for testing. Each exam is its own registration and fee, and you can take the two on the same day or on different days, whichever you prefer.
Book online on PSI's site at any hour, or call PSI at (877) 392-6422, Monday through Friday from 4:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. or Saturday and Sunday from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., Pacific Time. The TDD line is (800) 735-2929. Online, you enter your ZIP code, pick one of the test sites closest to you, and then see the open dates.
PSI's examination fee is $51.43 for each registration, whether it's your first attempt or a retake, and registration fees are not refundable or transferable.
To cancel or reschedule without losing your fee, PSI has to receive your notice at least two days before the exam. PSI's example: for a 9:00 a.m. Monday exam, the notice has to be in before 9:00 a.m. the Saturday before. Do it on PSI's website, or call (877) 392-6422 and speak with a customer service representative; CSLB lists option 2 on that line. A voicemail or an email does not count.
You forfeit the fee if you don't cancel at least two days ahead, don't show up, arrive after the exam's start time, or don't bring proper ID. To test after that, you pay the fee again.
If severe weather or another emergency closes the test site on your exam day, PSI reschedules you as soon as it can, at no extra charge and without penalty. PSI will try to reach you, and you can check your appointment by calling (877) 392-6422.
Both are possible, and both need CSLB's approval before your exam is scheduled.
All PSI test sites are physically accessible. For a testing accommodation because of a disability or a medical condition, send CSLB its Accommodation Request for Examination form (on cslb.ca.gov, from exams@cslb.ca.gov, or at (916) 255-3498), and wait for CSLB's approval before you schedule. PSI won't provide an accommodation at the test site without that approval. Once you're approved, PSI contacts you to schedule, or you can call PSI at (800) 367-1565, ext. 6750.
If your exam isn't offered in your preferred language, CSLB may let you test with a translator you arrange: a friend, a family member or someone you hire. The translator can't work in construction, real estate, finance, architecture, engineering or law, and has to be approved by CSLB before your exam is scheduled; CSLB says its review can take four to six weeks. Ask for the Translator Form at exams@cslb.ca.gov or (800) 321-2752, option 4. Translators follow the same prohibited-items list, can't bring translation tools, and can't define or explain terms.
If your exam is available in your preferred language, CSLB won't let you use a translator. Law & Business and General Building (B) are both offered in Spanish, and CSLB requires candidates who request a translator for those exams to take the Spanish version.
PSI gives the CSLB exams at 20 test centers in California:
Centers test six days a week: 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, plus Saturdays, and not on major holidays.
You pick your center when you book: on PSI's site you enter your ZIP code and choose from the sites closest to you. PSI's bulletins give each center's street address and driving directions.
Outside California, CSLB says the Law & Business exam can also be taken at PSI sites in a number of other states, while trade exams, General Building (B) included, are given only in California and Oregon. The Law and Business bulletin lists the out-of-state sites.
Sources: PSI, Contractors State License Board Licensing Examination Information Guide, Law and Business and General Building (B), each with PSI's Spanish translation; CSLB, Examinations Frequently Asked Questions; CSLB, Step 5: My Original Exam Application was Accepted. All four retrieved and checked September 21, 2026. We restate PSI's and CSLB's rules in our own words; where anything here differs from those documents, the documents govern.
License Ladder is independent study material, not affiliated with or endorsed by CSLB or PSI.
The questions are what you study for. License Ladder's printed flashcards, study guides and app cover the Law & Business and General Building (B) exams, 20 minutes a day.
$99 is the Law & Business package on its own; the General Building (B) deck comes with the $149 bundle. Both are launch prices, going to $189 and $249 when the launch ends.