Plan on 20 to 40 hours for the Series 63, usually 1 to 2 weeks straight after the Series 7, which itself takes 80 to 150 hours. The Series 63 has 60 scored questions in 1 hour 15 minutes and needs 43 correct (72%) to pass, according to Knopman. It tests state securities law only.
Most broker-dealers want new representatives to hold the Series 7 and the Series 63 before they can work with clients, so the two are usually booked together. This page is about the Series 63 and how to fit it in after the 7. For the Series 7 on its own, see how long to study for the Series 7.
The Series 7 is a FINRA exam that qualifies you to sell securities. The Series 63, written by NASAA, is the Uniform Securities Agent State Law Exam. Most states require it before you can act as a securities agent there. The two exams barely overlap: the 7 is about products and how to recommend them, and the 63 is about the state rules for the people who sell them.
The exam has 60 scored multiple choice questions plus 5 unscored ones, 1 hour 15 minutes, and a passing score of 72%, or 43 correct (Knopman). It tests the Uniform Securities Act and NASAA's statements of policy and model rules. Under the outline in use since June 2023, Knopman reports these counts for four of the sections:
| Section | Questions |
|---|---|
| Regulation of agents of broker-dealers | 8 |
| Regulation of broker-dealers | 7 |
| Remedies and administrative provisions | 7 |
| Regulation of securities and issuers | 5 |
The rest of the exam covers investment advisers and their representatives, communications with clients, and ethical practices, which is where many questions on unethical conduct sit. By comparison, the Series 7 has 125 questions in 3 hours 45 minutes and needs a 72.
With the Series 7's 80 to 150 hours, the pair comes to roughly 100 to 190 hours. At 10 to 15 hours a week that is 2 to 4 months; with firm-sponsored study time, 3 to 6 weeks. For other licensing exams, see our exam study hours statistics.
The core of the exam is who is what under the Uniform Securities Act: what makes someone an agent, a broker-dealer, an investment adviser or an investment adviser representative, and who is excluded from each definition. Then come the registration rules: who must register, when registration takes effect, and which securities and transactions are exempt. The exam builds traps from small details, such as whether a person has a place of business in the state or which kind of client they deal with, so learn each exclusion exactly.
You need to know what the state administrator can and cannot do: deny, suspend or revoke a registration, issue cease and desist orders, subpoena records, and when a court has to get involved. Learn the penalties and civil liabilities as well. These are a handful of rules that come up again and again, so they are worth drilling until they are automatic.
NASAA lists practices that are unethical for agents, broker-dealers and advisers, such as unauthorised trading, guaranteeing a client against loss, and borrowing from clients. The exam describes a scenario and asks whether it is allowed. These read like common sense, but the exceptions (for example, borrowing from a client that is a bank) are what get tested.
This assumes 4 to 5 hours a day and a recent Series 7 pass.
At 2 to 3 hours a day, spend the first week reading the manual and building flashcards, and the second on practice exams and the questions you miss. Keep the daily card review going right up to exam day.
Follow the Series 7 study plan first. If you have not passed the SIE, start with how long to study for the SIE. Then book the 63 one to two weeks after your Series 7 date and use one of the plans above.
If your firm also wants you registered as an investment adviser representative, the Series 66 covers the 63's state law plus adviser material in one exam. It takes longer, 40 to 100 hours. See how long to study for the Series 7 and 66.
The Series 63 is almost entirely recall of exact rules, which is what flashcards are for. Write each rule as a question ("Can an agent share in the profits of a client's account?"), answer it before checking, and review on a spaced schedule. See these active recall techniques and the guide to AI flashcards.
Upload your Series 63 manual or notes to StudyCards AI and get flashcards for every definition and exemption, ready to export to Anki. For more ways to cut note-taking time, see this guide to AI study tools for exams.
Try StudyCards AI FreeKnopman recommends 30 to 40 hours and ExamFX at least 30. Candidates fresh from the Series 7 often need less, around 20 to 30, because the 63 is a short exam on state law alone.
Roughly 100 to 190 hours in total: 80 to 150 for the Series 7 and 20 to 40 for the Series 63. Working 10 to 15 hours a week, that is about 2 to 4 months, or 3 to 6 weeks with firm-sponsored study time.
Most firms schedule the Series 7 first and the 63 within a week or two. The 63 is short enough to study in that gap, and taking it straight after keeps you in exam mode.
60 scored questions plus 5 unscored, in 1 hour 15 minutes, with 43 correct (72%) needed to pass. It tests the Uniform Securities Act and NASAA rules: registration of broker-dealers, agents, investment advisers and securities, the state administrator's powers, and unethical practices.
Yes, if you have just passed the Series 7 and can study 4 to 5 hours a day. It is a memorisation exam, so steady daily flashcard review matters more than long sessions.
No. It is about a quarter of the hours and half the questions, and it covers one subject. The difficulty is the precise wording of definitions and exemptions, which the exam uses to set traps.
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