How the plan sets your priorities
Rate how each content area went on your last attempt. If your score report shows results by content area, use them; the planner doesn't need exact scores. So the planner asks you instead: the content areas you mark as hard start your plan, mixed ones are strengthened, and confident ones get lighter review. Your answers are a self-assessment, not an official result.
Each content area starts from its share of the exam in the official outline, multiplied by its priority: 3× to start, 2× to strengthen, 1.5× if you leave it blank, and 1× to maintain. A quarter of your time is mixed practice across all content areas. This is Passy’s planning method; it doesn’t estimate a score or a chance of passing.
Retake rules for the SAFE MLO
Wait 30 days after a first or second failed attempt and 180 days after a third; the cycle then repeats. A separate enrollment and fee is needed for each attempt.
- 12 CFR 1008.105(e)(2) and 12 U.S.C. 5104(d)(3): three consecutive attempts, each at least 30 days after the preceding test; after three consecutive failures, wait at least 6 months.
- NMLS handbook 10.1 (archived copy captured 2026-04-20): 30 calendar days, 30 days, then 180 calendar days after every third failed test.
- A state-licensed MLO without a valid license for 5 years or longer (excluding time as a registered MLO) must retake the test (12 CFR 1008.105(e)(3)).
- Candidates who pass may not retake the test.
- 12 CFR 1008.105 (Regulation H) (Consumer Financial Protection Bureau)
Checked against official sources on October 24, 2026.
Next steps
Check your weakest content area with the free SAFE MLO practice set, or use the SAFE MLO study planner for a first attempt.
Passy is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or approved by the Nationwide Multistate Licensing System & Registry (NMLS), the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS), Prometric, or any state regulator. NMLS is named only to identify the test. Passy practice questions are original study material and contain no NMLS test items and no sample questions from the NMLS MLO Testing Handbook.