NHIE Exam Requirements

NHIE exam requirements depend on your registration route: complete any state-required pre-exam training or approval, register for the correct exam, pay its fee, and bring the required identification. Passing the National Home Inspector Examination does not license you by itself. (EBPHI registration overview; TREC requirements)

NHIE requirements at a glance

These are the general NHIE program’s rules. A state-specific program can use different fees, identification rules, examination portions or scoring.

Sources: PSI/EBPHI candidate handbook, Examination Preparation, Scheduling and Score Reporting; EBPHI exam overview packet, Registration Information; Texas handbook, What to Bring.

Before you book: your NHIE checklist

Work through these in order. They get you ready to register; they don't replace your state's approval.

1. Name who needs your result. Identify the state where you want to work, or the association whose credential you want. Check that organization’s examination and licensing instructions.
2. Finish what has to come first. Complete any required course hours, field work, or trainee registration. South Dakota and Washington explicitly put their stated education requirements before the exam.
3. Get approval if your state requires it. Wait for the approval letter or email in Oklahoma, Texas and Washington before you try to book the applicable program.
4. Use the right registration route. Florida, Nevada, and Texas go through Pearson VUE. Illinois, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont, and Washington have their own PSI programs. Most other states use PSI’s EBPHI program. Check the route table below for the distinction.
5. Match your name to your ID. The name on your account must match your identification exactly. Fix any mismatch before test day, not at the desk.
6. Ask for accommodations early. Send the request and documentation to the testing vendor before you book a standard appointment. Follow the program’s approval and scheduling instructions; do not assume an ordinary booking includes your arrangements.
7. Confirm your fee and testing deadline. For the general PSI EBPHI program, you forfeit the fee if you do not test within one year after PSI receives it. Other program terms must be checked separately.
8. Save your appointment details. Keep the confirmation, the test-center address, the reporting time, and the cancellation deadline in one place.
9. Note your state’s score window. Plan your license application so your pass is still usable under that state’s rule. A fee-expiration date, an application deadline and a score-validity period are different clocks.

Checklist sources: PSI’s scheduling, ID and accommodation instructions; EBPHI’s registration routes; Pearson VUE accommodations; the state rules linked below. These checks organize your next steps; completing them does not certify eligibility.

By Castleport Test Prep Editorial Team

Where to register for the NHIE

Choose the program for the state where the result must be accepted, not simply the nearest testing center or a familiar vendor name. Use the receiving organization’s directions when the result is for a non-licensing purpose.

These are NHIE registration routes, not a finding that every state requires or accepts the NHIE. A separate state examination or licensing application may still be needed.

Source: EBPHI overview, Registration Information, supplemented by the linked program and board instructions. The “all other states and DC” row covers the general NHIE route only; it does not replace another jurisdiction’s own examination process.

Does your state require the NHIE?

Your state decides whether you need training or approval before you book, which exam route you use, and whether a pass counts toward a license. The Examination Board of Professional Home Inspectors (EBPHI) is the exam owner; PSI and Pearson VUE are testing vendors, not your licensing authority. (EBPHI overview; New York requirements; TREC requirements)

Selected state rules follow—not a complete 50-state licensing checklist. Education, inspection experience, insurance and application requirements are not automatically prerequisites to sitting the exam. The table identifies a pre-exam condition only where the cited source establishes that sequence. An omitted state is not evidence that no license or exam is required.

States that make you get approval before you book

In these examples you can't just pick a test date. The state has to clear you first.

• Oklahoma: the Construction Industries Board pre-approves you, then you schedule with PSI. (CIB licensing path)
• Texas: TREC sends an exam approval notice with Pearson VUE scheduling instructions. (TREC)
• Washington: DOL confirms your eligibility, then emails scheduling instructions. (PSI Washington handbook)

North Carolina also requires approval before its own HILB examination. That is a direction to use the North Carolina process, not a general NHIE booking instruction. (HILB scheduling)

A state’s age or diploma condition is not automatically a national NHIE rule. For example, TREC lists age 18 or older for a professional inspector license; New York’s license requires high school or equivalent. Use the authority for your actual application rather than borrowing another state’s conditions. (TREC qualifications; New York requirements)

How long a passing score stays usable

The receiving authority decides whether an older result meets its requirements. Do not confuse a score-validity period with a deadline that starts when you file an application.

These are selected timing rules, not a complete list of states with deadlines. If you're sitting the exam well before you plan to apply, ask your board.

What the NHIE costs

The standard fee is $225 per attempt in most states. For the general PSI EBPHI program, you pay when you register, and the fee is non-refundable and non-transferable. Those refund terms are not universal across all state programs. (PSI handbook, Examination Scheduling Procedures; EBPHI overview, Examination Fee)

These are exam fees only. License applications, courses, and insurance are separate costs set by your state and providers.

Late cancellations, missing your appointment or arriving after the start time can cost you the fee. Follow the terms for the program you booked, including any documented emergency exception. Texas’s handbook allows a refund or transfer for a timely cancellation; do not assume every NHIE-related payment is non-refundable. (PSI cancellation instructions; Texas handbook, Cancellation and Rescheduling)

Cancellation deadlines differ. The general PSI handbook says two days; EBPHI’s overview says two business days. Florida uses two full calendar days and Texas uses 48 hours. Check your program’s confirmation and contact the vendor before relying on an ambiguous deadline—especially around a weekend or holiday. (PSI handbook; EBPHI overview; Florida policy; Texas policy)

On exam day

The general PSI handbook and Texas handbook give these practical instructions, with the program differences below.

• Arrive 30 minutes early. Late arrivals can be turned away, and that counts as a no-show.
• Bring the IDs your program specifies. PSI’s general EBPHI handbook requires one current, unexpired accepted ID with your photo and signature. Texas requires two current signature IDs: a government-issued primary ID with photo and signature and an acceptable secondary ID. Match the registration name; a second document does not fix an invalid primary ID.
• Leave prohibited materials in storage. No notes, books, phones, or smartwatches in the testing room. The NHIE is closed-book; follow approved accommodation instructions for any authorized exception.
• Check calculator permission before test day. EBPHI’s overview prohibits calculators, while the general PSI handbook permits a silent, nonprogrammable calculator without an alphabetic keypad. Ask the vendor about your exact program rather than assuming either a universal ban or universal permission.
• The tutorial is free time. For the general PSI program, up to 15 minutes of on-screen tutorial doesn't count against your four hours, and you can go back and change answers until time runs out.

Sources: PSI handbook, Required Identification, Security Procedures and Tutorial; EBPHI overview, Taking the Test; Texas handbook, What to Bring and Security. Florida directs account-name issues to Pearson VUE; Texas directs corrections through TREC. Fix the mismatch before arriving. (Florida program; Texas program)

Need accommodations? Use the request process for the exact exam program and follow its approval and booking instructions. For the general PSI program, candidates granted accommodations must schedule by phone with a registrar; Pearson VUE directs candidates to the relevant program’s request process. (PSI accommodations; Pearson VUE accommodations)

Can you take the NHIE online? Online registration is not the same as an at-home examination. The NHIE materials cited here describe proctored test-center delivery. A vendor’s generic remote-testing page is not authorization to take this particular exam from home. (EBPHI overview; PSI handbook)

How the NHIE is scored

For the general NHIE program, your raw score (the number you got right) converts to a scaled score from 200 to 800. A 500 passes. EBPHI uses a criterion-referenced cut, so you're measured against a fixed standard, not against other candidates. (PSI/EBPHI handbook, Score Reporting; EBPHI overview, How the Test Is Scored)

Only 175 of the 200 questions count. The 25 pretest items are mixed in and look the same, so answer every question. Each question has four options and one best answer. (PSI/EBPHI handbook, Examination Preparation)

The number of correct answers needed to reach the passing scaled score can differ between exam forms. A scaled score is not a fixed percentage correct. Texas’s handbook instead specifies 128 correct answers on its national exam for both inspector license levels. That number applies to Texas only. (EBPHI scoring explanation; Texas candidate handbook, Passing Scores)

Your score appears on screen when you finish. If you don't pass, the report breaks down how you did in each content area. Those area scores help you plan a retake; they don't decide pass or fail. (PSI handbook, Score Reporting)

Washington uses its own program format and scale. Its handbook lists 175 national items with three hours and 24 state items with one hour; it also permits 5–25 additional unscored experimental questions within the examination time. Each portion requires a scaled 70. Do not treat that as 70% correct or apply the general NHIE 500 scale to a Washington report. (Washington handbook, Score Reporting and Examination Summary)

What the exam covers

The current national content outline took effect April 1, 2024. Here's how the content is weighted. Task names below are shortened for readability; their percentages are shares of the whole national exam, not shares of the domain. (National content outline; PSI/EBPHI handbook)

The weights show how many questions come from each area, not how hard they are. Electrical is the single biggest task at 7%. Reporting and professional practice together make up 30%. These national weights do not describe a separate state-law portion. (National content outline)

If you don't pass

Under the general NHIE rules you can retake as many times as you need, unless your state limits it. You must wait 30 days between attempts and pay the fee again. (PSI handbook, Examination Scheduling Procedures; EBPHI overview, Re-examination Procedures)

Some states add rules:

• Texas: after three failures of a portion, you need more qualifying education before testing again. Follow TREC’s reauthorization instructions, not just the vendor’s delay before it accepts another reservation. (TREC; Texas program)
• Kentucky: after two failures the regulation sets a minimum of 14 calendar days; it also requires following the testing service’s rules, so that does not shorten the NHIE’s 30-day wait. After three failures, complete and pass the required prelicensing course again before the fourth attempt, and again after each subsequent examination failure. (831 KAR 2:020, Section 2)

Use your diagnostic report. If reporting or professional practice was weak, those areas together account for 30% of the national outline. Use the report to choose topics to revisit, not to predict a passing score. (PSI score-report instructions; national content outline)

After you pass

Passing meets the exam requirement where that result is accepted. It isn't a license. Your state still decides the rest, which can include an application, background check, insurance, and field experience. (New York requirements; TREC requirements)

• Keep your official score report. For the general PSI program, PSI can send a duplicate: scorereport@psionline.com or 855-807-3992. (PSI handbook, Duplicate Score Reports)
• Send it the way your state asks, inside your state's score window. Some authorities require the testing organization to send it directly; Alaska is one example. (Alaska registration packet, Exam Scores)
• Veterans and other eligible VA education-benefit users: approved licensing tests may qualify for reimbursement even after a failed attempt or a retake. Remaining entitlement and benefit time limits apply. Follow the VA’s approval check and submit Form 22-0803 with the required fee receipt and result evidence. The VA decides eligibility. (VA reimbursement instructions)

Does my NHIE pass transfer to another state?

The score is national, but licenses aren't. A new state looks at its own rules: whether it accepts the NHIE, whether your pass is inside its window, and whether you owe another exam. Washington, for example, directs candidates approved by DOL for reciprocity to its state portion. That is not automatic reciprocity for every NHIE passer. (Washington handbook, Reciprocity; Alaska score evidence; Tennessee examination requirements)

Is the NHIE the same as an ASHI or InterNACHI exam?

No. EBPHI is an independent exam board, not a membership association. An association examination, an association credential and a state license are different things. Arkansas’s normal initial-registration route requires the ASHI Standards and Ethics Examination in addition to the NHIE; New Mexico’s training-and-examination route accepts an NHIE or the listed InterNACHI examination. (EBPHI overview; Arkansas rules; New Mexico requirements)

Association-based requirements also have exceptions. Iowa’s cited law recognizes association membership or supervision and separately permits specified out-of-state licensed or registered inspectors, Iowa architects and Iowa professional engineers. Do not turn that into “everyone must join an association,” or assume an association’s rules are universal NHIE admission requirements. (Iowa Code §558A.4A(1), (11))

Sources and verification

National exam administration is supported by the PSI/EBPHI candidate handbook and EBPHI overview packet. The national content outline establishes the domain and task weights. Program differences are supported by the Texas handbook, Washington handbook, Oklahoma handbook and linked vendor pages. Each selected state rule links to its own board, statute, rule or official application instructions beside the claim.

Last verified October 5, 2026: the national examination guidance, registration routes, cited vendor instructions, fees actually printed here, and selected state provisions linked above. We read official publications and program pages. We didn't book an exam or decide anyone's eligibility, so confirm your requirements with your state before you apply. This is not a complete state-by-state licensing determination.

AI tools assisted with drafting and source checking. That work is not a credentialed professional review. See our editorial standards for the distinction.

Castleport Test Prep is an independent exam prep publisher. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or approved by the Examination Board of Professional Home Inspectors (EBPHI), PSI, Pearson VUE, or any state licensing board. Exam and credential names are used to identify their subjects, and trademarks belong to their respective owners. This page doesn't grant a license or guarantee a passing result.