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State Cert Guide

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What do I need for an Ohio mortgage loan originator license?

In Ohio, no individual may act as a mortgage loan originator without first getting a license from the superintendent, except a registered originator acting under that authority. An applicant must show at least twenty-four hours of pre-licensing instruction. A passing score on the written test is at least seventy-five per cent correct.

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The rule, fact by fact

Course hours
At least twenty-four hours of pre-licensing instructionThe instruction has two parts, described in the questions below.
Verified. codes.ohio.gov (opens state website) · checked Nov 13, 2026
Cost
$110 for the SAFE MLO Test, as NMLS lists it. This is not the course priceWe haven't confirmed a course price from a source.
NMLS Resource Center · SAFE MLO Test overview (opens website) · checked Nov 13, 2026
Valid for
Licenses expire each year on the thirty-first day of DecemberThe statute sets this date for every mortgage originator license.
Verified. codes.ohio.gov (opens state website) · checked Nov 13, 2026
Passing score
A passing score is at least seventy-five per cent of the questions correctThe statute sets this for the written test.
Verified. codes.ohio.gov (opens state website) · checked Nov 13, 2026

How to get it done

  1. Step 1. Check whether you need the license. No individual may act as a mortgage loan originator without first getting a license from the superintendent of financial institutions. An originator must also be employed by or associated with a registrant or an entity holding a valid letter of exemption, and with no more than one at a time.

  2. Step 2. Pick your course. A person who finished pre-licensing education that the nationwide mortgage licensing system and registry, called the registry on this page, reviewed and approved for any state within the previous five years gets credit toward Ohio's pre-licensing education requirement.

  3. Step 3. Take at least twenty-four hours of pre-licensing instruction. An applicant who held a valid Ohio license within the last five years needs no additional pre-licensing instruction. Time spent as a registered mortgage loan originator is not counted in those five years.

  4. Step 4. Pass the written test. The registry develops and approves it, and an approved test provider gives it. After failing three consecutive tests, an individual waits at least six months before taking it again.

Before you pay

Before you pay, check that the course covers both parts, including the four hours on Ohio law.

Questions

What are the two parts?

Twenty hours in an approved course, and four hours in a course or program the superintendent reviews and approves on Ohio lending laws and the Ohio consumer sales practices act.

What does the test cover?

The statute says it must measure knowledge of ethics, and of federal and state law related to mortgage origination, among other areas. NMLS lists 120 questions, with 115 scored. The five unscored pre-test questions have no effect on your pass or fail result.

What if my license lapsed?

A licensee who fails to keep a valid license for five years or longer must retake the test. Time spent as a registered mortgage loan originator does not count toward those five years.

How much is the application fee?

Applying takes a nonrefundable fee of two hundred dollars, plus any added fee the registry requires. That is separate from what a course costs.

What to do next

Start with the Ohio law on the pre-licensing application. Then pick a course that covers both parts.

codes.ohio.gov

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