what is the series 6 
the series 6 is a securities license entitling the holder to register as a company s representative and sell certain types of mutual funds variable securities and insurance holders of the series 6 license are not authorized to sell corporate or municipal securities direct participation programs and options with a series 6 an financial professional can purchase or sell certain types of mutual funds variable life insurance municipal fund securities variable annuities and unit investment trusts uits understanding series 6the series 6 is a license sought by professionals in the financial services industry jobs utilizing the series 6 license include financial advisors retirement plan specialists investment advisors and private bankers in order to obtain the series 6 license candidates must pass the investment company variable contracts products limited representative series 6 exam the securities industry essentials sie exam is a corequisite for the series 6 exam the sie does not require firm sponsorship the financial industry regulatory authority finra administers the series 6 exam it covers topics such as mutual funds variable annuities securities tax regulations retirement plans and insurance products a passing grade is achieved by correctly answering at least 35 of 50 questions within 90 minutes five additional questions are unscored for a total of 55 questions the test costs 40 and it is administered via computer with no reference material allowed candidates used to take the series 6 exam in person at prometric test centers however finra began offering tests including the series 6 exam online in 2020 prometric also administered the online tests however candidates or their employers had to install specialized software on their computers and provide cameras 1 note however that a series 6 expires two years after employment unless under special circumstances such a military deployment 