GA-PSA Cheat Sheet 2026: One-Page Review of Must-Know Facts

GA-PSA at a Glance

The Georgia Private Security Agency Licensure Examination (GA-PSA) is the designee exam administered on behalf of the Georgia State Board of Private Detective and Security Agencies, with PSI as the testing provider. This is not the private detective exam, not employee guard registration, and not a firearms qualification - it is the test the company's designated officer or responsible member must pass before a security agency can be licensed to operate in Georgia. If you want the full backstory on who this exam is for and why it exists, our What Is GA-PSA? and GA-PSA Meaning pages cover that ground in detail. This page is different: it's the condensed, no-fluff sheet you print out or keep open in a second tab the night before your test.

Exam Format and Scoring Mechanics

Get these numbers exactly right, because they drive your pacing strategy and your budget planning.

• 80 scored questions delivered computer-based, single-best-answer, closed book.
• 90 minutes total testing time for the scored portion.
• 80% passing requirement - there is no partial credit or curve.
• $125 fee applies to each attempt, initial or repeat.
• 5 to 10 unscored experimental questions may appear; time answering these does not count against your 90-minute window, but you won't know which questions are experimental, so treat every question as scored.
• A silent, nonprinting, nonprogrammable calculator is allowed.

For a deeper breakdown of exactly what "80%" means in raw question terms and how it compares to other thresholds candidates assume are in play, see GA-PSA Passing Score 2026: Exactly What You Need to Pass. If you're still weighing how demanding this exam actually is relative to the time you have to prepare, How Hard Is the GA-PSA Exam? Complete Difficulty Guide 2026 walks through the difficulty picture without inventing pass-rate numbers that aren't published.

The Three Domains, Fast

Three domains make up the entire scored exam. Memorize the weights before you memorize anything else, because they tell you where to spend your study hours.

Nearly half the exam sits inside Legal, so any study plan that treats all three domains equally is misallocating time. For a granular walkthrough of subtopics inside each domain, our GA-PSA Exam Domains 2026: Complete Guide to All 3 Content Areas article expands on every bullet below.

Legal (45%): The Facts That Matter

Because this domain alone determines nearly half your score, spending an unequal share of review time here is not optional - it's the single highest-leverage decision in your prep.

Scope of Practice (35%): The Facts That Matter

Scope of Practice questions often read like short workplace scenarios. If you're building a study calendar around domain weight and question style, GA-PSA Study Guide 2026: How to Pass on Your First Attempt pairs well with this cheat sheet for that purpose.

Liability (20%): The Facts That Matter

Eligibility and Registration Checklist

Before you can even schedule a seat with PSI, you need Board approval. Here's the mechanical checklist:

• You must be an officer or member responsible for company operations - the designee, not a rank-and-file employee.
• Qualification comes through one of three paths: two years of full-time supervisory or administrative security experience, two years of law-enforcement experience, or a four-year degree in criminal justice or a related field from an accredited institution.
• "Full-time" is defined as at least 30 hours weekly under the experience rule.
• Applications require supporting documentation plus fingerprint and criminal-history checks.
• Law-enforcement experience or holding an out-of-state license does not automatically waive the examination.
• Once approved, you get three examination attempts within one year.
• Separately, Chapter 509-3 requires 24 hours of basic classroom security training for covered licensees and employees - this is distinct from optional exam-prep coursework.

Applications and renewals move through the state's GOALS system. For the full eligibility narrative with edge cases explained, read GA-PSA Requirements 2026: Eligibility, Prerequisites & How to Qualify. And if you're trying to line up your Board approval timeline with an actual test date, check GA-PSA Exam Dates 2026: Testing Windows, Deadlines & Scheduling before you file paperwork.

After the Exam: Licensing and Renewal Numbers

Passing the exam is a milestone, not the finish line. Company licensing has its own financial-responsibility requirements, satisfied by one of three routes:

• A $25,000 surety bond, or
• $1 million in general-liability coverage, or
• An audited net worth exceeding $50,000

All three are subject to Board approval, along with the applicable license fee. Company licenses then renew biennially, by June 30 of odd-numbered years, through GOALS. Note that employee registrations, weapon permits, and continuing education are tracked separately from the company license - registered security employees complete eight continuing-education hours per renewal cycle, with an exemption on their first renewal. For a full cost breakdown across the exam fee, licensing fee, and financial-responsibility options, see GA-PSA Certification Cost 2026: Complete Pricing Breakdown.

One-Week Review Schedule Using This Sheet

If you already have foundational knowledge and just need a compressed final review, weight your remaining days by domain percentage rather than splitting evenly across three domains.

Running full-length timed sets on our practice test platform before test day is the fastest way to confirm whether your pacing actually holds up against 80 scored questions in 90 minutes, rather than guessing based on how confident you feel reading notes.

Who Actually Hires For This

The designee credential exists because Georgia requires a licensed, accountable individual behind every private security agency operating in the state. That means the practical audience for this exam is agency owners, operations officers, and supervisors stepping into a compliance role - not entry-level guards. If you're mapping this credential against career and income questions, GA-PSA Salary Guide 2026: Complete Earnings Analysis and GA-PSA Jobs go deeper on that side, while Is the GA-PSA Certification Worth It? Complete ROI Analysis 2026 weighs the licensing costs against the operational upside of running a licensed agency.

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