CFP^® Exam

FP Canada offers alternate paths to CFP certification for candidates with the following qualifying credentials: Relevant Professional Qualifications, Pl. Fin., and Foreign CFP Professionals. To apply for an exemption based on those qualifying credentials, you will need to submit documentation from the governing body confirming your qualifications and good standing through your FP Canada portal, no later than one month prior to the exam.

Submit Your Documentation

If you hold a relevant professional qualification in good standing in Canada, you may be eligible for exemption from FP Canada-Approved Core Curriculum and Advanced Curriculum programs and the FP Canada Institute Introduction to Professional Ethics, and may proceed directly to the FP Canada Institute CFP Professional Education Program. Relevant professional qualifications include:

• CPA
• CFA
• FCIA
• LL.B./J.D.

Submit Your Documentation

If you hold the Pl. Fin from IQPF, you may be eligible for exemption from all education requirements and may proceed directly to the CFP examination.

Submit Your Documentation

If you hold a CFP credential from an FPSB member organization, you may be eligible for exemption from all education requirements and may proceed directly to the CFP examination. Following CFP certification, you must successfully complete the FP Canada Institute CFP Professional Education Program within one year to maintain the certification.

Submit Your Documentation

If you hold the QAFP certification and wish to pursue CFP certification, there are two options available to you:

Option 1: To qualify to write the CFP examination, you must successfully complete the FP Canada Institute QAFP Professional Education Program within one year of QAFP certification or the FP Canada-Approved Advanced Curriculum and the QAFP Certification to CFP Certification Bridge Program.

Option 2: If you have not completed the QAFP Professional Education Program, to qualify to write the CFP examination you must successfully complete the FP Canada-Approved Advanced Curriculum and the CFP Professional Education Program

You must successfully complete the CFP examination within 4 years (or 4 attempts) of successfully completing the CFP Professional Education program. If you are not successful on the exam within four years (or four attempts), you will need to successfully repeat the CFP Professional Education Program.

Online proctoring provides candidates with the opportunity to write the exam from home or another private location using their own computer, webcam, microphone and internet connection. The exam is written in a secure environment on downloaded software – the same exam software that is used at in-person test centres. Before selecting online proctoring as an option, consider if your computer system meets the technology and system requirements necessary for participation in online proctoring. Note that there are no exceptions for these requirements. More information on technology and system requirements can be found in the FP Canada Guide to the CFP Examination and by clicking here.

You will be asked to indicate your preferred exam location on the CFP examination application. FP Canada will strive to accommodate your preferred location, but if the location has reached capacity your second preferred location will be assigned to you. In the rare event that your first and second preferred locations are at capacity, an alternate exam location will be proposed to you. A list of standard locations is available in the FP Canada Guide to the CFP Examination.

Based on the FP Canada Blueprint: CFP Examination, the Practice Exam has the same structure, format and types of questions as the actual exam and uses the same software that you’ll use on exam day.

After purchase, you have a total of nine hours to complete the six-hour exam and you may only write it once. You can log in and out as many times as you wish provided total time logged in does not exceed nine hours. You can view the Practice Exam questions, their response options and the rationales for each correct and incorrect answer as often as you like until exam day. Self-scoring will require additional time beyond the time it takes you to complete the Practice Exam. There is no time limit for self-scoring or for reviewing the diagnostic report – you can use it right up to exam day.

Following completion of the Practice Exam, you will receive detailed sample responses for all exam questions to allow you to self-score the exam, as well as a diagnostic report to help you identify areas that may require more study. The self-scoring feature can provide unique insight into what is required for successful completion of the exam. By comparing your practice answers to the sample responses, you will understand:

• The structure of the scoring process;
• The rationale for why one answer is correct or incorrect; and
• What types of responses may be required to earn marks.

You may perceive that the level of difficulty of the actual exam varies from the Practice Exam; however, materials on the Practice Exam have appeared on actual FP Canada examinations. With more time to write the Practice Exam than the actual exam, access to study materials while you write it and that your performance on the Practice Exam has no direct consequences may impact your perception of the level of difficulty. When you write the actual exam, there may be some differences in administration settings and there are tighter time constraints for writing; these factors could make the actual exam seem more difficult than the Practice Exam.

Refunds are not provided for the purchase of the Practice Exam. Use of the Practice Exam is restricted to candidates who have registered or are registering to write the CFP examination and is for personal study use only. The Practice Exam is updated annually for currency and the exam questions were last refreshed in January 2020. The Practice Exam is available in English and French.

View the Terms & Conditions

If you have questions about the Practice Exam, please contact us at info@fpcanada.ca. Questions or comments received less than 2 days prior to the CFP examination will be answered after the examination. There are no additional explanations or tutoring on the Practice Exam content. Please refer to your study materials to better understand the concepts presented in the Practice Exam.

Maximize your study efforts for the CFP exam with an exclusive webinar facilitated by FP Canada Standards Council’s Examinations department. To help exam candidates gain insight into the exam and exam processes, the webinar will answer frequently asked questions such as:

• What are the essential tips I need for success in the exam?
• What can I expect on exam day?
• What resources can FP Canada offer to help me prepare?
• What role will the FP Canada Standards Council Competency Profile and FP Canada Blueprint: CFP Examination play in the exam?

If you are registered for the CFP examination, you have access to more than 50 sample exam questions on your FP Canada Portal including sample case studies, retired exam questions – both multiple-choice and constructed-response, keys to competency and much more.

Familiarize yourself with the examination software by using our exam software tutorial. The tutorial gives you an opportunity to experience how the software will work.

Arriving to your exam prepared and knowing what to expect is your best strategy for success. For detailed information about the CFP examination, refer to the FP Canada Guide to the CFP Examination.

We strongly encourage you to use the FP Canada Standards Council Competency Profile, and materials from your FP Canada-Approved Core Curriculum and Advanced Curriculum programs, CFP Professional Education Program and Introduction to Professional Ethics course to prepare for the CFP examination. It’s important to understand that the elements of financial planning competency focus not only on knowledge required, but on how CFP professionals must behave in practice. The questions on the CFP examination will refer to one or more elements of competency. You’ll be expected to understand the competencies and how they should be applied in practice.

Please note: FP Canada Standards Council does not review, recommend or endorse any external study help providers, courses or materials as representative of the CFP examination.

Log in to your FP Canada Portal to register for the exam.

• Review the FP Canada Blueprint: CFP Examination, which details the weightings and financial planning functions and components that will be covered on the exam.
• Review the FP Canada Standards Council Competency Profile, which outlines the competencies that are being assessed in the exam (i.e. the application of your learned technical knowledge to a client situation).

• The FP Canada Guide to the CFP Examination is required reading for all FP Canada examination candidates.
• View the Examination Preparation Webinar, facilitated by FP Canada Standards Council’s Examinations department, to gain insight into the exam and exam processes.
• Purchase the Practice Exam. Candidates who have prepared with the Practice Exam often reported feeling more familiar with the exam software, said the diagnostic report provided useful feedback on their performance and said they felt better prepared to write the exam.
• Review more than 50 multiple-choice sample exam questions, as well as eight sample constructed-response cases – these are available on your FP Canada Portal.
• Familiarize yourself with the exam software by accessing the Software Tutorial.

In-Person Test Centre

• Bring your Admission Ticket. Approximately two weeks prior to the exam, you will receive an email directing you to download and print your Admission Ticket from your FP Canada Portal. The address of your exam location will be printed on the Admission Ticket.
• Bring photo identification. Along with your printed Admission Ticket, you must bring valid, government-issued photo identification containing both your photograph and signature. The name on your identification must match the name on your exam application, education transcripts and Admission Ticket. For examples of acceptable pieces of identification, please refer to pages 19 in the FP Canada Guide to the CFP Examination.
• Bring a noiseless, non-programmable financial calculator. For a listing of approved calculator models, please refer to pages 20-22 in the FP Canada Guide to the CFP Examination.
• Arrive early. Please report to the examination centre by 8:15 a.m. and be registered and seated to hear instructions by 8:45 a.m. The writing of the exam will begin at 9:00 a.m.
• For instructions on what to bring, what not to bring, what you may keep on your desk during the exam and other important details, please refer to pages 22-24 in the FP Canada Guide to the CFP Examination.

Online Proctoring

• Bring your Admission Ticket. Approximately two weeks prior to the exam, you will receive an emailed Admission Ticket with log-in details and information related to preparing your exam location and accessing your exam during your scheduled time. If you change your exam time, a new Admission Ticket will be generated.
• Bring photo identification. Along with your printed Admission Ticket, you must bring valid, government-issued photo identification containing both your photograph and signature. The name on your identification must match the name on your exam application, Core Curriculum Program transcripts and Admission Ticket. For examples of acceptable pieces of identification, please refer to page 19 in the FP Canada Guide to the CFP Examination.
• Bring a noiseless, non-programmable financial calculator. For a listing of approved calculator models, please refer to pages 20-22 in the FP Canada Guide to the CFP Examination.
• Ensure your computer station is prepared 30 minutes prior to your scheduled exam time to reduce potential connection issues. The first 15 minutes of the booked time will be for the onboarding process with an onboarding associate from ProctorU. Candidates should begin the log-in process at least ten minutes prior to the scheduled start time. Note that there may be a wait-time for an onboarding associate but candidates should stay connected should a delay occur – any onboarding delay will not impact the time allocated for exam writing.
• For instructions on what to bring, what not to bring, what you may keep on your desk during the exam and other important details, refer to pages 22-24 in the FP Canada Guide to the CFP Examination.