Does the CII Diploma in Regulated Financial Planning meet the FCA’s rules for advisers?
Yes. The FCA’s table of appropriate qualifications (TC Appendix 4) lists it as fully meeting the requirement for personal recommendations on retail investment products. It’s one of several qualifications on that list. Your firm has to supervise you too, more closely until it assesses you as competent, and the FCA says you generally have 48 months from starting the activity to complete an appropriate qualification.
What is the CII Level 4 diploma?
Level 4 is the RQF level of the CII’s diplomas, which the CII puts at about the first year of undergraduate study. It has three of them: the Diploma in Regulated Financial Planning for advisers, the Diploma in Financial Planning for paraplanners and support roles, and the Diploma in Insurance. Only the Regulated Financial Planning one meets the FCA’s rule for retail investment advice on its own.
How much does the Diploma in Regulated Financial Planning cost?
The CII’s March 2026 specification gives a standard qualification fee of £1,159 for the assessments, worked out for a UK non-member on a typical route with digital options. CII members get discounts, shown on each unit’s shop page, and membership itself (£205 a year in the same table, for someone qualified at Certificate level) is optional.
What are the R0 exam pass rates?
Each unit page gives its pass rate for 2025: R01 72.82%, R02 69.67%, R03 59.61%, R04 70.15%, R05 80.53% and R06 71.34%. The CII doesn’t pass a fixed quota of candidates: everyone who reaches the standard passes.
Do you have to take R01 to R06 in order?
No. The CII suggests R05 first, as it’s the only Level 3 unit, then R01, then R02, R03 and R04 in whatever order fits your experience. It suggests R06 last, because it tests what you learned in the other five.
Can prior qualifications give you exemptions?
Sometimes. The CII’s recognition of prior learning scheme can give exemptions for other regulated qualifications that match its learning outcomes, and it aims to confirm the following steps within 15 working days. You can’t complete a CII qualification wholly through exemptions: at least one unit at the qualification’s level or above has to be passed by CII assessment.
What happens if you fail an R0 exam?
You book again: the unit pages sell an Assessment only entry, which is an exam without study material. For R06 you can also ask for a review of marking within 20 UK working days of the results, for £93, refunded if it leads to a pass. The CII’s re-check and review services cover written exams, not multiple-choice ones.
When do the R0 syllabuses change?
Each syllabus runs from 1 September to 31 August. The 2026/27 syllabuses cover exams from 1 September 2026 to 31 August 2027 and test the 2026/2027 tax year. The CII says a new study text edition is usually out each July, and your RevisionMate access moves to it during your 12 months.
What letters can you use after the Diploma?
CII and PFS members who hold the Diploma in Regulated Financial Planning or the Diploma in Financial Planning can use DipPFS. Cert CII (MP) is a different designation, for Society of Mortgage Professionals members with the Certificate in Mortgage Advice.
United Kingdom · Qualification