CII R01 practice questions for Financial Services, Regulation & Ethics
Free, exam-style R01 practice questions across the whole syllabus — marked instantly, with an explanation for every answer. Then unlock ten full 100-question mocks and 1,350+ questions with Pro.
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The R01 exam at a glance
R01 is the core regulatory unit of the CII Level 4 Diploma in Regulated Financial Planning — usually the first exam advisers sit on the way to the Diploma.
The CII sets a nominal pass mark of 65% and adjusts it slightly per sitting for difficulty, so we always describe it as nominal. Always check the current format and fees on the CII website.
Every area of the R01 syllabus
Eleven syllabus areas, each with its own revision page — what it covers, where candidates lose marks, and free practice. The practice bank draws from all of them.
Start free, then go deeper
- Free practice sets across the syllabus
- An explanation for every answer
- A per-topic breakdown at the end
- No account, no card
- Over 1,350 exam-style questions
- Ten full 100-question timed mocks
- Drill individual syllabus areas, weakest first
- Practise every question you got wrong
- Web and app, one subscription
Try the free questions first — they show which areas you actually need to drill.
New to the R01 exam?
The complete guide covers the exam format, the nominal pass mark, all eleven syllabus areas, where R01 sits in the Level 4 Diploma, the fees, and how to pass first time.
Read the complete guideThe same question bank on iOS and Android, with flashcards and progress tracking.
R01 questions, answered
R01 — Financial Services, Regulation and Ethics — is the core regulatory unit of the Chartered Insurance Institute's Level 4 Diploma in Regulated Financial Planning (DipPFS). It tests the knowledge a UK financial adviser needs across the financial-services industry, the regulatory system (the FCA and PRA), the FCA Handbook, relevant law, Consumer Duty, and professional ethics. It is a computer-based, multiple-choice exam, and it is usually the first unit advisers sit on the way to the Diploma.
R01 is 100 questions in 2 hours — about 1 minute 12 seconds a question. That breaks down into 87 standard multiple-choice questions, each with four options and one correct answer, and 13 multiple-response questions, which have four to six options and more than one correct answer. There is no separate reading time.
The CII sets a nominal pass mark of 65% for R01, and then adjusts it slightly for each sitting so the standard stays constant across papers of differing difficulty. Treat 65% as your working target rather than a fixed line, and aim to be scoring comfortably above it in timed practice before you book.
R01 covers the UK financial-services industry and markets; how financial services are regulated under the Financial Services and Markets Act; the responsibilities and powers of the FCA and PRA; the FCA Handbook, the Principles for Businesses and the Conduct of Business rules; Consumer Duty and fair customer outcomes; the legal concepts advisers rely on (contract, agency, trusts, property and insolvency law); consumer protection, the Financial Ombudsman Service and the FSCS; the CII Code of Ethics and professional standards; ethical versus compliance-driven behaviour; the regulated advice process and suitability; and the skills needed to advise clients.
R01 is a knowledge exam, so it rewards broad coverage and recall under time pressure. Candidates most often fall short by under-revising the huge regulatory and Consumer Duty content, confusing similar bodies and limits (the FCA versus the PRA, the Ombudsman versus the FSCS), and picking the merely compliant answer when a question is really testing ethics. Working through a large bank of exam-style questions, reviewing every one you get wrong, and sitting full timed mocks is the most reliable route to the nominal 65%.
The CII's assessment-only exam voucher for R01 is £139 for CII members and £190 for non-members at the time of writing; the default 'enrolment plus' option bundles the study text and costs more. Fees change, so always check the current price on the CII website before you enrol. PrepSuite Pro is a small fraction of the exam fee and is designed to help you pass first time rather than paying to resit.
Most people who pass comfortably work through well over a thousand exam-style questions and several full mocks, concentrating on the regulation, FCA Handbook and Consumer Duty areas where the marks and the traps concentrate. What matters is reviewing your wrong answers until you understand why the right one is right — not just racking up attempts.
Yes. R01 is entirely multiple choice, sat by computer: 87 standard questions with one correct answer and 13 multiple-response questions with more than one. There is no written or oral component, which is exactly why targeted question practice works so well for it.
Right here on PrepSuite. You can start with free CII R01 practice questions — exam-style, marked instantly, with an explanation for every answer — with no account needed to begin. The full question bank, full 100-question timed mocks and per-topic drilling are available with Pro when you are ready to go deeper.