The CII pensions unit had a countrywide pass rate of 61% in the 2020 calendar exam year. This is a unit that requires a minimum of 50 study hours and gives candidates 10 CII credits towards the regulated DipFS, but don’t let this fool you. Our years of experience coaching and supporting this unit have shown that most candidates will need more than the minimum study hours, and nearly all will come away baulking at the meagre 10 credits for the effort required (it should be worth more in our opinion!). So, what are the top five reasons for this paper hitting the charts as the exam with the lowest national pass rate in 2020?
When HMRC came up with the phrase ‘pension simplification’ they were clearly having a chuckle! The changes brought in through the annual Finance and Pensions Acts, might have been intended to make pensions simpler, but there are still so many different rules associated with different pension policies, regimes, caps, valuation factors, tests, death benefits, state pensions and ages, only a real pensions technician would dare to say this was simple.
As an example, the annual allowance charge – one of the caps introduced in 2006 in an attempt to simply pensions, started off relatively simple, acting as a cap on annual defined contribution (DC) pension contributions and defined benefit (DB) benefit accrual. If the cap was breached a tax charge was triggered at the individual’s marginal rate, known as the annual allowance charge. Additional tweaks and changes brought in by successive Chancellors such as carry forward, tapering of the annual allowance and the cherry on its cake, the Money Purchase Annual Allowance (known in less respectful circles as More Pain for Advisers and Administrators), have muddied the waters somewhat!
From your AA to your LTA, from the AAA to the MPAA, RPSs, PPS, SSASs, SIPPS and RACs to name a few there. Have you ever come across a subject that has more abbreviations than pensions? Keeping track of what they each stand for is tricky enough without having to remember how they each work! Check out the BTS R0 glossary, available as a free pdf, to help you keep all your abbreviations in one place.
To pass the CII R04, the examiner expects candidates to have a firm knowledge of not only the current rules, but some of the old rules as well! For example, simplification of the state pension came in from 6 April 2016, yet the R04 exam papers still contain questions on Category B basic state pensions, old deferral rules, how savings credit works etc.
Pension legislation is generally introduced via annual Pension and Finance Acts. This leads to so many different dates relating to when each change to pension rules came in. For example, inflation proofing of pensions, evaluation pre-retirement and escalation in retirement. Both have minimums that DB schemes must usually adhere – so CPI capped at 5% and/or 2.5%. But the year this minimum fell is DIFFERENT for revaluation and DIFFERENT for escalation.
Long question stems, use of double negatives, grids and tables; all of which make deciphering the questions tricky. Candidates need to develop the skill of identify key question information and words that are ‘exam fluff’ before they can even begin to apply their knowledge to the question asked.
We have just found out that the Chartered Insurance Institute have made the decision that, from 2018, they will no longer offer R0 workshops to the general market for candidates who are studying for these exams. This means that the qualifications that involve such a commitment in terms of study time, question practice, and monies on study guides and exam sittings, are no longer supported by the best learning method of all – face to face workshops. Let’s face it, these are tough exams to pass on your own. CII countrywide pass-rates for 2016 make staggering reading: R01
Despite HMRC attempts to keep things simple, it’s a well-known issue that pensions are anything but. The theory is, if we can make pensions easier to understand then more clients will contribute towards their retirement planning, easing the financial burden on the state. In our view, the government still have a long way to go before we can describe pensions and retirement planning as simple… Pensions, though we here at BTS love them, are full of lots of different terms, hundreds of abbreviations, a variety of dates and pretty much anything else that makes them anything but simple! Let’s take
Why is the R04 exam difficult to pass? The main reason that the CII R04 exam is so difficult to pass is the sheer volume of pension information candidates must learn, understand and be able to apply. Whoever coined the phrase ‘pension simplification’ needs a good kicking. We think HMRC must be having a good chuckle at this one. Candidates need to know a bit about so many different pension subjects. From pension simplification to freedoms, individual and employer schemes, pension bodies, state schemes and alternative options for retirement planning, the list just goes on. Pensions is also choc full
The Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) R04 Pensions and Retirement Planning unit now has the lowest countrywide pass rate. Why? More importantly, how do you increase your chances to pass the CII R04 exam? The CII pensions unit had a countrywide pass rate of 61% in the 2020 calendar exam year. This is a unit that requires a minimum of 50 study hours (yeah right, and the rest!) and once successfully passed gives candidates 10 CII credits (it should be worth so much more, in our opinion!). What make this R0 unit such a tough ask? Why do many candidates ‘defer
The Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) R04 Pensions and Retirement Planning unit now has the lowest countrywide pass rate. In this article, Luiza Todd FPFS CFP explores five reasons why candidates can struggle with the R04 exam and offers her tips on how to pass the CII R04 exam. The CII pensions unit had a countrywide pass rate of 61% in the 2020 calendar exam year. This is a unit that requires a minimum of 50 study hours and gives candidates 10 CII credits towards the regulated DipFS, but don’t let this fool you. Our years of experience coaching and supporting
