CFA® Program Emergency Deferral Policy

November 2025 Candidates:

The emergency deferral request window will open on 30 October 2025 at 10:00 AM ET and close on 25 November 2025 at 11:59 PM ET.

All other registered candidates: Continue to check back for form availability and deferral request deadlines closer to your exam window.

Scheduled candidates may request an Emergency Deferral until the published emergency deferral deadline.

Eligibility

You are eligible for an emergency deferral if you experience any of the following:

• life-threatening illness (candidate or immediate family member),
• death of an immediate family member,
• mandatory military deployment (candidate only) during the exam window,
• pregnancy (candidate only; limited to one pregnancy deferral per level),
• exam rescheduled by Prometric within 30 days of the exam window start date, and after contacting Prometric, you are unable to find a new acceptable appointment date*.

*There is no processing fee for exams rescheduled by Prometric.

Documentation and approval

• You must provide documentation to support your claim.
• Once the deferral is approved, you may defer your exam appointment for up to 12 months, depending on your exam level and appointment availability.
• Eligible exam windows are listed below. Registration and scheduling deadlines apply.

Processing timeline and fees

• Please allow up to two weeks for CFA Institute to validate your documentation.
• If your request is approved, you will have 7 days to submit the processing fee (when applicable).
• Beginning with exams in 2025, approved emergency deferral requests will require a USD 100 processing fee to cover administrative costs.
• Once payment is submitted, your registration and scheduled appointment will be canceled immediately.
• This decision is final and cannot be reversed.
• Failure to pay within the deadline will void the deferral.

If you do not qualify:

• If you do not meet the criteria for an emergency deferral, or do qualify but cannot provide the proper documentation, your request will be denied.
• You may instead purchase a paid deferral before the paid deferral deadline.

Completion of the emergency deferral form represents your consent for CFA Institute to use the information provided by you to verify your eligibility for an exam deferral and monitor exam deferral volumes. All deferral requests are subject to the terms of the Candidate Agreement, up to and including review by our Professional Conduct department. We reserve the right to deny any emergency deferral request.

Misrepresentation and misuse of accounts

CFA Institute has received numerous false Emergency Deferral requests. Providing false documentation is a serious violation of the CFA Institute Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct. If we suspect your documentation is false, your request will be denied and you will be referred to our Professional Conduct department for disciplinary sanctions, including possible restriction from the CFA Program exams.

If you do not qualify for an Emergency Deferral, purchase a paid deferral instead. Do not risk disciplinary sanctions by falsifying documentation.

Professional Conduct at CFA Institute has discovered that some candidates have been providing the usernames and passwords of their CFA Program accounts to third parties unaffiliated with CFA Institute, who are often using that information to provide false deferral information on behalf of these candidates. As a candidate, you are responsible for keeping your account safe, private and secure. Candidates who permit third parties to have access to their accounts will be held responsible for any falsified or misleading information provided and may receive a sanction (including suspension or prohibition from participation in the CFA Program) for such activity. We remind all registered candidates to read and uphold the CFA Institute Code and Standards, and to abide by all terms outlined in the Candidate Agreement.