The RE1 Exam: complete 2026 guide

The RE1 is the Key Individual regulatory exam, and in one important way the stakes are higher than for the RE5: you can't be approved as a Key Individual without it. There's no supervision period, no grace window, no writing it once you've settled into the role. This guide covers what the RE1 is, who must write it, the format and pass mark, the cost, how booking works, and how to prepare for a paper that goes noticeably deeper than the rep exam.

As always, a note upfront: PassPath is an independent prep tool, not the exam body. The RE1 is administered through Moonstone under the FSCA, and we link to official sources throughout so you can confirm the details yourself.

What is the RE1 exam?

Officially, the RE1 is the regulatory examination for FSPs and Key Individuals in all categories of financial services providers. A Key Individual is the person responsible for managing and overseeing an FSP's rendering of financial services under the FAIS Act (the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act, 37 of 2002). The exam tests exactly that: not whether you can advise a client, but whether you understand everything you're accountable for when you run or oversee the business.

In the official preparation guide, the framing is blunt: the questions aim to find out whether the KI understands the aspects he or she is held accountable for in terms of the legislation. Where a representative's exam asks “what must you do”, the KI's exam asks “what must you make sure happens, across the whole FSP”.

Who must write the RE1?

• Key Individuals in all FSP categories (I, II, IIA, III and IV), per the FSCA.
• Sole proprietors. If you're a one-person FSP, you're the Key Individual and the representative at the same time, so you write both the RE1 and the RE5.
• Compliance officers are also listed under the RE1 by the FSCA's Regulatory Examinations FAQ; the approval criteria for compliance officers (Board Notice 127 of 2010) sit in the RE1's legislation map.

If you hold more than one role, or you're not sure whether your role counts as managing and overseeing, confirm your specific case with your compliance officer or with Moonstone before you book. The categories and roles have real edge cases, and the fee is non-trivial.

When must you pass it? (This part surprises people)

Representatives get a two-year window from their date of first appointment, because they can work under supervision while they prepare. Key Individuals get no such runway. Under the fit-and-proper requirements (Board Notice 194 of 2017), the applicable regulatory exam must be passed before approval. In practice, the RE1 is a precondition: if you're being appointed as a KI, lined up to take over an FSP, or applying for your own licence, the FSCA process waits for your RE1.

That changes the planning question. There's no regulatory deadline chasing you; instead, your business timeline is waiting on you. Every month of drift is a month the licence application, the appointment or the restructure sits on hold.

RE1 format, pass mark and duration

• 80 multiple-choice questions, each worth 1.25%
• 2 hours 30 minutes (150 minutes)
• Pass mark: 65%, which means 52 of 80 questions
• Four answer options per question, one correct, no negative marking
• Closed book, on paper at a supervised venue, and morning sessions only (the paper is too long for afternoon sittings)

The RE1 also skews harder in question style, and this is official rather than folklore. The preparation guide publishes the complexity mix: 39% of RE1 questions are comprehension and a further 34% are application or analysis, against 30% application-and-analysis on the RE5. Expect scenarios where you must decide what a KI must do about a compliance breach, a debarment, or an operational failure, not just recall what the Act says.

What does the RE1 cost?

The fee is currently R1 300 (VAT inclusive) per attempt, the same as the RE5, and the full fee is payable again for a rewrite. Fees get reviewed from time to time, so check Moonstone's exam page for the current amount. There's no limit on attempts, but at R1 300 each, walking in ready the first time is worth real money.

How to book the RE1

1. Register and book at faisexam.co.za, Moonstone's exam portal. Moonstone is currently the only body administering the regulatory exams.
2. Pay within 24 hours of booking or the booking lapses; your invoice number is the payment reference.
3. Registration closes 11 working days before the exam date. RE1 sittings are morning-only, so popular venues fill up; book the date your preparation is aimed at.
4. Bring your original ID on the day (smart ID card, green ID book, valid passport or driver's licence) and arrive at least 30 minutes early.

If you have a disability or special requirement, the official process provides for it. Apply in writing when you register, with supporting medical evidence.

What the RE1 covers: sixteen tasks

The RE1 syllabus is organised into sixteen tasks, roughly double the RE5's eight, and they cluster into four themes:

• The regulatory framework: understanding the FAIS Act, defining financial products and services, and operating as a KI in terms of the Act.
• Running the FSP: maintaining the licence, managing operational ability, overseeing the compliance function, record keeping, and the accounting and audit requirements.
• Conduct and clients: adhering to the codes of conduct, managing the FSP's FICA and anti-money-laundering obligations, and dealing with complaints that reach the FAIS Ombud.
• Managing representatives: defining the rep's role, appointing reps, managing services under supervision, overseeing the rep register, and debarring reps who materially fail to comply.

The legislation behind those tasks goes wider than the RE5's list: the FAIS Act and General Code of Conduct, FICA and the money-laundering control regulations, the fit-and-proper requirements (Board Notice 194 of 2017), the supervision rules (FAIS Notice 86 of 2018), compliance-officer criteria (Board Notice 127 of 2010), professional indemnity cover requirements, and the debarment guidance. You don't need to memorise gazette numbers, but you do need to know what each instrument requires of the FSP you oversee.

Notice something about that last theme: a Key Individual must understand the representative's world in order to manage it. That's why the sixteen tasks feel like the RE5's material plus a management layer on top, and why your gap is task-specific here too. The free PassPath readiness check samples every RE1 task and shows you which of the sixteen need your attention.

Results, certificates and validity

Results are emailed within a maximum of 20 working days (they go to the FSCA first, then to you), and you can log in at faisexam.co.za to view your result and download the certificate. You may not view your paper or answers afterwards. And like the RE5, a pass doesn't expire; you stay fit and proper through ongoing CPD each cycle.

How to prepare for the RE1

Start with the official preparation guide. It's free, and Appendix A lists all sixteen tasks with the legislation each draws on. That's your syllabus.

Then resist the urge to read it cover to cover. The RE1 rewards the same method as any task-based exam: measure where you stand per task, rebuild your weakest tasks from the source legislation, practice application questions daily, and prove readiness with full timed mocks (80 questions, 150 minutes, marked against 65%) before you book. The week-by-week study plan we published for the RE5 transfers directly; just budget more time for the wider syllabus if your baseline is thin.

PassPath covers the RE1 with the same engine as the RE5: a free 16-question diagnostic across all sixteen tasks, adaptive practice that targets your weak ones, spaced repetition so the wide syllabus doesn't fade, and timed mocks that mirror the real format and pass mark. No tool can promise you a pass. What it gives you is an honest, per-task answer to “am I ready to book?” Check your readiness free and see where you stand today. Managing reps who still need their RE5? Point them at the complete RE5 guide.