- The exam has 100 multiple-choice questions plus four essays: 104 response prompts, in a 5-hour maximum sitting.
- You need at least 70% overall, averaging the multiple-choice score with the four essay scores.
- Legal knowledge, dispute resolution, and rules of evidence carry the heaviest multiple-choice weight at 35%.
- Members pay $650 total; non-members pay $765. The application fee comes first, the exam fee after clearance.
Which CFCC This Sheet Covers
This sheet covers the Certified Forensic Claims Consultant (CFCC) credential, an expertise-level certification governed by AACE International through the AACE International Certification Institute and Certification Board. Other credentials share the same four letters, but nothing here applies to them. If you are still sorting out the terminology, start with What Is CFCC Certification? and then return to this page for the quick-reference facts.
The credential targets experienced claims and dispute-resolution professionals who prepare, analyze, and defend claims. Testing is built around common-law or mixed-law principles rather than a jurisdiction-specific law license, so you are being tested on claims methodology and reasoning, not on admission to practice law.
The One-Page Snapshot
Keep this table beside your study notes. Every figure comes from AACE's published materials as summarized for this article.
| Item | Must-Know Fact |
|---|---|
| Governing body | AACE International (Certification Institute and Certification Board) |
| Testing provider | Kryterion via Webassessor; test-center and online-proctored delivery |
| Total prompts | 100 multiple-choice + 4 essays = 104 response prompts |
| Time limit | 5 hours maximum for the full exam |
| Format | Computer-based simple/complex multiple choice plus four scenario-based narrative essays |
| Passing standard | At least 70% overall (average of MCQ score and four essay scores) |
| Result reporting | Pass/Fail only; no numerical section scores; delayed for essay grading |
| Open book? | Yes, two bound resources of your choice |
| Validity | Three years |
| Guide edition | Third edition, revised 2020 |
Eligibility Checklist
CFCC is not an entry-level exam. The application is reviewed on substance, and several elements must be documented before you ever sit for the test. For a deeper walkthrough, see CFCC Requirements 2026: Eligibility, Prerequisites & How to Qualify.
- Education: a four-year degree.
- Experience: at least 12 years of verifiable claims or dispute-resolution experience.
- Additional credential or time: an accepted current post-education credential or license, or four additional years of relevant claims experience.
- Recommendations: four professional letters that substantiate your experience.
- Work sample: an authored qualifying expert report, claim submission/analysis, or accepted professional paper written within the previous 24 months, reviewed for substantive adequacy.
- Ethics: agreement to AACE ethics and applicable expert-practice requirements.
Fees and Payment Order
| Fee Component | Members | Non-Members |
|---|---|---|
| Application | $250 | $300 |
| Examination | $400 | $465 |
| Total | $650 | $765 |
| Resit (current price list) | $260 for either group | |
Two payment details trip up candidates. First, under the August 19, 2025 expertise-application policy, you pay the application fee first and the exam fee only after your application clears, even though generic AACE language elsewhere may suggest all fees are due upfront. Second, an older January 2022 paragraph about essay-only resits still shows $250, while the current price list shows $260, so confirm that specific charge before paying. For the full cost picture including renewal, read CFCC Certification Cost 2026: Complete Pricing Breakdown.
One more logistics note: testing runs through Kryterion using Webassessor scheduling. Ignore any competitor page claiming Pearson VUE; it conflicts with AACE's current instructions. Timing and windows are covered in CFCC Exam Dates 2026: Testing Windows, Deadlines & Scheduling.
Format, Timing, and Open-Book Rules
Question types
The multiple-choice section uses both simple and complex items. Complex items typically require you to evaluate several statements or combine facts before selecting the best answer, so reading carefully matters more than speed. The four essays are scenario-based narratives: you are given a claims situation and must analyze it in writing. No adaptive format is identified, so every candidate faces the same fixed structure.
The clock
The full examination allows 5 hours maximum. A qualifying essay-only resit is shorter, at 4 hours, and must never be confused with the initial-exam duration. Selection instructions for essays also differ: the initial guide describes assigned essays, while the essay-only resit has its own rules.
Allowed materials
- Two bound resources of your choosing.
- Printed downloads may be bound in a ring binder; reading them on a tablet is not permitted.
- A stand-alone, battery-operated calculator is allowed.
Online proctoring
If you test remotely, you need compatible equipment and a private workspace. Short approved breaks do not stop the timer, so plan your pacing across all 5 hours rather than assuming pauses are free.
Key Takeaway
Open book does not mean easy. With only two bound resources and a fixed clock, your tabs, indexes, and annotations are the real preparation. Decide on your two references early and practice navigating them under time pressure.
How Scoring Actually Works
The passing standard is at least 70% overall, obtained by averaging the multiple-choice section score and the four essay scores. Only Pass/Fail is released; you will not receive numerical section scores, and results arrive later than a multiple-choice-only exam because essays must be graded.
Here is the interpretation that matters for planning: because the rule averages five section scores equally, the essays collectively account for four of those five. That is an interpretation of the published scoring rule, not a separate content blueprint, but it signals clearly that you cannot treat the essays as an afterthought and coast on the multiple-choice section. For the full explanation, see CFCC Passing Score 2026: Exactly What You Need to Pass.
The Five Content Areas at a Glance
The weights below come from the approximate multiple-choice breakdown on page 7 of AACE's third-edition guide. They total 100% of the multiple-choice section only; the essays are graded separately and are not extra weighted domains. Neither the 2020 guide revision nor the 2025 application-policy revision establishes a newly revised 2026 blueprint. A fuller treatment is in CFCC Exam Domains 2026: Complete Guide to All 5 Content Areas.
Domain 1: Legal knowledge, dispute resolution, and rules of evidence (35%)
The largest category and the best return on study hours.
- Common-law and mixed-law principles as they apply to claims
- Dispute-resolution pathways and how claims move through them
- Rules of evidence: what makes documentation and testimony usable
- The expert's role and the limits of an expert opinion
Domain 2: Cost damages, estimating, and loss of productivity (20%)
The quantitative core of the exam, where your calculator earns its place.
- Building and testing a cost-damages claim
- Estimating concepts and how estimates support or undermine a claim
- Methods for measuring loss of productivity
Domain 3: Planning, scheduling, and delay analysis (15%)
- Schedule fundamentals and how schedules are used as claim evidence
- Delay analysis concepts and the reasoning behind choosing a method
Domain 4: Project management and documentation (15%)
- Project records, notices, and correspondence as proof
- How documentation practices affect claim strength
Domain 5: Ethics and professional practice (15%)
- AACE ethics and applicable expert-practice requirements
- Independence, objectivity, and conflicts in forensic claims work
| Domain | MCQ Weight |
|---|---|
| Legal knowledge, dispute resolution, and rules of evidence | 35% |
| Cost damages, estimating, and loss of productivity | 20% |
| Planning, scheduling, and delay analysis | 15% |
| Project management and documentation | 15% |
| Ethics and professional practice | 15% |
Essay Cheat Notes
The four scenario-based narratives reward structured, defensible reasoning rather than recalled definitions. Because they carry most of the overall average, practice them as deliberately as you practice multiple choice.
- State the facts you are relying on before drawing conclusions, in the same way an expert report would.
- Connect analysis to evidence: tie each conclusion to a document, record, or method rather than asserting it.
- Show your method: when a scenario involves damages, productivity, or delay, explain why you chose the approach you used.
- Stay within the common-law or mixed-law frame the exam assumes; do not import jurisdiction-specific legal claims.
- Manage the clock: with a 5-hour ceiling covering all 104 prompts, budget time per essay in advance.
The recent authored report you submit with your application is good rehearsal material. If you can explain and defend its reasoning aloud, you are already practicing the skill the essays test. For a candid look at where candidates struggle, see How Hard Is the CFCC Exam? Complete Difficulty Guide 2026.
Renewal and Recertification
The credential is valid for three years. You can renew in one of two ways.
- CEU route: earn 12 AACE CEUs spanning at least two of four activity categories. For the first credential, the fee is $295 for members and $385 for non-members.
- Re-examination: pass the exam again. Fees are $650 for members and $765 for non-members, and there is only one recertification-exam opportunity with no resit.
Mapping Domains to Your Prep Weeks
Generic study methods matter less here than sequencing. Build your plan around the weights and around the fact that two bound resources will be your lifeline on exam day. The detailed approach is in CFCC Study Guide 2026: How to Pass on Your First Attempt; this is the compressed version.
Legal, dispute resolution, and evidence
- Start with the 35% domain while your energy is highest
- Draft your first practice essay on an evidence-based scenario
Cost damages and loss of productivity
- Drill calculations with your allowed calculator
- Choose and tab your first bound resource
Scheduling, delay analysis, and documentation
- Pair delay concepts with the records that prove them
- Choose and tab your second bound resource
Ethics, then full-length rehearsal
- Review ethics and expert-practice requirements
- Run a timed simulation of 100 MCQs plus four essays inside a 5-hour window
Adjust the length to your experience; candidates with 12-plus years of claims work often compress the early weeks and spend more time on essay technique. You can test your multiple-choice readiness with the CFCC practice test, then revisit weak domains.
Common Fact Traps
| Trap | What Is Actually True |
|---|---|
| "The exam is 104 multiple-choice questions." | It is 100 multiple-choice questions plus four essays. |
| "Domain weights apply to the whole exam." | They describe the multiple-choice distribution only. |
| "The essay-only resit is 5 hours." | A qualifying essay-only resit lasts 4 hours. |
| "Pearson VUE delivers the test." | Kryterion via Webassessor, per AACE's current instructions. |
| "Pay everything upfront." | Application payment first, exam payment after clearance. |
| "I'll see my section scores." | Only Pass/Fail is released. |
| "Any construction experience counts." | General construction employment alone is insufficient. |
Whether the investment makes sense for your career is a separate question; Is the CFCC Certification Worth It? Complete ROI Analysis 2026 weighs that, and the fee and prerequisite facts above are the inputs.
FAQ
There are 100 multiple-choice questions plus four written essays, for 104 required response prompts in total. The 104 is not a count of multiple-choice items.
You need at least 70% overall, calculated by averaging the multiple-choice section score and the four essay scores. Only Pass/Fail is released, with no numerical section scores.
Yes. The exam is open book, limited to two bound resources of your choice. Printed downloads may be bound in a ring binder, but tablets for reading are not allowed, and a stand-alone battery-operated calculator is permitted.
Members pay a $250 application fee plus a $400 exam fee, totaling $650. Non-members pay $300 plus $465, totaling $765. The application fee is due first, with the exam fee paid after clearance.
It is valid for three years. Renew with 12 AACE CEUs in at least two of four activity categories, or pass re-examination, which offers only one opportunity and no resit.
Use this sheet as a checklist, not a substitute for AACE's own guide. Confirm current fees and policies on the official CFCC page before you apply, then pressure-test your knowledge with the full practice exam so the 70% overall standard feels familiar before test day.