Every month Professional Paraplanner teams up with Brand Financial Training to provide a series of questions from across the CII syllabus to test your knowledge.
Whether you are preparing for your exams, or simply want to keep your knowledge up-to-date, Professional Paraplanner’s Development Zone can help.
These questions relate to examinable Tax year 25/26, examinable by the CII until 31 August 2026.
You will find the answers separately under the Development Zone tab on the Professional Paraplanner website.
We hope you find our Q&A useful in achieving your qualifications.
QUESTIONS
1. Good business ethics make good business sense because
A. by demonstrating ethical awareness, a firm displays a breadth of knowledge.
B. it usually translates into wealthier customers being attracted to the firm.
C. a strong ethical culture helps build trust and confidence among consumers.
D. it always leads to higher rates of commission.
2. The FTSE 100 is an arithmetically weighted index based on
A. size of the company.
B. share price movements.
C. number of shares of company.
D. market capitalisation of each company.
3. Which of the following can be an effective strategy for reducing a company director’s liability to National Insurance contributions?
A. Sacrificing salary to increase the amount the company pays to company pension schemes.
B. Giving up their company car.
C. Arranging for their salary to be paid in ad-hoc lump sums rather than on a monthly or weekly basis.
D. Increasing their contributions into a personal pension.
4. In 2026/27, Charles has gross earnings of £160,000 and, in addition, £20,000 income from property rent. He contributes £3,000 per month to a personal pension and makes an annual gross charitable donation of £5,000. His “relevant UK earnings” for pension purposes are
A. £180,000
B. £160,000
C. £155,000
D. £152,000
5. Where a claim is made under a mortgaged life policy, who will the life office make the payment to?
A. The policyholder.
B. The mortgagee.
C. The mortgagor.
D. The life assured.
6. An investment manager using stochastic modelling should be aware that this
A. uses historic figures to estimate the maximum and minimum returns that could be earned in the future.
B. is a mathematical technique that generates probable returns based on assessments of returns and volatility.
C. is a matrix of sample portfolios all of which have different proportions of assets.
D. is a mathematical technique used to determine the risk/return trade off.
7. When considering the difference in a scrip dividend and a dividend reinvestment plan (DRIP), an investment manager should be aware that
A. a DRIP dilutes existing holdings whereas a scrip dividend does not.
B. a scrip dividend dilutes existing holdings whereas a DRIP does not.
C. scrip dividends are paid in full in cash whereas new shares are issued with a DRIP.
D. it can take a week for the shares to be added to a DRIP and three weeks for a scrip dividend.
8. Jo, aged 70, is highly dependent on others for both her medical and personal care. What type of care provision is likely to be most suitable for her needs?
A. Residential home care.
B. Domiciliary care.
C. Intermediate care.
D. Nursing home care.
9. Sarah, aged 70, has no dependants and owns a house valued at £200,000. She would like to release equity from her home to pursue her interests. Sarah is keen for her estate to be as simple as possible to administer after her death. If Sarah does not want her executors to have to deal with selling her house, what type of plan might suit her requirements?
A. A partial home reversion plan.
B. A lifetime mortgage with interest roll-up.
C. A full home reversion plan.
D. A shared appreciation mortgage.
10. Under the Right to Acquire Scheme, tenants can apply to buy their housing association home if they have had a
A. public sector landlord for at least 10 years.
B. private sector landlord for at least 10 years.
C. public sector landlord for at least 5 years.
D. private sector landlord for at least 5 years.
