Our Post-Exam Review of the April 2026 CII R06 Exam
The exam guide from the April sitting of R06 has been released by the CII, prompting us to see how we did in predicting the questions and model answers in our pre-exam analysis.
This article is correct as at 16 June 2026.
You can access the exam guide here.*
Case Study 1
Case Study 1 introduced us to Khaled and Jenna, both aged 64 and planning to retire in 3 years.
Their financial aims were to:
- Consider how best to fund the purchase of their new property.
- Assess the suitability of their current pension arrangements.
- Consider how best to invest the inheritance from Jenna’s late aunt.
| Question | Our Analysis |
|---|---|
| State the additional information that a financial adviser would require to assess the suitability of Khaled and Jenna’s current financial arrangements, to enable them to meet their objectives. | The exam began with a broad fact-finding question. Candidates needed to provide answers covering all areas of a client's finances rather than focusing too heavily on just one aspect, such as pensions. This style of fact-finding question is common in R06, and using a good mnemonic can help ensure a wide range of relevant points are included. Our analysis provided guidance on how to approach this type of question and this exact question was the first question in our analysis mock paper, so we hope candidates who used it got off to a strong start in the exam. |
| Recommend and justify the actions that Khaled and Jenna could take to draw a tax-efficient sum from their savings and investment portfolio to enable them to purchase the property. | Our analysis took a deep dive into the most suitable way of funding the purchase of the new house using their investments looking at all the tax angles, the benefits of using the shares and the OEICs. These model answers covered everything you needed to answer this question in full. |
| Explain in detail to Khaled and Jenna the financial implications of purchasing the new property before completing the sale of their current property. No calculations are required. | Holding two properties at once would definitely have financial implications for Khaled and Jenna and so this was, in our opinion, a high probability question hence it was the first question in our analysis for Case Study 1. |
| Jenna wishes to invest her inheritance from her late aunt to provide income and capital in retirement for herself and Khaled, but also with a view to potentially improving the inheritance for their children on second death. Explain in detail to Khaled and Jenna why an investment into an onshore investment bond may be a suitable option to meet their objectives for the inheritance. | As with the question above, we felt this was another likely question. When there is a lump sum to invest either into trust or for retirement planning the CII have in the past tested the use of an investment bond so again, we had included this question and full model answers in our analysis. |
| Comment on the suitability of Jenna’s target date fund in her pension fund. | Target date funds are a relatively niche investment option, so when specific funds such as these are mentioned in a case study, candidates should ensure they understand both the advantages and disadvantages. This is why we included a detailed review of target date funds within our analysis. |
| Explain to Khaled and Jenna the reasons why their existing personal investment portfolios may be unsuitable in meeting their objectives. | We had looked at the issues with the emerging markets funds which covered some of the risks associated with this fund. We hope candidates were able to expand on our answers and apply some of their own knowledge around the wider issues of their overall portfolio and asset allocation to pick up maximum marks. |
Case Study 2
Onto case study two where we met Peter and Sally, both ages 43. This case study centered around Peter’s one-year sabbatical from work and their protection needs.
Their financial aims were to:
- Ensure they can meet their expenditure during Peter’s sabbatical.
- Improve the tax-efficiency of their current financial arrangements.
- Ensure they have adequate financial protection for the family.
| Question | Our Analysis |
|---|---|
| Identify the key information that Peter and Sally should take into consideration when assessing their ability to meet their expenditure needs during Peter’s sabbatical. | Anyone who had studied our analysis would have been very pleased to see this question come up. We had covered this exact question i.e. the information that needed to be considered when assessing how Peter and Susan could meet their expenditure needs during Peter's sabbatical. Future candidates should note that questions such as this may be worded in different ways, for example asking for the ‘factors’ to consider or the ‘issues’ to consider. In practice, they are asking for exactly the same thing - the information that needs to be considered before advice can be given. |
| Explain to Peter the options available to him in respect of his pension planning whilst he is on his sabbatical. | Our analysis had considered the factors around pension contributions during his sabbatical. We hope candidates were able to adapt the answers to answer this specific question. |
| State the reasons why Peter and Sally should not consider taking a mortgage payment holiday during Peter’s sabbatical. | We were told in the case study that payment holiday was an option. This is a clear signpost that a question around the suitability of this option would be examined. Our analysis had therefore covered the benefits and drawbacks in detail. |
| Recommend and justify a range of actions that Peter and Sally can take to improve the tax-efficiency of their current financial arrangements. | When improving tax efficiency is one of the clients three stated aims, a ‘recommend and justify’ question on this subject is nearly always tested hence our analysis included full model answers. |
| Recommend and justify a suitable life assurance policy to replace Peter and Sally’s existing mortgage protection policy to provide adequate cover in the event of either death. | Given the impending affordability issues facing Peter and Sally, and the fact that the term assurance was providing more cover than was required for the mortgage, recommending a replacement policy was always a likely area of focus. This is why we had provided model answers to this exact question in our analysis. |
| Identify the key drawbacks for Peter of investing in the global equity tracker fund within his workplace pension plan. | Our analysis had provided a generic answer on the drawbacks of tracker funds we hope candidates were able to pick up the extra few marks with their knowledge around the drawbacks of global equity investments. |
| Identify eight key issues that a financial adviser should discuss with Peter and Sally at their next review meeting. | This has become almost a banker question to finish the R06 exam. We had therefore provided a full model answer for this question. |
Chartered Insurance Institute (2026). R06 – Financial planning practice: April 2026 Examination Guide. Retrieved from www.cii.co.uk.
Summary
Overall, this paper was highly predictable. This exam was full of signposted questions and the usual R06 staple questions. Those candidates who spent time focusing on exam technique and then studying our analysis would have been in a great position to achieve high marks.
The aim of our analysis is not to cover every conceivable question, but to help candidates focus their efforts on the areas most likely to be tested. We make judgement calls when producing our analysis and, year after year, those judgements have proved highly effective. Our analysis consistently covers well over 90% of the points contained within the model answers.
As a result, candidates who used our analysis were able to focus their revision time on the areas most likely to come up, rather than spreading their efforts too thinly across the entire syllabus.
Grab the resources you need!
In R06, it’s not just what you know – it’s how you apply it to the case study. Curious how we structure an R06 case study analysis? Take a look at our free taster.
* The CII has updated their retention policy and now only provides the last two exam papers. Older papers referenced in this article may no longer be available on the CII website.
