Insurance Foundations Certificate Exam (IFCE)
Insurance staff must pass the IFCE within their first year on the job, and each attempt costs SAR 1,000. We've handpicked 541 questions covering most topics on the latest syllabus, to help you push for a top score before test day!
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- 100 questions in 120 min, like the real test
- 541 questions covering the main scoring topics, with explanations
- 70% pass mark, with targeted practice on your weak spots
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Salem was in a road accident two months ago. He now believes the chance of another accident is much higher than the statistics suggest. What does this illustrate?
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What you get
- 541questions in the bankPractise with the answer shown right away, or sit a full timed mock
- 7unitsSplit by the exam syllabus
- 93flashcardsTo lock in terms and definitions
- 120quick review pointsEach unit in a few key lines
Unit map
- 01Understand the nature and main features of risk and insurance18 questions
- 02Know the structure and main features of the insurance market in Saudi Arabia10 questions
- 03Understand the main legal principles governing insurance contracts36 questions
- 04Understand the main regulatory and legal principles applicable to insurance business in Saudi Arabia12 questions
- 05Know key aspects of ethical behaviour and corporate governance2 questions
- 06Understand the procedures and policies of the insurance process10 questions
- 07Know the main insurance products and related services12 questions
Exam facts
Insurance Foundations Certificate Exam (IFCE) — Number of questions: 100 questions. Exam time: 120 minutes. Pass mark: 70%. Calculator: Not allowed. Exam fee: SAR 1,000. Source: The Financial Academy (Last verified: 2026-10-18). Question bank: full mock exams of 100 questions in 120 minutes, like the real test with a result for every unit, plus 541 explained questions across 7 units, every option explained, a review of your mistakes, and two ways to practise: see the answer right away, or sit a full timed mock. Free questions: a 10-question diagnostic test covering the main units, no sign-up; at the end we compare your score with the pass mark and show your weakest units.
- Exam language
- Arabic or English
- Number of questions
- 100 questions Source
- Exam time
- 120 minutes Source
- Pass mark
- 70% Source
- Calculator
- Not allowed Source
- Exam fee
- SAR 1,000 Source
- Retakes
- Pay the full fee for each attempt, at most six attempts within 12 months Source
Last verified: 2026-10-18
How to register
- There are no prerequisites: no certificate or training is required before the exam.
- Register on the Financial Academy website with your personal account (or through your employer's account if your company registers you), choose the Insurance Foundations Certificate Exam and the exam language (Arabic or English), and pay the full fee in advance.
- You can ask to reschedule at least three working days before the exam; it is free if requested 15 days or more ahead and carries a fee after that. Fees are not refunded once paid unless the Academy cancels the exam.
- Arrive at the test centre at least 30 minutes early with valid ID (national ID, iqama or passport) whose name matches your registration; calculators, phones and smart watches are not allowed.
Exam body
The Financial Academy: Official website: The Financial Academy
Study guides
Frequently asked questions
How many questions are there and how long is the exam?
The exam has 100 multiple-choice questions and lasts two hours. You can sit it in Arabic or English, chosen when you register.
Can I try IFCE Insurance Foundations questions for free?
Yes. Free questions: a 10-question diagnostic test covering the main units, no sign-up; at the end we compare your score with the pass mark and show your weakest units. The free practice test page lists the same questions with answers and an explanation for every option. The rest of the questions and the full mock exams come with a pass from SAR 26.
What makes this IFCE Insurance Foundations question bank different?
Question bank: full mock exams of 100 questions in 120 minutes, like the real test with a result for every unit, plus 541 explained questions across 7 units, every option explained, a review of your mistakes, and two ways to practise: see the answer right away, or sit a full timed mock. Every question is reviewed and referenced, ready to practise on your phone. Try the free questions and read the explanations before buying full access.
What is the pass mark?
The pass mark is 70%, according to the exam page on the Financial Academy's website, so you need 70 correct answers out of 100.
What does the exam cover?
The exam follows the 2025 syllabus printed in the official study text, with seven learning outcomes and approximate question counts: risk and insurance (18), the Saudi insurance market (10), legal principles of insurance contracts (36), regulatory and legal principles (12), ethics and governance (2), insurance process procedures (10), and insurance products and related services (12). The exam page on the Academy website still shows the weights of the older six-chapter edition.
Who must pass the exam?
Under the insurance regulator's circular, all staff of insurers, reinsurers and insurance service providers who deal with customers directly or indirectly, including board members and outsourced staff, must pass it within one year of joining. Support staff with no customer contact, such as HR and IT, are exempt. No other certificate is accepted in its place.
Is a calculator allowed?
No. The Financial Academy's exam policy bans calculators, phones and smart watches in its exams. The calculations in the syllabus are simple, such as applying average or sharing a claim between two insurers.
What if I fail?
You can resit, paying the full fee for each attempt. The Academy's policy allows at most six attempts at the same exam within 12 months, with no gap between the first three and two full weeks between each of the fourth to sixth.
What are the questions here based on?
On the official IFCE study text (September 2025 edition, May 2025 syllabus) and the insurance laws and regulations in force as published on the Insurance Authority website. Questions built on the old edition or on bodies whose names have changed were updated or removed.
Is this site part of the Financial Academy or the Insurance Authority?
No. This is an independent exam preparation site with no link to the Financial Academy, the Insurance Authority or any government body. Always rely on what the official bodies announce.
Is this an official site, and how do I pay?
It is an independent site, not part of Qiyas or any government body, and every question is reviewed before it is published. You pay once, with no automatic renewal, through Waffo Pancake (the merchant of record) by Visa, Mastercard, Apple Pay or Google Pay, and your statement shows "WAFFO". If you were charged twice or the pass did not open, email support@saudiexams.com.
Study material sample: Understand the nature and main features of risk and insurance
Summary
This unit covers the nature of risk and insurance and their main features. It carries about 18 of the 100 questions, making it one of the heaviest units. It starts with the role of risk in insurance and how risk is perceived (1A), then the categories of risk: financial and non-financial, pure and speculative, particular and fundamental (1B), and the features of an insurable risk (1C). It goes on to the components of risk: uncertainty, level of risk (frequency and severity), and peril and hazard (1D). Next come insurance as a risk transfer mechanism and the steps of risk management (1E), risk pooling, the law of large numbers and the fair premium (1F), self-insurance (1G), co-insurance and dual insurance (1H), and the benefits of insurance to individuals and society (1I).
What the exam focuses on
- Definitions of risk: uncertainty about the outcome of a situation, unpredictability, the possibility of loss, and the chance of gain (1A).
- Insurable risks are financial, pure and particular; non-financial, speculative and fundamental risks are generally not insurable (1B).
- Features of an insurable risk: a fortuitous event, an insurable interest and no conflict with public policy, with homogeneous exposures as an ideal rather than an absolute requirement (1C).
Show 5 more
- Components of risk: uncertainty, level of risk (frequency and severity), peril and hazard, and the difference between physical and moral hazard (1D).
- The three steps of risk management: risk identification, risk analysis and risk control, and the distinction between physical and financial control (1E).
- Risk pooling: the losses of the few are paid from the contributions of the many, the law of large numbers allows losses to be predicted, and the fair premium reflects the risk each member brings to the pool (1F).
- Self-insurance means bearing the risk yourself by setting funds aside; it is not insurance in the technical sense and suits high-frequency, low-severity risks (1G).
- Co-insurance (sharing the risk between insurers, or the policyholder bearing a percentage) differs from dual insurance (two or more policies covering the same risk) (1H).
Common traps
- Confusing peril with hazard: fire is a peril, the factor that causes the loss, while smoking in the house or poor maintenance is a hazard, a factor that changes the likelihood or effect of the peril.
- Confusing physical with moral hazard: physical hazard relates to physical characteristics (construction, security, type of vehicle, driver's age), while moral hazard relates to attitudes and behaviour (carelessness, dishonesty, treating fraud as acceptable). Badly maintained machinery is physical; careless management is moral.
- Assuming every business risk is insurable: a speculative risk (misreading the market, losing business to competition, investing in shares) is not insurable, whereas a fire in the premises is a pure risk and is insurable.
Show 5 more
- Reading «financial risk» as a risk that merely involves money: it means the outcome can be measured in money. Sentimental value, enjoying a holiday or choosing a school cannot be measured financially, so these are non-financial and not insurable.
- Believing no consequence of a fundamental risk can be insured: fundamental risks (recession, war, earthquake) are generally uninsurable, but specific consequences may be covered, such as mortgage payments if the policyholder loses their job, and earthquake can be insurable where the likelihood of loss is low.
- Confusing frequency with severity: frequency is how often something happens, severity is how costly it is when it does. They move in opposite directions: motor claims are high-frequency, low-severity and predictable; aircraft crashes are low-frequency, high-severity and hard to predict.
- Mixing up co-insurance, self-insurance and dual insurance: co-insurance shares the risk among several insurers (or the policyholder keeps a percentage), self-insurance means bearing the risk yourself, and dual insurance means several policies on the same risk. None of these is the same as reinsurance.
- Treating homogeneous exposures as an absolute requirement like fortuity, insurable interest and consistency with public policy: it is an ideal, and insurers sometimes rely on historical data that is not fully reliable. The exposures need to be similar, not identical.
Try the flashcards
Tap a card to see the answer
What are the main possible definitions of risk?
Uncertainty about the outcome of a situation, unpredictability, the possibility of loss, and the chance of gain.
What does insurance do with an unknown loss?
It replaces it with a known cost, the premium, so the policyholder transfers the risk to the insurer, although the loss itself is not prevented.
Which categories of risk are insurable, across the three pairs?
Financial, pure and particular risks. Non-financial, speculative and fundamental risks are generally not insurable.
Why do insurers not insure speculative risks?
They are taken on voluntarily in the hope of gain, and covering the losses would remove the element of risk. In Islamic finance they are prohibited because of gharar and maysir.
What are the three absolute features of an insurable risk?
The event must be fortuitous, there must be an insurable interest, and it must not be against public policy. Homogeneous exposure is an ideal.
What are the three components of risk?
Uncertainty, the level of risk (frequency and severity), and peril and hazard.
What is the difference between a peril and a hazard? Illustrate with fire.
A peril is the factor that causes the loss (the fire itself); a hazard is a factor that affects its likelihood or its effect (smoking in the house).
What is the difference between physical and moral hazard?
Physical hazard concerns the physical characteristics of the risk, such as construction and security; moral hazard concerns people's attitudes and behaviour, such as carelessness and dishonesty.
Why you can trust these questions
- Published questions: 541. We reviewed every one before publishing it: the answer, the explanation of each option and the source.
- Exam facts last checked against the organiser’s website: 2026-10-18. We check them again every three months and two weeks before each test.
- Found a mistake? Tap "Report an error" under any question in the practice area, or email us at support@saudiexams.com
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Update log
- 2026-10-31 Free diagnostic test: 10 questions covering every unit, with every option explained and your weakest units shown.
- 2026-10-18 Published the exam facts from the Financial Academy's pages.