SIE exam FAQ
Short answers about the Securities Industry Essentials® (SIE®) Exam and about how StreetPrimer works. Exam facts come from FINRA's © 2025 content outline and SIE pages, checked September 22, 2026. Product facts describe StreetPrimer only.
About the exam
Is the SIE a license?
No. The SIE is an exam. FINRA states that "the SIE does not have a registration category" and that "passing the SIE alone does not qualify an individual for registration." Passing it does not put you in BrokerCheck or authorize you to do anything. It satisfies one half of a co-requisite: registration as a securities representative requires the SIE plus a representative-level exam such as the Series 7. (FINRA, checked September 22, 2026.)
Do I need a sponsor?
No. Anyone aged 18 or older can enroll. FINRA states that "association with a firm is not required," and no US citizenship is required. You create a FINRA account, enroll through FINRA's Test Enrollment Services System (TESS), pay the $100 fee (effective January 1, 2026) and schedule with Prometric. The representative-level exams that follow, such as the Series 7, do require a member firm to sponsor you. The SIE is the one exam in the sequence that does not.
What changed in FINRA's 2025 outline?
The number of unscored questions. FINRA's 2024 outline said 10 unscored pretest items, for 85 questions in total. The © 2025 outline, which FINRA's SIE page now links, says 5 unscored, for 80 in total. The 75 scored items, the four sections and their weights (16% / 44% / 31% / 9%), the 105-minute time limit and the passing score of 70 did not change. Many sources still quote 85 and 10; as of September 22, 2026, 80 and 5 are the operative figures.
How long should I study?
It depends on your starting point. Candidates report roughly 10–30 hours with a finance background and 64–157 hours without one. Most prep providers recommend 50–80 hours for candidates without a finance background. None of these figures is published by FINRA; they are self-reported or provider-derived. The study plan in our guide maps those ranges to a three-week and an eight-week schedule, weighted to the outline's sections.
What if I fail?
You wait, then re-enroll and pay the fee again. FINRA's operative waiting periods (checked September 22, 2026) are 30 days after a first fail, 30 days after a second, and 180 days after a third and every later fail. A pending change: FINRA filed SR-FINRA-2026-014 on June 29, 2026 to reduce these to 15 days, and 60 days after three or more fails within two years. As of September 22, 2026, FINRA had not announced implementation, so the 30/30/180 periods still apply.
Is the SIE valid forever?
No. A pass is valid for four years from the pass date if you are not registered with a member firm. If you register within those four years, the pass stays valid while you are registered and for four years after your registration ends. (FINRA, checked September 22, 2026.)
What is the Series 7 relationship?
They are co-requisites. To register as a General Securities Representative you must pass both the SIE and the Series 7, in either order. The Series 7 requires a sponsoring member firm; the SIE does not. FINRA's stated design is that the SIE tests "fundamental securities-related knowledge" while the Series 7 tests "knowledge relevant to day-to-day activities, responsibilities and job functions." The overlap is at the concept level and the difference is at the task level. FINRA publishes no percentage of overlap, and neither do we.
What does a results report show?
If you pass, a pass with no score; FINRA states that "no additional scoring details will be provided." If you fail, "your overall exam score and your performance on each of the topic sections." At a test center the result appears on screen shortly after you finish. Online, an unofficial pass/fail appears on screen and the official report follows within three business days. (FINRA, checked September 22, 2026.)
About StreetPrimer
Are these the real SIE questions?
No. Nobody legitimate has them. FINRA's Rules of Conduct forbid reproducing or discussing exam content, including with instructors, and Rule 1210.05 treats using any portion of a real exam for study as a violation of Rule 2010. Any provider claiming to have the exam's questions is claiming to possess material whose possession FINRA treats as misconduct. What we built instead: original items written to the headings of FINRA's © 2025 outline, in the exam's format (80 items, four options, 105 minutes), each with a worked rationale and a verified answer.
What does the free run include?
One full-length timed run: 80 questions in 105 minutes, allocated to the four sections in the outline's proportions, with five unidentified pretest-style items spread in proportion to the section weights (FINRA does not state how it distributes pretest items, and we say so on the results screen). At the end you get your raw percentage on the 75 scored items, correct counts by section, and a worked rationale for every item. No account is needed before the test.
How is my score calculated here?
As a raw percentage: the number of scored items you answered correctly divided by 75, plus your correct counts for each of the four sections (out of 12, 33, 23 and 7) and a per-section performance label modeled on the labels candidates report seeing on FINRA fail reports. Every results screen carries this line: the real SIE reports an equated score on a 0–100 scale; passing is 70. Your raw percentage is not an equated score.
Can you predict whether I'll pass?
No. FINRA places every candidate's score on a common scale by equating, a statistical adjustment for the difficulty of the specific form each candidate receives. That adjustment is FINRA's and is not published, so no practice provider can convert a raw practice score into a predicted SIE score or a pass probability. We do not display predicted scores, readiness percentages or percentiles. What practice can show you is which sections are weak and whether your raw accuracy holds up across different forms.
How many practice exams are there?
Full Access includes eight full-length mocks of 80 items each, built from disjoint sets of items so that no question repeats across mocks, and four section drills sized to the outline (12, 33, 23 and 7 scored items plus a proportional share of pretest-style items). The bank holds 640 verified items, each tagged to an outline heading and carrying a worked rationale. The free tier is one full-length timed form.
Do you offer a pass guarantee?
No. A practice score is a raw count on our items; the SIE reports an equated score on FINRA's scale, adjusted for the form you receive. Because the two are not the same measurement, no practice result can promise an exam result, and we will not pretend otherwise. What we do offer is a 7-day money-back refund on any purchase, no reason required.
What is the refund policy?
A full refund on request within 7 days of purchase, no reason required, one refund per customer. Email us from the address on your receipt and the refund is issued to the original payment method. This applies to the Section 2 Drill and to Full Access, including an upgrade. Beyond 7 days, purchases are final.
Can you tell me what to invest in?
No. StreetPrimer is exam preparation only. We explain what the SIE tests: the definitions, structures, rules and worked mechanics of hypothetical instruments, using fictional issuers such as ABC and XYZ. We do not recommend, rate or rank any actual security, fund, product, strategy, broker or firm, and nothing on this site should be read as a suggestion about your money. The audience for this exam is about to be regulated on exactly that line, and we hold ourselves to it.
Who are you affiliated with?
Nobody. StreetPrimer is an independent study tool. We are not affiliated with, sponsored by or endorsed by FINRA, Prometric, any broker-dealer or any other prep provider. Securities Industry Essentials® and SIE® are marks of FINRA, and we use them only to name the exam. FINRA does not endorse the materials of any prep provider, including ours.
Do I need an account to use the site?
Not for the free run. You can start and finish the free full-length timed run, and read every rationale, without creating an account. An account is created when you buy the Section 2 Drill or Full Access.
This is exam preparation, not investment advice.
Independent study tool; not affiliated with FINRA.