CFA Level I exam dates and deadlines

All four windows, the deadlines each one carries, current fees with their primary source, the deferral rules that change from February 2027 and the curriculum cut-off you need to plan around.

Last updated: 2 November 2026

Level I runs four times a year — February, May, August and November — which makes the CFA Program unusually flexible compared with annual professional exams. The trade-off is that each window has several deadlines to track, and from February 2027 the rules for what happens if you register and then cannot sit are considerably stricter than before. This page brings the dates, the fees and the new deferral policy together so you can decide which window to aim for and when to pay.

Windows and curriculum

Deadlines that matter

Every window has three dates: when registration opens, the early-registration deadline, and the standard deadline after which registration closes entirely. All deadlines fall at 11:59 PM Eastern Time.

How firm these dates are

The dates in the two tables above are concordant, not official: they agree with the other information we track, but we have not been able to read them from CFA Institute’s own dates and fees tool. That tool is a JavaScript widget, and its static text shows only placeholders rather than dates, so it cannot be quoted. Until CFA Institute publishes the dates in a readable form, treat every deadline here as a strong guide rather than a guarantee, and confirm the exact cut-off in your CFA Institute account before you pay. Where a window has no established date yet, we leave it blank rather than guess.

What we can report with a source is which windows are open for sale. On 2 November 2026, the Level I registration page of CFA Institute’s online store (store.cfainstitute.org, checked on that date) offered the August 2026, November 2026, February 2027, May 2027 and August 2027 windows. November 2027 did not yet appear. The fact that February 2027 was still selectable indicates that its standard registration deadline had not yet passed on that date, which is consistent with the 5 November 2026 final deadline in the table above.

Fees

Source and method. The per-exam fees and the removal of the one-time enrollment fee come from CFA Institute’s pricing press release, announced in 2024 and effective from 29 April 2025 (cfainstitute.org/about/press-room/2024/pricing-changes-for-cfa-program). The three-level range is the figure CFA Institute shows on its official dates and fees page (cfainstitute.org/programs/cfa-program/dates-fees), which also displays “From USD 1,140 /exam”, consistent with the press release. Both were checked on 2 November 2026. All amounts are list prices per exam registration, as published by CFA Institute.

What about 2027 fees?

As of 2 November 2026, CFA Institute has not published a separate fee schedule for 2027. It does not need to: the pricing press release states that the current prices apply to exams taken in February 2026 and later. That wording covers all four 2027 windows, so the early fee of USD 1,140 and the standard fee of USD 1,490 for Level I are the prices that apply to February, May, August and November 2027 unless CFA Institute announces a change. If it does, we will update this page and say so at the top.

The gap between early and standard registration is the clearest saving available to you. On CFA Institute’s published prices it is USD 350 per exam (USD 1,490 minus USD 1,140): same exam, same seat, paid for simply by deciding earlier. With the deferral changes below, deciding earlier now also means deciding more carefully, because the cost of changing your mind afterwards has gone up.

Confirmed Deferral policy changes from February 2027

On 5 March 2026, CFA Institute announced a change to its deferral policies (cfainstitute.org/about/press-room/2026/deferral-policies-update). The new rules apply to exam windows from February 2027 onwards. This is the change most likely to catch candidates out, because a lot of advice still circulating online describes the old rules.

• Paid deferral is abolished. For February 2027 and later windows, there is no longer an option to pay to move your registration to a later window. If you are registered and do not sit the exam, you lose the fees you paid and must register again, at the fee in force at that point.
• Pregnancy is no longer a ground for an emergency deferral, except where there are life-threatening complications. Exam-day accommodations remain available, so a candidate who is pregnant can still request adjustments for the day itself.
• Exams before February 2027 keep the old policy. If you are registered for the November 2026 window, the rules that applied when you registered still govern your registration.

In practical terms, a 2027 registration is now closer to a non-refundable ticket. Before you pay for a 2027 window, be honest about whether your study plan will be ready in time. If you are unsure between two windows, the later one is now the safer choice: if you register for February 2027 and are not ready, there is no paid route to May; you would forfeit the fee and pay again.

The change also shifts the value of the early-registration discount. Registering early is still cheaper, but it commits you further ahead of the exam. If your circumstances are genuinely uncertain, weigh the USD 350 early saving against the risk of losing the whole fee. For most candidates with a settled timetable, early registration remains the right call; for those who are not yet sure of their window, it can be worth waiting until the plan is firm.

Rescheduling your appointment within the same window is a separate process from deferral. Check the current conditions and any fee in your CFA Institute account, because the press release is about moving between windows, not about changing your test-centre appointment.

Results

CFA Institute publishes results between five and nine weeks after the window closes. In the August 2026 window, 43% of Level I candidates passed (CFA Institute, press release of 24 September 2026; method: percentage of candidates examined in the window who passed, as reported by the publisher). The November 2026 window takes place this month, so it has no results yet.

The full 2026 series for all three levels, with sources, is on our CFA pass rates page.

Frequently asked questions

When is the next CFA Level I exam?

Level I runs four times a year, in February, May, August and November. The November 2026 window runs from 11 to 17 November 2026, and the February 2027 window is scheduled for 22–28 February 2027.

How much does the CFA Level I exam cost?

USD 1,140 with early registration and USD 1,490 at the standard deadline, according to CFA Institute’s pricing press release (2024, effective 29 April 2025). The one-time enrollment fee was eliminated.

Are the fees different in 2027?

Not as of 2 November 2026. CFA Institute’s current prices apply to exams taken in February 2026 and later, which covers all four 2027 windows. No separate 2027 fee schedule has been published.

Can I defer my CFA exam in 2027?

Not by paying. From the February 2027 window, CFA Institute has abolished paid deferral: if you do not sit, you lose your fees and must register again at the current price. Pregnancy is no longer a ground for emergency deferral except for life-threatening complications, although exam-day accommodations remain available.

When does registration for the May 2027 exam open?

Registration opened on 12 August 2026, with an early deadline of 14 October 2026 and a final deadline of 10 February 2027. These dates are concordant rather than official; confirm them in your CFA Institute account.

Can I reschedule my CFA exam?

Rescheduling your appointment within the same window is a separate process from deferral and closes roughly a week before the exam dates. Check the current conditions in your CFA Institute account.

Sources

• CFA Institute, pricing changes for the CFA Program (press release, 2024): cfainstitute.org/about/press-room/2024/pricing-changes-for-cfa-program
• CFA Institute, deferral policies update (press release, 5 March 2026): cfainstitute.org/about/press-room/2026/deferral-policies-update
• CFA Institute, CFA Program dates and fees (checked 2 November 2026): cfainstitute.org/programs/cfa-program/dates-fees
• CFA Institute store, Level I registration (checked 2 November 2026): store.cfainstitute.org/cfa-program-level-i-registration/
• CFA Institute, Level I results for August 2026 (press release, 24 September 2026): cfainstitute.org/about/press-room/2026/cfa-institute-reports-results-cfa-program-level-i-testing-august-2026

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