On this page
Before a CAIA® test-centre appointment, settle four practical questions: whether your original physical ID meets the Association's current rule, whether you have the printed Prometric appointment confirmation with a matching name, whether any calculator you plan to use is an approved model, and how arrival and breaks work. These are admission and timing decisions, not last-minute study topics. Check the live CAIA Association policy and your own appointment details close to the exam, because a plan built around the wrong document or break assumption can fail before you reach the questions.
Confirm the documents while there is time to correct them
The CAIA Association identification policy says that admission requires an acceptable ID and a printed Prometric Confirmation of Appointment. The ID must be a valid, unexpired, original physical government-issued passport or government-issued ID that meets the listed conditions. A phone image and a photocopy are not substitutes. The policy also says the document must be in English or include an English translation, contain a recent recognisable photograph and signature, and have the full name that matches the registration name, subject to the policy's stated treatment of accents. If the primary passport or ID lacks a signature, CAIA requires an additional original, unexpired physical ID with the matching full name and a handwritten signature; its policy gives signed payment cards and employee, school or professional IDs as common examples. Read the full current policy against your actual document; a description such as government ID by itself is too broad to settle eligibility.
The printed confirmation must match the first and last name on the ID presented at the appointment. CAIA says middle names are not considered in this comparison and name order is irrelevant if all relevant names appear. A confirmation on a phone is not an accepted substitute for a printed copy. Compare the document and the appointment confirmation character by character in advance, especially if your names appear in a different order across systems. Do not assume that a previous exam administration's treatment of an ID will carry over: the current identification page says there are no exam-day exceptions based on past use.
If your ID is uncertain, resolve the issue with the issuing body early. CAIA's current policy directs candidates who cannot meet the criteria, or who are unsure whether their ID qualifies, to contact the Candidate team no later than 30 days before the start of the exam window. The deadline is measured from the start of the window, not simply from your own appointment. The policy also warns that arriving without the required original valid ID or printed confirmation can mean no admission, no rescheduling and forfeiture of the exam fee. That is why this check belongs at the front of the preparation list, when there is still time to act.
Decide how you will handle calculation
The CAIA calculator policy authorises the Texas Instruments BA II Plus, including the Professional model, and the Hewlett Packard 12C, including the listed 12C variants. CAIA says use of an authorised calculator is strongly recommended. If you want to use one, bring an approved model yourself; test administrators do not supply calculators, and other calculators or electronic devices are not permitted. The precise distinction matters: the current policy recommends an approved calculator and sets conditions for using one; it does not say every candidate must bring one.
Before the appointment, verify the exact model label against the current list rather than assuming that a similar-looking device qualifies. Practise on the same model you intend to take, and check that its battery is sound. CAIA says the device will be visually inspected and must remain in full view on the desk. You cannot share one with another candidate. Only one calculator may be accessible at a time. Covers, keystroke cards, manuals, extra batteries and a spare calculator are barred from the testing room; for a test-centre appointment, such items belong in the locker. Replacing a device or batteries requires staff permission, and the new device is inspected.
A worked logistics scenario, with an invented appointment, shows the decision. Suppose a candidate has a compliant BA II Plus and a spare approved model. The candidate checks both before travel, carries them to the centre, and keeps only the permitted active calculator in the room. If it fails, the candidate tells staff and follows their process to access the spare in the locker. The candidate does not swap devices silently or place both on the desk. No invented exam time or testing-centre practice is needed to see the rule: approval attaches to the model, while access and replacement are controlled during the appointment.
Plan the arrival from the actual appointment
Use the time and location on your own printed confirmation, rather than an old calendar entry or a general exam-window page. The CAIA admission and appointment policy recommends arriving 30 minutes before the scheduled appointment. It warns that a late candidate may be refused admission. Check-in includes security inspections, so the recommended arrival margin has an operational purpose. Secure check-in is part of the exam procedure; the handbook says refusing required security steps prevents the candidate from sitting and can forfeit the registration fee. Build travel time for the route, building entry and locating the centre, but treat your own route estimate as planning rather than as an official allowance for lateness.
For an illustrative timetable, suppose a fictional confirmation shows a 09:00 appointment. CAIA's 30-minute recommendation points to arrival at 08:30, and the candidate should add a separate travel buffer for the route and building entry. These are two different allowances: the Association's check-in recommendation and the candidate's own contingency. Neither changes the printed appointment time. Recheck the confirmation if you change your booking. CAIA's scheduling page explains that candidates choose among available test centres, dates and times; the individual confirmation is the record to use for the actual journey.
Know which break stops the clock
The CAIA exam-day break policy distinguishes a scheduled break from unscheduled breaks at a test centre. There is an optional 30-minute scheduled break between exam sections. Time beyond the scheduled allowance is deducted from the second section. The policy says candidates are generally permitted to leave the test-centre building during that scheduled break, but local practice can differ; ask the test administrator where you may go. Locker access is permitted then, with belongings returned before re-entry and another visual inspection.
At a test-centre appointment, CAIA permits up to two unscheduled breaks, but the exam clock does not pause for them. You must obtain the administrator's permission to leave the testing room, and security checks apply on exit and re-entry. During an unscheduled break, the policy allows the designated restroom and, with staff authorisation, limited locker access for water, food, medical items or an expressly approved calculator replacement. It bars access to other personal items such as phones, electronic devices and study materials, and says you must stay within the test centre as it defines it. Remote candidates are not eligible for unscheduled breaks under that policy, so do not carry the test-centre assumption over to a remote session.
Return to the invented 09:00 appointment. If the candidate takes the optional scheduled break, it has its specified allowance between sections. If the candidate also needs an unscheduled restroom break while a section is running, that time continues to consume the section's clock. The two kinds of break therefore have different costs. A candidate should decide in advance what essentials will be in the locker and ask staff before leaving the room; improvising with a phone or notes during an unscheduled break creates an avoidable policy problem.
Make a final personal checklist
Set the physical ID beside the printed confirmation and compare the names. Check that the ID meets every current criterion, including validity and language, and contact CAIA early if there is doubt. Confirm the exact calculator model you will use, test its battery, and understand the controlled replacement process if carrying a spare. Read your actual appointment's time and address, then calculate an arrival time using CAIA's current 30-minute recommendation. Finally, distinguish the optional scheduled break from a clock-running unscheduled break, and ask staff about local movement rules. That sequence resolves decisions you control before the exam begins.
The CAIA programme page can help you place this operational preparation alongside content revision, and the study methodology can support a final review routine. Neither page replaces CAIA Association policy. For admission, calculator access, arrival and breaks, the issuing body's current instructions and your own appointment confirmation remain the decisive documents.
Sources
- CAIA Association Examination – Identification Policy · caia.org · Retrieved
- CAIA Association Examination – Calculator Policy · caia.org · Retrieved
- CAIA Association Examination – Exam Day Disruptions or Exam Compromise · caia.org · Retrieved
- Schedule Your Exam Appointment | CAIA Association · caia.org · Retrieved
- CAIA Association Examination – Admission and Appointment Policy · caia.org · Retrieved
