SIE Cheat Sheet: The One-Page Review
This page is the cheat sheet: every high-yield SIE® number and rule (exam format, SIPC limits, Reg T, T+1 settlement, AML thresholds, RMD age, the gift limit) on one page, each fact verified against the current rule as of July 2026. Print it or save it as a PDF (Ctrl/Cmd+P) for your final review.
A cheat sheet is for the last 48 hours, not the first. If you’re starting from zero, begin with the SIE study guide and a day-by-day study plan; come back here when you’re consolidating.
Exam Facts
| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Scored questions | 75 (+10 unscored pretest; 85 total on screen) |
| Time | 105 minutes (1h 45m) |
| Passing score | 70 (scaled, equated) |
| Fee | $100 (verified August 2026, older sites still say $80) |
| Eligibility | 18+; no firm sponsorship required |
| Validity | 4 years |
| Guessing penalty | None: answer every question |
| Section weights | 16% / 44% / 31% / 9% (12 / 33 / 23 / 7 questions) |
| Registration effect | The SIE alone registers you with no one: you need a top-off exam plus firm association, in either order |
Section 1: Capital Markets (16%)
| Rule / concept | What to remember |
|---|---|
| SIPC | $500,000 per customer, including max $250,000 cash. Covers broker-dealer failure, never market losses, bad advice, commodity futures, forex, or unregistered investments |
| FDIC | Bank deposits only, not brokerage securities (that’s SIPC’s lane) |
| Fed vs. inflation | Sells Treasuries (open-market operations) and raises rates |
| Regulation T | Initial margin = 50% of purchase price |
| Primary vs. secondary | Primary: issuer receives proceeds. Secondary: investors trade with each other |
| Firm commitment vs. best efforts | Firm commitment: underwriter buys the issue (takes the risk). Best efforts: underwriter is agent only |
Section 2: Products and Risks (44%)
| Rule / concept | What to remember |
|---|---|
| Liquidation priority | Common stock is paid last, after creditors, bondholders, and preferred |
| Bond prices vs. rates | Inverse. Rates up, prices down, every time |
| GO vs. revenue bonds | GO: full faith, credit, and taxing power. Revenue: project revenues only |
| ETN risk | Issuer credit risk: it’s unsecured debt of the issuer |
| Open-end funds | Continuously issue/redeem at next-computed NAV (forward pricing); no exchange trading |
| Options clearing | The OCC issues and guarantees listed options |
| Call ITM | Market price above strike |
| Protective put | Insurance on a long stock position |
| 529 plans | After-tax contributions; tax-free qualified withdrawals; the owner (not the beneficiary) keeps control |
| 529 → Roth IRA | Allowed since 2024 (SECURE 2.0): $35,000 lifetime max, account open ≥15 years, contributions seasoned ≥5 years, annual Roth limit applies, beneficiary needs earned income |
| Diversification | Reduces nonsystematic risk only: market (systematic) risk remains |
Section 3: Trading, Accounts, Prohibited Activities (31%)
| Rule / concept | What to remember |
|---|---|
| Settlement | Regular way = T+1 for corporates and munis (since May 28, 2024, books saying T+2 are stale) |
| Ex-dividend date | Under T+1, generally the same day as the record date; last day to buy and get the dividend = record date − 1 business day |
| CTR | Cash over $10,000 in one business day (FinCEN Form 112). $10,000.01 triggers it; $10,000.00 does not |
| SAR | $5,000 or more plus knowledge/suspicion; merely being near the CTR threshold isn’t a SAR duty (FinCEN FAQ, Oct 2025) |
| Structuring | Splitting cash transactions to evade a CTR, itself a crime and a SAR red flag |
| RMD age | 73 (SECURE 2.0; rises to 75 in 2033). First RMD can defer to April 1 of the following year |
| UTMA | One custodian, one minor; gifts irrevocable; minor’s SSN; transfers at the age of majority |
| Telemarketing | 8 a.m.–9 p.m., called party’s local time (FINRA Rule 3230); exceptions for existing business relationships and prior consent |
| Sell stop | Triggers a market sell at or through the stop price; protects a long position |
| Freeriding | Buying, then paying with the sale proceeds, a cash-account violation under Reg T |
| Pump and dump | Inflate the price with false hype, then sell |
Section 4: Regulatory Framework (9%)
| Rule / concept | What to remember |
|---|---|
| CE Regulatory Element | Annual, due by December 31, per registration category (FINRA Rule 1240). Miss it → CE-inactive. The 3-year cycle is gone |
| Form U4 | Registers/transfers an associated person; amend promptly when facts change |
| Form U5 | Filed on termination |
| OBA (Rule 3270) | Prior written notice to your firm for any compensated outside business |
| PST (Rule 3280) | Written notice for private securities transactions; firm’s written approval if compensated |
| Gifts (Rule 3220) | $300 per person per year, raised from $100, effective March 30, 2026 |
| Political contributions (MSRB G-37) | $250 de minimis per election, if entitled to vote for the candidate |
The Numbers, One More Time
$100 fee · 75 scored + 10 unscored · 105 minutes · 70 to pass · 4-year validity · 50% Reg T · $500,000 SIPC ($250,000 cash) · T+1 · >$10,000 CTR · $5,000 SAR · age 73 RMD · $300 gifts · $250 G-37 · 8 a.m.–9 p.m. calls.
Current-Fact Watch (August 2026). Five facts on this page changed recently, and most older prep materials still print the old values: settlement (T+2 → T+1, May 2024), the ex-dividend date’s position (now generally on the record date), the RMD age (72 → 73), the CE cycle (3-year → annual), and the gift limit ($100 → $300, March 2026). Retake waiting periods are also mid-transition (checked October 2026): FINRA exams use 30/30/180-day waits through January 18, 2027 and 15/15/60 from January 19, 2027 (Regulatory Notice 26-18), so check the current retake rules rather than trusting any static list, including ours.
How to Use This Page
Memorizing a table isn’t the same as recognizing a fact inside a question stem. Alternate: one pass through this page, then a set of free SIE practice questions to see the same rules in exam clothing. For term-by-term recall work, the SIE flashcards cover this material as 50+ cards by section. And if a full run-through is what you need, the SIE exam simulator delivers the real format: 75 questions, 105 minutes.
Everything here is drawn from our verified fact base, original study material based on the public FINRA SIE Content Outline and the primary rules cited above, re-audited quarterly.
