Canada Roadmap: CIRO, CSI, PFP, LLQP, FP Canada

Apr 9, 2026

Suggested order for Canadian securities, insurance, broker-licensing, and financial-planning exams across CIRO, CSI, PFP, RIBO, LLQP, and FP Canada. Non-official study guidance.

On this page

This is a practical study roadmap, not official proficiency guidance.

Best page to open next

If you need to…	Best page	Why
Stay in the Canada path	Canada Roadmap	Best route when your target role is in Canadian securities, insurance, brokerage, or financial planning.
Compare exact Canada exam pages	Securities Exams	Best route when you already know the family or code and want the exact page first.
Switch to a U.S. path instead	U.S. Roadmap	Best route when the target role is FINRA, NASAA, or MSRB rather than CIRO, CSI, LLQP, or FP Canada.
Switch to the UK CISI path instead	United Kingdom Roadmap	Best route when the target role is UK advice, operations, or CISI foundation study.

Typical starting points (Canada)

Pick the starting point that matches your target role:

Securities / investing (dealer / advisor track)
- CIRO: CIRE -> RSE
- CSI: CSC Exam 1 -> CSC Exam 2 -> CPH
Mutual funds entry and ETF expansion
- CSI: IFC (often used as a shorter foundation before expanding)
- Then: ETFM for ETF-selling knowledge, or CSC Exam 1 -> CSC Exam 2 if your path requires CSC
Compliance and supervisory track
- CSI: CPH -> CCC when your role moves toward Canadian registered-firm compliance oversight
Wealth management / planning focus
- CSI: WME Exam 1 -> WME Exam 2 (Wealth Management Essentials, refreshed for 2026)
- CSI financial-planning route: PFSA -> FP I -> FP II -> AFP Exam 1 -> AFP Exam 2 when your work is centered on household-planning recommendations and the PFP path rather than dealer licensing alone
- If you’re using the “WME + FP” route: WME-FP1 and WME-FP2
Options / derivatives specialization
- CSI: DFOL (Derivatives Fundamentals and Options Licensing)
Insurance
- LLQP: LLQP exam pages (Life, Accident & Sickness, Seg Funds/Annuities, Ethics modules)
- RIBO: RIBO Level 1 for Ontario general-insurance broker licensing
- General insurance and adjuster routes: Canada insurance hub , general-insurance status pages , and province-specific insurance routes for route-specific Securities Prep update requests
Financial planning
- CSI / PFP path: PFSA -> FP I -> FP II -> AFP Exam 1 -> AFP Exam 2
- FP Canada: QAFP when you need that dedicated FP Canada credential path, CFP MCQ for stand-alone CFP companion drills, and CFP Cases for CFP vignette-style case practice

Which Canada planning route usually fits best?

If your real target is…	Open first	Why
Early client discovery, personal-financial-statement, and banking-advice workflow	PFSA	Best route when the work starts with client needs, KYC, financial statements, and everyday advisory recommendations.
Broad CSI planning foundation before the capstone AFP exams	FP I	Best route when you need the earlier household-planning course work rather than the later competency exams.
The late-stage CSI PFP competency path	AFP Exam 1 and AFP Exam 2	Best route when you are already committed to the CSI PFP sequence and need the applied-planning assessment stage.
The FP Canada planning path	QAFP , CFP MCQ , and CFP Cases	Best route when the target is FP Canada rather than the CSI PFP sequence.
Wealth-management and advisory workflow rather than the full planning-credential sequence	WME Exam 1 and WME Exam 2	Best route when the job centers on advisory and wealth-management work rather than the dedicated PFP or QAFP planning paths.

Visual roadmap (non-official)

    flowchart TD
	  A["Pick your target role<br/>Canada"] --> B["Securities / Investing<br/>(CIRO / CSI)"]
	  A --> C["Insurance<br/>(LLQP / RIBO)"]
	
	  B --> D["Foundation: CSC Exam 1<br/>(CSI)"]
	  D --> E["CSC Exam 2<br/>(CSI)"]
	  E --> F["CPH<br/>(CSI)"]
	
	  B --> G["Regulatory: CIRE<br/>(CIRO)"]
	  G --> H["RSE<br/>(CIRO)"]
	
	  D -.-> I["Alternative start: IFC / ETFM<br/>(CSI)"]
	  E -.-> J["Specializations (as needed)<br/>DFOL, WME, IMT, CCC"]
	  B --> L["Planning route<br/>PFSA -> FP I -> FP II -> AFP 1 -> AFP 2"]
	  A --> M["FP Canada planning route<br/>QAFP / CFP companion"]
	  C --> K["Ontario broker licensing<br/>RIBO Level 1"]

Plain-text version:

Canada: pick a track.
Securities/investing: CSC Exam 1 -> CSC Exam 2 -> CPH (plus CIRO CIRE -> RSE when required by your role).
Alternatives/specializations: IFC and ETFM (fund and ETF-selling routes), WME Exam 1 -> WME Exam 2 (wealth management), DFOL (options/derivatives), IMT modules, and CCC (compliance track).
Insurance: follow LLQP modules for life and accident-and-sickness licensing, or use RIBO Level 1 for Ontario general-insurance broker licensing.
Financial planning: CSI PFSA -> FP I -> FP II -> AFP Exam 1 -> AFP Exam 2 is the clearer CSI PFP path when your work is centered on household planning. FP Canada now has live QAFP , CFP MCQ , and CFP Cases pages in Securities Prep.

Notes

Use exam pages for blueprint-aligned study resources and practice links.
Start with the most foundational exam in your path and add specialization exams only after your basics are stable.
Practice under time pressure: short drills -> mixed sets -> full timed mocks.
WME, PFSA, AFP, QAFP, and CFP companion practice can sit near each other in conversation, but they are not the same route. Use the planning pages above to decide whether you need wealth-management workflow, the CSI PFP path, or the FP Canada path.