Exam ID Proof

I am currently registered to do my CFA Level 1 exam next saturday. I recently found new employment and had to send my passport/travel documents to the home office to get my new visa issued which is going to take another month. I understand that you need a passport to use as proof of ID for the exam but that would be impossible for me to do since it is with the home office.

Has anyone else faced such a problem? Did you manage to resolve it? How?

Any and all advice would be appreciated. Thanks in advance for the help

You should ask CFAI.

Did that! They’re being very anal about it. All they keep saying is we need a travel document and that I should contact my passport issuing office. I have contacted my embassy but haven’t heard from them and its quite close to the exam.

the rules were quite clear when you registered… you shouldn’t have sent them away knowing they would overlap with the exam.

Harsh but true. Look at it this way, at least you got a new job. Level 1 will be there again in June.

I didnt have a choice, its the law in the UK! when you get a new job here the company hiring you has to sponsor your visa which means your passport has to be sent to the home office for a new visa. You think I would if i had a choice. The job came through at the last minute and my documents had to go.

Well, unless you can get your passport back in less than 2 weeks, you will need a policy exemption in order to sit for the exam. If you ask me, this should be reasonable given your circumstance. But then again, CFAI is not exactly known for reasonable behavior. I can’t really think of anything that you can do, other than calling CFAI and asking to speak to the person’s supervisor. Hopefully, you will eventually reach someone important enough to exempt you from the ID requirement.

can you go get a motor vehicle license between now and the exam date? why didn’t your employer allow you to just send a photocopy of the passport?

what about a statutory declaration or something similar?

I think you should keep contacting the home office to request for the temporary release of your passport. Its ridiculous for them to take a month for the visa process. Footballers joining premier league teams are given visas within hours coz the amount of taxable income is huge and seldom refused. So, keep trying, be polite and all the best. Btw, are you okay with your exam preparation. If not, you might be better off to go for June 2012 exam and concentrate on your new job since it looks like a great opportunity coz companies seldom go that far to sponsor someone unless you are really good.

Thanks for the reply guys but it seems the home office has stated that if the documents are returned the application will be considered withdrawn. Apparently a letter from the home office stating they have my documents is not good enough for CFAI. I am finding them to be quite unreasonable in their treatment.

that’s how it always is. CFAI rules are very absolute, and almost never yield.