Examination Overview – NISM Series XVII: Retirement Adviser Certification
This examination seeks to create a common minimum knowledge benchmark for individuals, proprietors, partners and representatives of a retirement adviser registered under PFRDA (Retirement Adviser) Regulations, 2016. The certification aims to enhance the quality of services provided by a retirement adviser in the financial services industry.
Examination Objectives
On successful completion of the Retirement Adviser examination, the candidate should:
Know the fundamental concepts in Retirement Planning and the various investment products.
Learn about the Retirement Planning Process.
Understand the features and benefits of National Pension System.
Know the various evaluation tools and fund selection.
Understand the strategies useful to investors in executing their retirement plan.
Know the implications of specific situations of retirement planning and the ways to manage them.
Know about regulatory structure and regulations which govern the activities of the retirement adviser.
For more details, please visit the official website of
NISM.
Assessment Structure
| Component |
Details |
| Mode of Exam |
Online (Computer-Based Test) |
| Language Options |
English |
| Number of Questions |
100 |
| Type of Questions |
Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) |
| Total Marks |
100 |
| Marks per Question |
1 mark |
| Passing Criteria |
60% (You need at least 60 correct answers) |
| Negative Marking |
25% of the marks assigned to the question |
| Exam Duration |
2 Hours (120 Minutes) |
| Exam Fee |
Rs. 1,500 (inclusive of GST) + payment gateway charges extra |
| Result Declaration |
Immediately after exam completion |
| Certificate Validity |
3 Years from the date of passing |
| PAN Requirement |
PAN must be updated in your profile to apply |
| Exam Delivery Modes |
At 150+ NISM test centers across India |
Syllabus Outline with Weightages
| Unit No. |
Unit Name |
Weightage (%) |
| Unit 1 | Fundamental Concepts in Retirement Planning | 5% |
| Unit 2 | Financial Markets & Investment Products | 10% |
| Unit 3 | Retirement Planning Process | 15% |
| Unit 4 | Retirement Planning Products: National Pension System | 20% |
| Unit 5 | Evaluating Fund Performance & Fund Selection | 10% |
| Unit 6 | Retirement Planning Products: Other Investment Products | 8% |
| Unit 7 | Retirement Planning Strategies | 12% |
| Unit 8 | Special Considerations in Retirement | 10% |
| Unit 9 | Regulations & Regulators | 10% |
What We Offer
Ace the NISM Series-XVII: Retirement Adviser exam with confidence and clarity!
500+ Exam-Focused Questions: Practice a wide range of mock questions based on real exam patterns and core concepts.
Aligned with the Latest NISM Syllabus: Stay current with updated IRDAI and PFRDA guidelines.
15-Day Access: Ample time to revise, practice and strengthen your understanding.
15 Test Attempts per Set: Improve your performance through repeated practice.
Affordable Pricing: Full access for just ₹599 (Inclusive of GST) — value-packed and efficient.
Frequently Asked Questions - NISM Series-XVII: Retirement Adviser
Finding a high-quality NISM XVII Retirement Adviser mock test is the most important step in preparing for this specialized exam. While some free tests might be available, they often don't cover the full PFRDA-regulated syllabus. For a reliable and comprehensive practice experience, nismexams.in offers a dedicated package with over 500+ exam-focused questions, ensuring your practice is perfectly aligned with the official NISM exam.
The NISM Series XVII exam is a 2-hour computer-based test consisting of 100 multiple-choice questions, with each question carrying one mark. A critical detail to remember is the 25% negative marking for every incorrect answer. To pass and earn the certification, you must achieve a minimum score of 60%. This structure demands a strong grasp of retirement planning concepts, along with excellent time management and accuracy.
Trying a NISM XVII Demo Test is an excellent way to evaluate the quality of a preparation platform before you commit. A good demo test should give you a clear insight into the question style and the online interface you can expect. While our main offering at nismexams.in is a comprehensive premium package, a demo helps you understand the value you'll get from our full Retirement Adviser Practice Test.
A strategic study plan must prioritize the chapters with the highest weightage. For the NISM Series XVII exam, you must concentrate on:
Retirement Planning Products: National Pension System (20%)
Retirement Planning Process (15%)
Retirement Planning Strategies (12%)
Financial Markets & Investment Products (10%)
Evaluating Fund Performance & Fund Selection (10%)
Regulations & Regulators (10%)
Mastering these chapters is essential as they constitute 77% of the entire exam.
A NISM XVII Mock Test is a complete simulation of the actual exam, not just a list of questions. It is timed for 2 hours, contains 100 questions structured according to the official syllabus weightages, and, most importantly, it applies the 25% negative marking. This is fundamentally different from a simple question bank because it trains you to handle the time pressure and strategic decision-making required for the real test, a core feature of the preparation offered on nismexams.in.
Relying solely on a free Retirement Adviser Mock Test is a very risky strategy for a professional certification regulated by PFRDA. Free resources are often not updated for the latest regulations, may contain errors, and rarely provide the comprehensive coverage needed. Investing in an affordable and expertly crafted package, like the one at nismexams.in, is a much more reliable way to ensure you pass on the first attempt.
The chapter on the National Pension System (NPS) carries the highest weightage at a massive 20%. This is because the NPS is the cornerstone of India's organized retirement savings landscape, and a retirement adviser must have an expert-level understanding of its features, tiers, tax benefits, and withdrawal rules. A significant portion of your exam questions will come from this single chapter.
To successfully pass the NISM Series-XVII: Retirement Adviser Certification Exam, you must score a minimum of 60%. This means you need to achieve a net score of at least 60 marks out of 100 after the 25% negative marking for any incorrect answers has been applied.
You can find a complete Retirement Adviser Model Test within the comprehensive preparation package at nismexams.in. Our platform is specifically designed to provide an authentic exam experience with multiple full-length mock tests. Each NISM XVII Model Test is created by industry experts to accurately reflect the difficulty, question format, and topic distribution of the actual NISM exam.
The 25% negative marking means that for every incorrect answer, 0.25 marks will be deducted from your score. In simple terms, for every four questions you get wrong, you lose one full mark. This makes random guessing a poor strategy and highlights the importance of accuracy. Practicing with our NISM XVII Practice Test helps you develop a strategy for when to answer and when to skip a question.
This certification is essential for individuals and entities who wish to register as a "Retirement Adviser" under the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA). This includes:
Individual financial planners focusing on retirement.
Proprietors and partners of financial advisory firms.
Representatives of companies offering retirement advisory services.
The 15-day access plan at nismexams.in is perfectly designed for focused, short-term preparation. A successful 15-day strategy would be:
Days 1-7: Go through our study materials (like concise notes) to quickly cover the core concepts of the high-weightage chapters, especially NPS and the retirement planning process.
Days 8-12: Dedicate this time to intensive practice with our 500+ Exam-Focused Questions, attempting chapter-wise tests.
Days 13-15: Take multiple full-length mock tests to master time management and get comfortable with the negative marking system.
Yes, it does. The chapter "Retirement Planning Products: Other Investment Products" (8% weightage) covers other financial instruments that are relevant to building a retirement corpus, such as mutual funds, insurance products (pension plans), and various small savings schemes. A good retirement adviser needs to have a holistic view of all available products.
This chapter carries a high weightage of 15% because it covers the practical, step-by-step methodology an adviser must follow. It includes crucial steps like client profiling, risk assessment, goal setting (corpus calculation), and creating a financial plan. This process-oriented knowledge is the foundation of providing effective and compliant advice.
Our package is designed for thorough practice. We offer 15 test attempts per set, which allows you to retry the tests multiple times. This repetition is key to identifying your weak areas, learning from your mistakes, and tracking your improvement, ensuring you are fully confident on exam day.
Yes, absolutely. Our content is always aligned with the latest NISM syllabus, which incorporates the relevant guidelines from regulators like PFRDA and IRDAI. The retirement advisory space is subject to regulatory updates, so using current study material is crucial. We ensure our question bank reflects the latest standards.
After you successfully pass the exam, the NISM Series-XVII: Retirement Adviser Certification is valid for a period of three years. To maintain your certification beyond this period, you will need to either pass the exam again or complete a Continuing Professional Education (CPE) program as prescribed by NISM.
Yes, our NISM XVII Practice Test includes numerical problems, as you can expect them in the actual exam. Our question bank features practical, calculation-based questions on topics like retirement corpus calculation, inflation-adjusted returns, and other aspects of financial planning to ensure you are well-prepared.
A Retirement Adviser Demo Test is a short, free sample designed to give you a preview of our platform and the quality of our questions. In contrast, a full mock test is a complete simulation of the actual exam, with 100 questions, a 2-hour timer, and negative marking. A demo is for a quick look, but only the full mock tests can properly prepare you for the intensity of the real exam.
Our course provides exceptional value. For just Rs. 599, you receive a complete and expertly designed preparation toolkit, including over 500 practice questions and multiple test attempts. This affordable, all-in-one package offers a structured and reliable path to passing an important PFRDA-mandated certification, saving you the potential cost and time of failing and needing to re-attempt the exam.
Be certified. Be trusted. Be ready for the future of retirement advisory.
Enroll Now and Start Your Journey!
Start Preparing Now - Be Exam Ready!