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Certified Fraud Examiner
The globally recognised gold standard
Your Benefits
Accreditation
The CFE “Certified Fraud Examiner” professional certificate has been around for over 25 years the only globally recognized professional certificate in the field of forensics and white-collar crime.
Gold standard
The comprehensive knowledge transfer to Fraud Prevention & Deterrence, Financial Transactions & Fraud Schemes, Investigation and Law make it international gold standard.
Career opportunities
The reputation and competence of a Certified Fraud Examiner opens highly interesting and international Calls in forensics at best salary opportunities.
Your Benefits
Content of the course
Step 1: Membership ACFE USA
Before you can take the CFE exam, you need Associate Membership with ACFE USA. This is a requirement for applying for the CFE exam. The annual costs for this are 175 or 195 USD (as of 03/2018). Prices for students ($25) and those with teaching jobs ($60) are significantly lower.
After passing the CFE exam, you will then have the "Membership ACFE". So you are a regular member of ACFE USA. The annual costs for this are on the same level as for Associate Membership.
Step 2: Preparation for the exam
The best preparation for the CFE exam is the "CFE Preparation Course" (English: "CFE Exam Review Course"). The price of the course includes the cost of membership, learning materials, examination fees, support and the 4-day on-site course including the exam! So everything you need for your Certified Fraud Examiner. The course is conducted in English by a professional ACFE certified trainer. At the same time, you have the convenience of being able to take your CFE exam on-site, supervised by the trainer, during the final 4-day classroom course.
The "Fraud Examiners Manual" and the electronic "CFE Exam Prep Course" are available in English for pure self-study.
With intensive full-time preparation, you should plan around three months, depending on the quality of your English language skills. You can only take the CFE exam in English. As part of the exam, you must use English technical terms, e.g. from various business disciplines as well as from the fields of law and criminology. Therefore, use the ACFE training material to test your language level and train your knowledge.
Step 3: Registration for the CFE exam
In order to be able to take the CFE exam and be awarded the title "Certified Fraud Examiner" after passing it, you need a minimum score based on the points calculator at ACFE USA.
Copies of degrees/diplomas are required as proof of professional training. The minimum requirement is two years of fraud-related professional experience. In addition, three letters of recommendation are required as proof of personal suitability. If you have already obtained other professional exams, there are options for crediting this point (cf. the exact provisions of the ACFE USA and the following link). The detailed admission requirements for the CFE can be found here:
Step 4: CFE exam
The CFE exam is taken either using the ACFE USA exam software (included in the CFE Exam Prep Course) or using the ACFE USA online portal. Anyone who wants to use the title "Certified Fraud Examiner" must pass the demanding CFE exam.
The cost of the CFE exam is $400. The fee reduces to $300 when the CFE Exam Prep Course is purchased. Exam retakes cost $25 each. (Prices: as of 07/2018)
Step 5: Review and confirmation
The submitted documents are reviewed by the ACFE USA and the final confirmation by the certification committee. It may take a few days between sending the exam results and receiving the confirmation.
Continuing education to maintain the CFE credential
The requirements for holding the title of Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) are:
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Membership in ACFE USA
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Passing the CFE exam
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Acknowledge the CFE Code of Professional Ethics promulgated by ACFE USA
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Proof of annual professional development (so-called CPE continuing education points)
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Optional: Membership in the ACFE German Chapter. Member benefits here.
The CFE Exam Candidate Handbook
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