R04 Mock Exam

CII R04 Pensions & Retirement
Planning

253 realistic practice questions covering state pension, auto-enrolment, SIPPs, drawdown, annuities, DB transfers and death benefits — fully updated for 2025/26 including the post-LTA rules.

253 questions 8 learning outcomes Updated 2025/26 100 MCQs · 2 hours Pass mark 65%

Start practising — from £17.99/month Free cheat sheet

What you get

Everything you need to pass R04

Comprehensive pensions practice covering the full breadth of the R04 syllabus — including the changes introduced by the abolition of the Lifetime Allowance.

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Post-LTA questions included

Lump Sum Allowance (£268,275) and Lump Sum and Death Benefit Allowance (£1,073,100) — all questions reflect the rules in force from 6 April 2024.

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Annual allowance calculations

Standard AA (£60,000), tapered AA for high earners, money purchase AA and carry forward — all tested with worked examples.

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Practice by learning outcome

Drill any of the 8 LOs individually — ideal if you know DB transfers or death benefits are your weak spots going into the exam.

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Instant explanations

Every question includes a detailed explanation covering the rule, the calculation method, and why the other options are wrong.

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Timed exam mode

Simulate the real 2-hour paper with a 100-question timed test. Get your score and full explanations after.

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Progress tracking

See your accuracy by learning outcome. Know whether your weak area is state pension, auto-enrolment, or DB transfer rules before exam day.

Sample question

See the question quality

Every question is written to the standard you'll face in the real R04 exam.

R04 · LO3 Auto-enrolment — policy rationale

Which of the following best describes the primary reason the UK Government introduced auto-enrolment into workplace pensions?

A To reduce the cost of the State Pension by encouraging private saving
B To remove the State Pension entirely for future generations
C To make pension saving compulsory for all UK workers regardless of employer
D To replace defined benefit schemes with defined contribution schemes

Correct answer: A

Auto-enrolment was introduced primarily to boost private pension saving and reduce future reliance on state provision, thereby reducing the long-term cost to the government of funding the State Pension. The policy uses inertia to its advantage — most workers who are enrolled stay enrolled. It does not make saving compulsory (workers can opt out), does not abolish the State Pension, and is not specifically designed to replace DB schemes.

Syllabus coverage

All 8 R04 learning outcomes

Questions mapped to every learning outcome so you can see exactly where you stand.

LO1The state pension — new state pension, qualifying years and deferral

LO2Occupational pension schemes — DB, DC, hybrid and governance

LO3Auto-enrolment — eligibility, contributions, opt-out and compliance

LO4Individual pension arrangements — personal pensions, SIPPs and stakeholder

LO5Pension tax relief — annual allowance, carry forward and tapered allowance

LO6Benefits and options at retirement — drawdown, annuities, UFPLS and PCLS

LO7Death benefits — expression of wishes, lump sums and dependants' pensions

LO8Pension transfers — DB transfer rules, CETV and advice requirements

Common questions

R04 exam FAQs

Everything you need to know before you start revising.

The CII R04 exam contains 100 multiple-choice questions to be answered in 2 hours.

The pass mark for R04 is 65%.

Yes. The Lifetime Allowance was abolished from 6 April 2024 and replaced by the Lump Sum Allowance (£268,275) and the Lump Sum and Death Benefit Allowance (£1,073,100). All Path2Adviser R04 questions reflect this change.

The annual allowance (£60,000 for 2025/26), auto-enrolment rules, pension drawdown vs annuity, the new state pension (currently £230.25/week), and death benefit rules are consistently high-frequency exam topics.

CII R04 Pensions & RetirementPlanning