🇺🇸 United States · Accounting

Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) Syllabus

Anti-fraud credential from the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) for fraud investigation and forensic accounting.. The complete Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) outline — 5 subjects, 22 chapters and 74 topics — laid out so you can see exactly what has to be covered and tick each item off as you go.

5Subjects

22Chapters

74Topics

142Sub-topics

265Flashcards

~85hEst. first pass

Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) subjects

Each subject below has its own page with the full chapter → topic → sub-topic tree and a set of real exam-style flashcards.

Accounting and Forensic Concepts

3 chapters · 9 topics · 22 sub-topics

~10h first pass · 50 flashcards Financial Transactions and Fraud Schemes

5 chapters · 19 topics · 37 sub-topics

~20h first pass · 51 flashcards Law

4 chapters · 15 topics · 25 sub-topics

~15h first pass · 63 flashcards Investigation

5 chapters · 16 topics · 29 sub-topics

~20h first pass · 50 flashcards Fraud Prevention and Deterrence

5 chapters · 15 topics · 29 sub-topics

~15h first pass · 51 flashcards

Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) flashcard decks

265 question-and-answer cards across 5 decks, written against this syllabus. Preview any deck free.

How to work through the Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) syllabus

The outline on this page is arranged the way the syllabus itself is: subject, then chapter, then topic, then sub-topic. That last level is what most study plans skip, and it is where coverage actually goes wrong — a chapter marked "done" often has three sub-topics inside it that were never touched.

Weight your plan accordingly: Financial Transactions and Fraud Schemes carries 19 topics while Accounting and Forensic Concepts carries 9. Giving both the same number of weeks is the most common planning mistake for Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE).

The ~85 hour estimate above is a first pass only: roughly 45 minutes per topic plus 12 minutes per sub-topic. Revision cycles, past papers and mocks sit on top of that number.

Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) syllabus FAQ

What subjects are in the Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) syllabus?

Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) covers 5 subjects: Accounting and Forensic Concepts, Financial Transactions and Fraud Schemes, Law, Investigation and Fraud Prevention and Deterrence. Together they contain 22 chapters and 74 named topics.

How much do you have to study for Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE)?

The full Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) outline breaks down into 22 chapters, 74 topics and 142 sub-topics. Financial Transactions and Fraud Schemes is the largest single subject with 19 topics across 5 chapters.

How long does it take to cover the whole Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) syllabus?

Roughly 85 hours for one full pass. That estimate allows about 45 minutes per topic plus 12 minutes per sub-topic, so it is first-pass coverage — revision, past papers and mock tests sit on top of it. At 3 hours a day that is about 4 weeks.

Are there Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) flashcards?

Yes — 265 question-and-answer flashcards across 5 decks, one per subject, written against this syllabus. A sample of every deck is readable on this site for free, and the complete decks are in the Examius app.

Is this Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) syllabus free to use?

Yes. Every page here is free to read, and importing the Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) syllabus into the Examius app to tick off topics as you finish them is free too, in United States and everywhere else. No account is needed to start.

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