CFA Institute

June 14, Dear Mr [redacted] : Thank you for contacting us about your IDUnfortunately, we are unable to grant an exception to our identification policy or a return of your registration fee in this instance, for the reasons discussed below CFA Institute requires an international travel passport from every candidate who sits for the CFA exam We adopted this policy because it sets forth one global standard, in the form of a single document that is both internationally obtainable and recognizable, that allows us to confirm the identity of our candidates, and to ensure that all candidates receive identical treatment during the exam day admissions process CFA Institute administers 227,examinations annually and we do our best to meet the needs of each candidateThe scale of our operations requires clear, well-communicated, and consistently applied policies for all candidatesThe requirement to present an international travel passport on exam day is communicated extensively to each candidate between registration and exam dayOur identification policy also clearly states that candidates without a valid international travel passport will not be permitted to sit for the exam and will forfeit their registration feeIt would be unfair to grant an exception in your case where other candidates in similar circumstances have been denied entry in accordance with CFA Institute policy In regard to your refund request, with the submission of your application for the CFA Program, you agreed to comply with our policies, including our refund policyThat policy states that, once four days have passed after your registration your CFA Program enrollment fee and exam registration fee are non-refundable and non-transferableThe CFA Program enrollment fee will remain valid throughout your candidacy, but you will need to pay the registration fee for any future exams We pride ourselves on providing a consistent and fair examination across the globe to all who choose to register and undertake our extensive programCFA Institute cannot relax its identification policy to accommodate candidates who have lost their passportsThe responsibility to obtain a valid passport and present it at the exam center both for morning and afternoon entrance is the responsibility of each candidate We are sorry that you lost your passport prior to the CFA exam, but neither this circumstance nor the alternate form(s) of ID you had available qualify you for an exception to the Identification Policy In order to be granted an exception, we require candidates to have an alternate form of identification that is passport-equivalent and allows for unrestricted international travelUnfortunately, your proposed alternative identification did not meet this standard All who choose to pursue the CFA designation know the dedication, commitment, and adherence to our policies that will be required We must consistently enforce our policies to all to uphold the integrity of CFA Institute and the value of obtaining the CFA Charter On behalf of CFA Institute, this closes your request for an exception to our identification policy Sincerely, Lisa S [redacted] Lisa S***, Corporate Counsel

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the offer and/or response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below
In reading the response offered by the CFA Institute, they failed to address several key issues in my original complaint. I have drafted a response (attached, please let me know if the attachment didn't come through) which addresses my rebuttals to the CFA Institute's letter. I ask that it please be forwarded to the CFA Institute if possible, and also ask that it be added to the complaint as a response to the Institute's letter.Please feel free to reach out to me if there are any issues, or anything else that I need to do in order to process my rejection of the CFA Institute's response
Regards,
*** ***

June 14, Dear Mr***: Thank you for contacting us about your IDUnfortunately, we are unable to grant an exception to our identification policy or a return of your registration fee in this instance, for the reasons discussed belowCFA Institute requires an international travel passport
from every candidate who sits for the CFA exam. We adopted this policy because it sets forth one global standard, in the form of a single document that is both internationally obtainable and recognizable, that allows us to confirm the identity of our candidates, and to ensure that all candidates receive identical treatment during the exam day admissions processCFA Institute administers 227,examinations annually and we do our best to meet the needs of each candidateThe scale of our operations requires clear, well-communicated, and consistently applied policies for all candidatesThe requirement to present an international travel passport on exam day is communicated extensively to each candidate between registration and exam dayOur identification policy also clearly states that candidates without a valid international travel passport will not be permitted to sit for the exam and will forfeit their registration feeIt would be unfair to grant an exception in your case where other candidates in similar circumstances have been denied entry in accordance with CFA Institute policyIn regard to your refund request, with the submission of your application for the CFA Program, you agreed to comply with our policies, including our refund policyThat policy states that, once four days have passed after your registration your CFA Program enrollment fee and exam registration fee are non-refundable and non-transferableThe CFA Program enrollment fee will remain valid throughout your candidacy, but you will need to pay the registration fee for any future examsWe pride ourselves on providing a consistent and fair examination across the globe to all who choose to register and undertake our extensive programCFA Institute cannot relax its identification policy to accommodate candidates who have lost their passportsThe responsibility to obtain a valid passport and present it at the exam center both for morning and afternoon entrance is the responsibility of each candidateWe are sorry that you lost your passport prior to the CFA exam, but neither this circumstance nor the alternate form(s) of ID you had available qualify you for an exception to the Identification Policy. In order to be granted an exception, we require candidates to have an alternate form of identification that is passport-equivalent and allows for unrestricted international travelUnfortunately, your proposed alternative identification did not meet this standardAll who choose to pursue the CFA designation know the dedication, commitment, and adherence to our policies that will be required. We must consistently enforce our policies to all to uphold the integrity of CFA Institute and the value of obtaining the CFA CharterOn behalf of CFA Institute, this closes your request for an exception to our identification policy. Sincerely, Lisa S*** Lisa S***, Corporate Counsel

I write to respond to the complaint identified above by Mr. [redacted] of [redacted].  Mr. ** is a candidate in the CFA Program of CFA Institute.  He requested that CFA Institute defer the administration of its exam as to him until 2018 on grounds that he...

fractured his leg and was unable to travel to the testing center to sit for the exam.   CFA Institute administers 227,000 examinations annually; we do our best to meet the needs of each candidate. The scale of our operations requires clear, well-communicated, and consistently applied policies for all candidates.   CFA Institute has a clearly publicized policy regarding deferrals ([redacted]).  During the registration process, Mr. ** consented to a Candidate Agreement that stated that he would abide by all exam policies, including the deferral policy.  Mr. **’s request for a deferral did not qualify for a deferral pursuant to this policy.   Mr. ** grants that CFA Institute has a policy regarding deferrals that states that a deferral is not guaranteed, but is rather offered at the discretion of CFA Institute.  The parties essentially dispute whether the injury experienced by Mr. ** was, or was not, a "life-threatening or very serious illness" consistent with the language of the policy.  The policy also clearly states that the discretion to determine whether a medical condition is indeed "life threatening or very serious" rests with CFA Institute.    Mr. ** was given a full and fair opportunity to provide CFA Institute with evidence and information regarding the extent of his injuries before CFA Institute exercised its discretion with respect to his deferral request.  In support of his request, Mr. ** provided a one-page medical document that CFA Institute considered.  This document does not include a statement of medical opinion that Mr. ** should remain in the hospital, which Mr. ** has offered in his complaint here.   In the absence of evidence that Mr. **'s condition was very serious, CFA Institute exercised its reserved discretion to reject Mr. **'s request for a deferral consistent with its policy.  While we appreciate that this is a disappointing result for Mr. **, we hope that he will appreciate that we are seeking to be fair to all candidates by applying our policies consistently.  We value Mr. **’s participation in the CFA Program and hope this response is helpful to all concerned.   Sincerely, Lisa S[redacted] Corporate Counsel CFA Institute

[redacted] called from the business he stated that since the exam took place CFA Institute has been in contact with [redacted] multiple times. He stated that an email was sent to [redacted] on [redacted] with her exam results since she is having issues viewing them. [redacted]...

stated that they are actively working with her. If [redacted] provides in writing that Revdex.com has her permission to receive her test results they will respond to Revdex.com with a copy of the test results to forward to her directly. With out the written consent CFA Insitutte can not provide any information to Revdex.com directly.

June 14, 2016
Dear Mr....

[redacted]: Thank you for contacting us about your ID. Unfortunately, we are unable to grant an exception to our identification policy or a return of your registration fee in this instance, for the reasons discussed below.
CFA Institute requires an international travel passport from every candidate who sits for the CFA exam.  We adopted this policy because it sets forth one global standard, in the form of a single document that is both internationally obtainable and recognizable, that allows us to confirm the identity of our candidates, and to ensure that all candidates receive identical treatment during the exam day admissions process.
CFA Institute administers 227,000 examinations annually and we do our best to meet the needs of each candidate. The scale of our operations requires clear, well-communicated, and consistently applied policies for all candidates. The requirement to present an international travel passport on exam day is communicated extensively to each candidate between registration and exam day. Our identification policy also clearly states that candidates without a valid international travel passport will not be permitted to sit for the exam and will forfeit their registration fee. It would be unfair to grant an exception in your case where other candidates in similar circumstances have been denied entry in accordance with CFA Institute policy.
In regard to your refund request, with the submission of your application for the CFA Program, you agreed to comply with our policies, including our refund policy. That policy states that, once four days have passed after your registration your CFA Program enrollment fee and exam registration fee are non-refundable and non-transferable. The CFA Program enrollment fee will remain valid throughout your candidacy, but you will need to pay the registration fee for any future exams.
We pride ourselves on providing a consistent and fair examination across the globe to all who choose to register and undertake our extensive program. CFA Institute cannot relax its identification policy to accommodate candidates who have lost their passports. The responsibility to obtain a valid passport and present it at the exam center both for morning and afternoon entrance is the responsibility of each candidate.
We are sorry that you lost your passport prior to the CFA exam, but neither this circumstance nor the alternate form(s) of ID you had available qualify you for an exception to the Identification Policy.  In order to be granted an exception, we require candidates to have an alternate form of identification that is passport-equivalent and allows for unrestricted international travel. Unfortunately, your proposed alternative identification did not meet this standard.
All who choose to pursue the CFA designation know the dedication, commitment, and adherence to our policies that will be required.  We must consistently enforce our policies to all to uphold the integrity of CFA Institute and the value of obtaining the CFA Charter.
On behalf of CFA Institute, this closes your request for an exception to our identification policy. 
Sincerely,
Lisa S[redacted]
Lisa S[redacted], Corporate Counsel

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the offer and/or response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.Hi,I am writing regarding the response you received from [redacted] (Legal Department of the CFA ) for my complaint ref. [redacted]
They have provided you wrong information and I want to address my concerns.First of all, he said that they contacted me multiple times and is not true.I have complained in the past about the poor customer service I received from them. For example, I wrote an email to the Customer Service on [redacted] and I did not get a response until [redacted].Secondly, the exam results should be issued on [redacted] by email, I got mine on [redacted] after sending several emails. As you can imagine, it caused me a lot of stress and I felt unwell during * days .Thirdly, the exam results should be visible online from [redacted] for a year. I still cannot see my results and CFA has not been able to solve the issue.On [redacted] I received a phone call from [redacted], Customer Service Manager (his telephone number is ** [redacted] understood that  I had been complaining lately about the Customer Service provided by  the CFA Institute including the bad experience I suffered  on the day of the exam.I felt that he was the first person that understood me. [redacted]  asked me what I wanted, to which I said that I wanted my exam to be reviewed. I failed the exam getting a band 8, which means that my mark was border line to a pass. He suggested that he wanted to help me and pass my details and escalate it to the Exam Administration department to review my mark and see if I could get a pass under the extraordinary circumstances that we spoke about during our conversation that lasted ** minutes. He also said that a [redacted] fee would be waived and he would contact me on [redacted] with a resolution.Today I am contacting you because [redacted] provided me with wrong and misleading information and I feel he lied to me.After his phone call I received an email from [redacted], a lawyer from the Counsel department. He advised that all further communications regarding my examination experience should be directed to him and his colleague, [redacted].  Until further notice, neither [redacted] nor any of the other CFA Institute employees included on my emails would be contacting me further regarding this matter. I believe his comments were unfair on me, I am still a customer and my problem had not been solved, hence I still had the right to contact the CFA Institute freely when I consider necessary;  specially when [redacted] contacted me suggesting that he would help me.[redacted], Customer Service Representative, also told me that the CFA institute takes every single candidate´s feedback and issues seriously.  [redacted] confirmed that the CFA Institute was unaware of any other candidates experiencing a similar issue getting their results; does it matter if nobody else is having this problem? Is he suggesting that it makes my case less important?When I tried to see my results online it read the below:"The CFA exam you are trying to access is not available. If you have questions about why you are receiving this message, please contact us"; reading this I had to feel free to contact Customer Service. Mr [redacted] should not deny my right of contacting other departments.I have also suffered poor Customer Service from [redacted]. I have raised complaints in the past regarding the CFA Institute, and once again, I raise my concerns; I believe his manners were not appropriate. I attach the emails he sent me for your records.Finally, I described to [redacted] in detail the telephone conversation with [redacted].He requested that I provided him with a copy of that recording to confirm whether [redacted] made the undertakings which I alleged in order for him to take the appropriate action.  Without a copy of the recording he cannot confirm [redacted]´s  allegations (review my exam and waive [redacted] fee) and would disagree. Once again, I am disappointed of how  [redacted] treated my matter, he should explain to the Legal department our conversation and it is not my responsibility to provide a copy; all Customer Service departments must keep a copy for training and legal purposes. It is their responsibility and not mine to provide these details.I kindly ask that I am not contacted again in this manner by [redacted], Legal department. If this happens again I will consider this a form of intimidation and harassment towards what I consider to be a reasonable and justified request given my personal experience and circumstances. Please note that I have not taken any legal action yet against the Cfa Institute, hence I should not be contacted by a Legal department.As promised by [redacted], I would expect my issue to be raised with the Exam administration department to review my exam for a pass rate and waive the [redacted] fee. I am also expecting a phone call from [redacted] as advised on [redacted]  *
[redacted]. Now and [redacted]  denies all what [redacted] told me over the phone. Please get the opportunity to request a copy of our conversation to the CFA Institute and you would clearly realise that they are lying to me.I hope you understand and I await your phone call.Yours sincerely[redacted] 
[redacted]

Review: I am currently a candidate in the CFA Institute's CFA program, and was scheduled to take their CFA Level 2 exam today. However, the institute will only accept a US Passport for identification purposes, and I discovered last night that my passport had been lost. In a panic, I called CFA Institute last night to ask what I should do. The representative named "Chris [redacted]" was extremely rude. Ms. [redacted] constantly interrupted me throughout the discussion, made no secret that she had absolutely no interest in helping me at all, kept suggesting that I could apply for a new passport (at 10pm the night before), and informed me that every other form of ID I had was unacceptable, but that if I felt I had something, she "would look forward to reviewing it" (which was said in a clearly sarcastic manner). She told me to either find the passport or register for next year's exam. This is one of the worst examples of customer service I have ever been exposed to, where she made it extremely clear that she had absolutely no interest in helping the customer and that there was nothing I could do about it.

With regard to the situation at hand, I have several forms of legal government issued identification that could have acted as a substitute in this emergency, including a US drivers license (which really should be the primary ID used anyways), Global Entry card (a TSA issued photo ID card indicating that I have been accepted into the global entry program and allows for expedited international travel), as well as my birth certificate and social security card (which are what the passport ultimately represents). Their rigidity in this matter has resulted in hundreds of hours of wasted time, $1600 wasted in exam registration fees and study materials, not to mention the opportunity cost of time away from my family. CFA Institute should have less rigid policies in place to address situations such as this, and they should employ people that seek to HELP their customers, not belittle and frustrate them.Desired Settlement: My actual desired outcome is for CFAI to schedule a make-up exam that I can take immediately (so as not to be unfair to other test takers) and allow me to use my drivers license for identification purposes in this instance. That is my actual desired outcome.

Absent of that, my desired outcome is either a full cash refund of the exam registration fee paid for the 2016 CFA Level 2 exam or (absent that) a full deferment to allow me to take the June 2017 CFA Level 2 exam at no cost.

Business

Response:

June 14, 2016 Dear Mr. [redacted]: Thank you for contacting us about your ID. Unfortunately, we are unable to grant an exception to our identification policy or a return of your registration fee in this instance, for the reasons discussed below. CFA Institute requires an international travel passport from every candidate who sits for the CFA exam. We adopted this policy because it sets forth one global standard, in the form of a single document that is both internationally obtainable and recognizable, that allows us to confirm the identity of our candidates, and to ensure that all candidates receive identical treatment during the exam day admissions process. CFA Institute administers 227,000 examinations annually and we do our best to meet the needs of each candidate. The scale of our operations requires clear, well-communicated, and consistently applied policies for all candidates. The requirement to present an international travel passport on exam day is communicated extensively to each candidate between registration and exam day. Our identification policy also clearly states that candidates without a valid international travel passport will not be permitted to sit for the exam and will forfeit their registration fee. It would be unfair to grant an exception in your case where other candidates in similar circumstances have been denied entry in accordance with CFA Institute policy. In regard to your refund request, with the submission of your application for the CFA Program, you agreed to comply with our policies, including our refund policy. That policy states that, once four days have passed after your registration your CFA Program enrollment fee and exam registration fee are non-refundable and non-transferable. The CFA Program enrollment fee will remain valid throughout your candidacy, but you will need to pay the registration fee for any future exams. We pride ourselves on providing a consistent and fair examination across the globe to all who choose to register and undertake our extensive program. CFA Institute cannot relax its identification policy to accommodate candidates who have lost their passports. The responsibility to obtain a valid passport and present it at the exam center both for morning and afternoon entrance is the responsibility of each candidate. We are sorry that you lost your passport prior to the CFA exam, but neither this circumstance nor the alternate form(s) of ID you had available qualify you for an exception to the Identification Policy. In order to be granted an exception, we require candidates to have an alternate form of identification that is passport-equivalent and allows for unrestricted international travel. Unfortunately, your proposed alternative identification did not meet this standard. All who choose to pursue the CFA designation know the dedication, commitment, and adherence to our policies that will be required. We must consistently enforce our policies to all to uphold the integrity of CFA Institute and the value of obtaining the CFA Charter. On behalf of CFA Institute, this closes your request for an exception to our identification policy. Sincerely, Lisa S[redacted] Lisa S[redacted], Corporate Counsel

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the offer and/or response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

In reading the response offered by the CFA Institute, they failed to address several key issues in my original complaint. I have drafted a response (attached, please let me know if the attachment didn't come through) which addresses my rebuttals to the CFA Institute's letter. I ask that it please be forwarded to the CFA Institute if possible, and also ask that it be added to the complaint as a response to the Institute's letter.Please feel free to reach out to me if there are any issues, or anything else that I need to do in order to process my rejection of the CFA Institute's response.

Regards,