The CBCI exam from the Business Continuity Institute is for people working in business continuity and resilience who want the Certificate of the BCI. This page gives the checked exam facts, including 90 multiple-choice questions in 90 minutes and a pass mark of 63 correct. It also links to free practice sets grouped by topic and walks through sample questions. We write our questions with AI tools, and they are not real exam items.

BCI Exam at a Glance

What changed for BCI in 2026

• Oct 27, 2026: Eligibility changed to Purchase via Licensed Training Partner or BCI Shop bundle (previously Buy via a Licensed Training Partner or BCI Shop bundle).^[1]
• Oct 27, 2026: Time limit changed to 90 minutes (previously 90 minutes (plus 15-20 min ID and workspace checks)).^[1]
• Oct 27, 2026: Passing score changed to 63 of 90 correct (77+ for Pass with Merit) (previously 63 of 90 correct (77+ = Pass with Merit)).^[1]
• Oct 27, 2026: Testing window changed to 60 days from purchase or registration (previously 60 days from purchase/registration).^[1]
• Oct 27, 2026: Retake policy changed to Wait 30 days after first attempt (previously Retake after 30 days).^[2]
• Oct 27, 2026: Score release changed to Provisional results within 30 minutes; verified results within 4 weeks (previously Provisional result by email within 30 min; verified within 4 weeks).^[2]
• Oct 27, 2026: Validity changed to 12 months complimentary CBCI membership (previously 12 months free CBCI-grade membership after passing).^[2]
• Oct 27, 2026: Renewal changed to Annual CBCI membership fee; grade held up to 3 years (previously Annual CBCI membership fee to keep postnominals).^[2]
• Oct 27, 2026: Delivery changed to Online, closed-book, remote proctored (previously Online, closed-book, live remote proctoring).^[2]

What the BCI is and how it works

According to Business Continuity Institute, “The CBCI Exam is a 90-minute exam that consists of 90 multiple-choice questions and is designed to test candidates’ understanding of the course content, including all six professional practices.”^[1]

The CBCI exam leads to the Certificate of the BCI. It tests how well you understand the CBCI course content, including the BCI's professional practices. You can only take it online, in a real-time proctored session run by the BCI's partners Prolydian and Proctor 360, and it is closed-book.

You buy the exam through a BCI Licensed Training Partner as part of the CBCI Certification Course. You can also buy it in the BCI Shop as part of the CBCI online course bundle or the CBCI Self-Study bundle. Prices depend on which route you choose, so check the BCI site. After you buy or register, you have 60 days to take the exam.

The exam has 90 multiple-choice questions and a 90-minute time limit. You need at least 63 correct answers to pass, and 77 or more gets you a Pass with Merit. Provisional results come by email within 30 minutes of leaving the exam, and verified results follow within 4 weeks.

If you fail, you can retake the exam once 30 days have passed since your first attempt date. Each re-sit costs £160.

If you pass, you get 12 months of BCI membership at the CBCI grade with no membership fee. After that, you can keep using the CBCI postnominals only while you pay CBCI membership fees. The candidate pack says the grade can be held for up to 3 years. Before you book, check the details in the official CBCI Candidate Information Pack and on the BCI's CBCI exam page.

Worked examples: how to reason through BCI questions

These are practice questions written for this site, not questions from the real exam. Each explanation shows why the right answer is right and why the others are wrong.

Example 1

Question: What should a Business Continuity Manager include in a supplier contract to support organizational resilience?

1. BC and DR requirements, notification obligations, and the right to audit the supplier's BC plans
2. Only standard payment terms and service-level agreements
3. A clause prohibiting the supplier from working with competitors
4. Annual price escalation caps and delivery timeframes only

Answer: A. BC and DR requirements, notification obligations, and the right to audit the supplier's BC plans

Explanation:

A is correct. The supplier contract is what makes your continuity expectations enforceable. It should include business continuity and disaster recovery requirements, a duty to tell you about disruptions, and the right to audit the supplier's BC plans. That gives you a standard to hold the supplier to and a way to check they meet it.

B is wrong because payment terms and service levels cover normal service, not how the supplier recovers after a disruption. C is a commercial restriction that does nothing for resilience. D covers only pricing and delivery and says nothing about recovery.

Rule to remember: if your organisation depends on a supplier, put the supplier's continuity obligations, notification duties and your audit rights in the contract.

Example 2

Question: How does risk assessment contribute to BCM?

1. By focusing on financial costs
2. By identifying threats and guiding mitigation strategies
3. By increasing operational costs
4. By reducing business innovation

Answer: B. By identifying threats and guiding mitigation strategies

Explanation:

B is correct. Risk assessment finds threats and vulnerabilities, judges how likely and how serious each one is, and uses that to decide which mitigation measures are worth taking. In BCM, its results feed into the choice of continuity strategies, together with business impact analysis.

A is wrong because financial cost is only one kind of impact. Risk assessment covers threats to operations, people, sites, technology and suppliers. C is wrong because the aim is not to raise costs. Risk assessment helps you spend where the risk is highest. D is wrong because it is not meant to hold back innovation, and it can support well-informed risk-taking.

Rule to remember: risk assessment asks what could disrupt us and how likely and serious that would be. The answers decide the mitigation.

Example 3

Question: What does a Supplier Business Continuity Assessment (BCA) primarily evaluate?

1. Whether a supplier has adequate BC plans and capabilities to recover within your required timeframes
2. The pricing competitiveness of a supplier's products
3. The geographic diversity of a supplier's warehouse locations
4. A supplier's carbon footprint and sustainability record

Answer: A. Whether a supplier has adequate BC plans and capabilities to recover within your required timeframes

Explanation:

A is correct. A Supplier Business Continuity Assessment checks whether a supplier has adequate continuity plans and can recover within the timeframes your organisation needs. What matters is whether their recovery capability fits your own tolerances, such as the recovery objectives set during business impact analysis.

B is wrong because pricing is a procurement question, not a continuity one. C is wrong because having warehouses in different places may be one factor, but it does not prove the supplier can recover in time. D is wrong because carbon footprint is part of a sustainability assessment, not a continuity assessment.

Rule to remember: judge suppliers against your own recovery requirements, not their general reputation or price.

How to use these practice tests

Start with the official material. Read the CBCI course content and the Candidate Information Pack so you know the exam rules and how the BCI sets out the professional practices. Then use our sets to find your weak spots.

• Take the starting practice test to see which topics you miss most often.
• Do the core sets next: Business Continuity Management & Strategy, Business Impact Analysis, Risk Assessment & Impact Analysis, Crisis Management & Incident Response and Recovery Planning & Testing.
• For scenario-style questions, add Supply Chain & Vendor Management and Case Analysis & Practical Application.
• For every wrong answer, find the matching section in the course material and write the rule down in your own words.
• Before test day, practise under time pressure. The real exam gives you 90 minutes for 90 questions, so get used to working at a steady pace.

Plan your study around the 60-day window that starts when you buy or register, and book your proctored session with time to spare. Our sets do not match the real exam's mix of topics, so treat the course content as your main source.

Sources & last verified

1. Business Continuity Institute — number of questions, time limit, passing score, eligibility (official source). “The CBCI Exam is a 90-minute exam that consists of 90 multiple-choice questions and is designed to test candidates’ understanding of the course content, including…” Verified Oct 27, 2026 · source checked Oct 27, 2026.
2. Business Continuity Institute — retake fee, retake policy, validity, renewal (official source). “There is a re-sit charge of GBP 160 for any subsequent attempts.” Verified Oct 27, 2026.

How we verify: editorial & fact-checking policy. Report an error: contact us.