The CLFP exam is for equipment leasing and finance professionals with at least 3 years of verifiable industry experience who want the Certified Lease & Finance Professional designation. This page explains how the exam works, from the $695 fee to the 75% passing score. It matches each official content area to one of our free practice sets where we have one, and walks through sample questions with full explanations.
The CLFP has 4 questions, takes about 8 hours and costs $695[1][2] (Certified Lease & Finance Professional Foundation, verified Oct 27, 2026).
Numbers in brackets link to the official sources listed under Sources & last verified. Dates that have passed are removed automatically.
| Item | Detail | Source · Verified |
|---|---|---|
| Number of questions | 4 parts; multiple-choice, true/false, matching (no essays)[1] | Certified Lease & Finance Professional Foundation · Oct 27, 2026 |
| Time limit | 8 hours in one sitting[2] | Certified Lease & Finance Professional Foundation · Oct 27, 2026 |
| Passing score | 75% cumulative[2] | Certified Lease & Finance Professional Foundation · Oct 27, 2026 |
| Exam fee | $695 (includes $30 background check fee)[1] | Certified Lease & Finance Professional Foundation · Oct 27, 2026 |
| Retake fee | $265 per re-examination[1] | Certified Lease & Finance Professional Foundation · Oct 27, 2026 |
| Retake policy | Retake unpassed parts as many times as necessary within 1 year of initial exam[1] | Certified Lease & Finance Professional Foundation · Oct 27, 2026 |
| Validity | Valid indefinitely while in good standing (no re-examination required)[2] | Certified Lease & Finance Professional Foundation · Oct 27, 2026 |
| Delivery | Online proctored via Google Chrome extension (Proctorio), closed-book[1] | Certified Lease & Finance Professional Foundation · Oct 27, 2026 |
| Eligibility | Minimum 3 years verifiable equipment leasing/financing experience (1 year substitution permitted)[1] | Certified Lease & Finance Professional Foundation · Oct 27, 2026 |
| Score release | Immediate pass/fail notification upon submission[1] | Certified Lease & Finance Professional Foundation · Oct 27, 2026 |
| Testing window | On demand, year-round[1] | Certified Lease & Finance Professional Foundation · Oct 27, 2026 |
According to Certified Lease & Finance Professional Foundation, “Once the test has commenced, the candidate has a maximum of eight hours to answer various questions that are all automatically gradable e.g., true/false, matching, multiple choice, etc. (no essays).”[1]
The Certified Lease & Finance Professional Foundation awards the CLFP designation. It shows that you understand the equipment leasing and finance business across credit, documentation, pricing, law, accounting and operations.
Eligibility and cost. You need at least 3 years of verifiable equipment leasing and financing experience. Other financial experience can count for 1 of those years, and the Foundation asks candidates to check with it about eligibility. The application fee is $695. This includes a $30 non-refundable fee for a public records background check.
Delivery and format. The exam is closed-book. You take it online through a Google Chrome extension (Proctorio), so you can sit it at any time and from anywhere. It has 4 parts, taken in order in a single sitting, and you have up to 8 hours. Every question is graded automatically: multiple choice, true/false and matching, with no essays.
Scoring and retakes. You get a pass/fail result as soon as you submit. A cumulative score of 75% across the 4 parts passes. If your overall score is below 75%, the Foundation looks at the individual parts. You can retake any part you did not pass as many times as you need. Each re-examination costs $265, provided all parts are passed within 1 year of your first exam. Once certified, you do not take the exam again as long as you remain in good standing. Rules can change, so confirm the current details on the Foundation's website, clfpfoundation.org, before you apply.
The content areas below are copied from the official CLFP content outline published by Certified Lease & Finance Professional Foundation. The right-hand column shows which of our practice sets covers it.
| Official content area | Practice on this site |
|---|---|
| History & Overview of Leasing[4] | CLFP Equipment Finance Fundamentals Learn the basic lease types, who the parties to a transaction are, and how equipment leasing differs from other forms of financing. |
| Credit[4] | CLFP Credit Analysis & Risk Assessment Practise reading financial statements from a lender's point of view, especially cash flow from operations, and judging a lessee's ability to repay. |
| Documentation[4] | CLFP Lease Documentation & Contracts Know what standard lease clauses do, such as cross-default, hell-or-high-water and end-of-term options, and when each one matters. |
| Pricing[4] | CLFP Lease Structuring & Pricing Work through yield, payment and residual questions until you can explain how each cash flow changes the lessor's return. |
| Leasing Law[4] | CLFP Legal & Regulatory Compliance Review how a true lease differs from a disguised security interest, the basics of filing and perfection, and the compliance duties that apply to lessors. |
| Financial & Tax Accounting[4] | CLFP Tax & Accounting in Leasing Practise lease classification and accounting entries, and how tax ownership and depreciation affect the way a deal is structured. |
| Asset & Portfolio Management[4] | Mixed practice tests above Use the official material on residual setting, collections, end-of-lease handling and remarketing of returned equipment. |
| Funding, Operations, & Customer Service[4] | Mixed practice tests above Study how transactions are funded, booked and serviced, and how operations and customer service fit into the life of a lease. |
| Sales & Marketing[4] | Mixed practice tests above Review origination channels such as vendor programmes and direct sales, and how sales practices relate to credit and documentation. |
Prepare for the CLFP - Certified Lease & Finance Professional exam with our free practice test modules. Each quiz covers key topics to help you pass on your first try.
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.
Question: What is 'cash flow from operations' (CFO) and why is it the most important financial statement metric for lease underwriters?
Answer: A. CFO is the cash generated by core business operations, and it directly shows whether a lessee can fund lease payments without relying on asset sales or new debt
Explanation:
A is correct. Cash flow from operations (CFO) is the cash a business generates from its core activities. It leaves out investing and financing activities, so it is the clearest test of whether a lessee can pay a lease from the business itself, rather than by selling assets or taking on new debt.
Rule to remember: underwriters want repayment to come from recurring operating cash, not from paper profits, asset sales or new borrowing.
Question: What is a 'cross-default' clause in a lease agreement?
Answer: A. A provision making default on one agreement trigger default on all agreements with the same party
Explanation:
A is correct. A cross-default clause links agreements. If the lessee defaults under one agreement, that default also counts as a default under every other agreement it has with the same party. The lessor can then act on its whole exposure to the customer instead of waiting for each contract to go bad separately.
Rule to remember: cross-default protects the lessor across the whole relationship. A lessee with several agreements should read it closely, because a problem on one deal can put all of them at risk.
Question: What is 'yield' in the context of equipment lease pricing?
Answer: A. The internal rate of return (IRR) the lessor earns on its investment, considering all cash flows including tax benefits
Explanation:
A is correct. Yield is the lessor's internal rate of return on its investment. It is calculated from every cash flow in the deal: equipment cost, lease payments, residual value, tax benefits and funding costs.
Rule to remember: yield is an IRR on the lessor's investment and can be stated pre-tax or after-tax. Always check which basis a question is using.
Start with the official content outline from the CLFP Foundation. It covers more areas than any single practice source, so keep it as your checklist.
The application fee is $695, paid when you file your application. It includes a $30 non-refundable fee for a public records background check. If you need to retake any part, each re-examination costs $265, provided all parts are passed within 1 year of your first exam. Check the CLFP Foundation's website for current fees before you apply.
You need a cumulative score of 75% or higher across the exam's 4 parts. If your overall score is below 75%, the Foundation looks at the individual parts, so you may pass some parts and need to retake only the others. You get a pass/fail result as soon as you submit the exam.
Yes. The exam is delivered online through a Google Chrome extension (Proctorio), so you can take it at any time and from anywhere. It is closed-book and must be finished in a single sitting, with the parts taken in order. The Foundation recommends setting aside the full 8 hours.
You need at least 3 years of verifiable equipment leasing and financing experience. Other financial experience can count for 1 of those years. Because eligibility depends on your background, the Foundation asks candidates to check with it if they are unsure whether their experience qualifies.
You retake only the parts you did not pass, and you can retake them as many times as you need. Each re-examination costs $265, provided all parts are passed within 1 year of your first exam. If you are close to that 1-year limit, contact the Foundation to ask what applies in your case.
You do not need to take the exam again as long as you remain in good standing. The CLFP Foundation sets the requirements for staying in good standing, so check its website for what is currently expected of designation holders.
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