(Posted February 2024)
We were thrilled to congratulate our successful Densmore writers who passed the Common Final Examination (CFE) and the CPA Professional Education Program (CPA PEP) Core and Elective examinations in 2023. CPA Canada has now released the pass rates for 2023 and our writers’ hard work and endurance have included them in these results.
CFE pass rates for first-time writers for the past five years:
| CFE Offering | Pass Rates |
| 2023* | 70.5% |
| 2022* | 71.3% |
| 2021* | 73.6% |
| 2020 | 75.8% |
| 2019 | 76.5% |
*In 2021, 2022, and 2023, there were two offerings of the CFE in each calendar year. The pass rates listed in these years are the combined average of first-time writer performance on both the May and September CFEs in each calendar year.
CPA PEP Core and Elective module examination pass rates for first-time writers for the past five years:
| CPA PEP Modules | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 |
| Core 1 | 72.1% | 74.0% | 77.1% | 81.9% | 79.4% |
| Core 2 | 78.4% | 82.5% | 85.3% | 86.2% | 84.3% |
| Assurance | 87.6% | 89.7% | 90.5% | 88.0% | 89.2% |
| Finance | 87.1% | 87.2% | 89.1% | 89.1% | 89.9% |
| Performance Management | 90.2% | 89.5% | 90.9% | 90.7% | 90.6% |
| Taxation | 87.6% | 87.5% | 88.1% | 89.0% | 88.1% |
The pass rates stated by year are the average for first-time writers across the module offerings in each calendar year. Core and Elective modules were offered four times annually except in 2020 when only three offerings were available.
Other Resources
- You may download the Common Final Examination Reports published by the CFE Board of Examiners for past CFEs on CPA Canada’s website.
- If you are a CPA student considering whether a CFE Prep course is right for you, visit our website, or read our blog post for future CFE candidates, “Choosing the Right CFE Prep Course”.
- If you were not successful in your most recent attempt at the CFE, the Densmore team is here to help. You can find more information about your next step by visiting our website, or reading our blog post for future CFE candidates, “Didn’t Get Through the CFE”.